Too Busy to Solve the Problem of Being Too Busy?

You'll probably wait for burnout.

I work with a lot of people between 20 and 40 who are chasing success. Ambitious. Capable. Driven. And when they first come to see me, most of them have one thing in common.

They're too busy to deal with being too busy.

The thing they need most is to slow down. But slowing down feels like falling behind. So they do the opposite. They go faster. They push harder. They hope they'll reach the goal before they burn out.

The puncture you keep driving on

Picture this. You're driving and you know you've got a puncture. But you're already late.

Instead of pulling over to look at it and change the tyre, you put your foot down. You're hoping to outrun it.

Here's the problem. The faster you drive, the faster the tyre goes down. Soon you're on the rim. Now you're damaging the wheel. Keep going and you're damaging the car.

What started as a quick tyre change becomes a much bigger repair.

Why we keep pushing

This is exactly what happens when we know something's wrong and we ignore it. We tell ourselves it'll sort itself out. That if we just work harder, get through this month, hit this target, it'll all settle down.

It rarely does.

And it's not your fault. You learnt to operate this way. Maybe from school, work, family, or a culture that rewards being busy. Pushing through has probably served you well in the past. That's why it's so hard to stop.

Pulling over

Slowing down doesn't mean giving up on your goals. It means checking the car is fit to get you there.

Start small. Ask yourself:

What have I been ignoring because I'm "too busy"?What's it costing me right now?What would it cost me if I kept going another six months?

Be honest with your answers. That's you pulling over.

You can change course

The fact you've read this far tells me something. Part of you already knows.

You don't have to wait for burnout to force you to stop. You can choose to stop now, look at what's really going on, and deal with it while it's still a tyre and not the whole car.

If you'd like some help doing that, I'm here. Get in touch and let's talk.