April 25, 2021

The Busy Syndrome: When Life Gets Too Busy

In this video, Dr. Chuck interviews author Kathy Carlton Willis on the “busy syndrome” that affects many people nowadays and some tips to overcome it.

The Busy Syndrome

Dr. Chuck: Welcome to Spoonful of Courage, I’m Doctor Page. You know we all seem to have this garbage in, garbage out syndrome. I’m here at the garbage heap. We’re here with Kathy Carton Willis who’s going to give us some tips on how to begin to prioritize things in our life and how to get out of this busy but barren syndrome. Stay tuned and let’s hear some tips from Kathy.

One of the things you talk about is that epidemic that we’re seeing in our society, the “busy syndrome”. Kathy tell us, what do you mean by that?

Kathy Willis: Well, I’ve just noticed that people have started to have a status symbol with the word “busy”. When people say “how are you doing?” they say, “oh, I’m busy” and they really think that it makes them more important if they’re busy, and they cram their schedule full of things. They do it to please other people, they do it to look more important and they feel like it’s part of being perfect. And we have that “Pintrest perfection syndrome” of just wanting everything to look just great on social media. Well, that feeds into that busy syndrome and everyone I talk to that deals with that their lives are so chaotic, and they don’t experience any sense of peace or calm or contentment because they’re always in a hurry to get to the next thing. But the problem with it is it also causes you to have an excuse for why you can’t do something. And so a lot of times when I’m coaching someone we’ll set up a goal for them, and it’s a very doable goal, but in their mind it’s impossible, even though it’s something that God has put on their hearts, to do. And it’s impossible because they’re busy, and so I really challenge them to streamline what they’re doing, start taking things away from the schedule instead of adding things in, get to a place of calm and peace in their spirit and in their soul, and then they can work on the body. Then they have time and a purpose to add-in some things that will help them with their health.

Dr. Chuck: So, Kathy, it is an epidemic. We are busy, but we’re barren spiritually, and so, as you coach people, you begin to give them the steps that they need to take, to begin to move into this lifestyle of wellness. And what would be your spoonful of courage that you tell your, you know, the people that you coach? What would be that spoonful, that first step that they need to make, to begin to slow down and begin to look at their body, soul and spirit?

Kathy Willis: The first step is really to say “no”, and I know it sounds simple, but we say “yes” so often. The one thing we should say yes to is God, but instead we say, “God, we know you’ll understand, because I’m so busy and I’ve said yes to the school to do this and I’ve said yes to my work to do this, and my family wants me to do this. And, God, you surely understand all that?” Well instead, I want them to identify somethings that God never led them to do, but they said yes anyway. Let’s start saying no more. We start by praying about it, and when we don’t have peace that God wants us to do it, why are we cramming that into our already busy schedule? So say no first, then you have room to say yes to God.

Dr. Chuck: It’s so simple that Kathy was telling us it begins getting out of the garbage heap in our lives. The garbage in, garbage out, the busy but barren syndrome, the Pinterest perfection, she said, begins with just simply saying “no”. By just not stuffing stuff in our lives that don’t need to be there. Now you can connect with Kathy at kathycartonwillis.com. She’s a coach, she helps people, and she’s known as God’s Grin Gal and I hope that you will connect with her. Stay tuned, we’ve got some more great interviews for you here on Spoonful of Courage.

So what can you do when life gets too busy?

The first step is to say “no”. We get so used to saying “yes” to everything and sometimes forget that “no” is even an option. It’s impossible to please everyone, yet people try to by taking on so many different tasks and obligations that it just makes life unnecessarily stressful and chaotic. In fact, being stressed all the time can lower your immune system and make you susceptible to different health problems, as well as mental health problems.

This doesn’t mean you have to start saying “no” to everything, just identify what holds priority so you don’t stretch yourself so thin that there’s nothing left for you. Remind yourself it’s okay not to be busy all the time.

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For more Spoonfuls of Courage, check out Dr. Chuck’s show Spoonful of Courage TV or buy the books A Spoonful of Courage for the Sick and Suffering: Transforming Your Greatest Challenges into Your Biggest Blessings and Spoonful of Courage: Equations to Find Grace in Life’s Challenges on Amazon.