Retiring the Busy Badge
From Chicken Soup for the Soul: Change Your Habits, Change Your Life
By Debra Ayers Brown

If you’re always racing to the next moment, what happens to the one you’re in? Slow down and enjoy the moment you’re in and live your life to the fullest.
~Nanette Mathews

For years, I’d worn “busy” like a badge of honor, convinced that the more I accomplished, the more I’d be worth. This mindset played out in everyday conversations, like the one l had in the grocery store checkout line.

“How have you been?” someone asked.

“Oh, just busy,” I replied, smiling as if that answer earned me a gold star.

Busy was more than a buzzword. In my mind, it meant productive, accomplished, and needed. It represented my badge of honor. I packed my calendar, to-do lists, and life with extra stuff. Not rushing from one activity to the next meant that I was behind or, heaven help me, lazy.

Somehow, I had bought into the idea that being busy was the be-all, end-all positive attribute, and multitasking was the best skill. Slowing down and resting seemed a luxury for later. (Keep reading)