Lab Reaction:You’re Too Busy. You Need a ‘Shultz Hour.’

I’ll admit that I’ve developed a pretty bad habit over the years. Instead of becoming less busy through the efficiencies afforded me by ever-improving technologies, I have instead used that technology to get more done.

Or at least that’s what I tell myself.

I make myself too busy. I take on more projects. I don’t say no.

And now that I find myself running in many more directions, I often feel less productive than I did even five years ago. Part of this — I believe — is due to not regularly taking breaks.

I’m always checking email, available on Slack, responding to Tweets, etc.

So when I stumbled across this article about taking time for quiet reflection, I realized what a hypocrite I’ve become.

I will often lecture friends and family about taking time away from work to just — for lack of a better word — be. Not thinking about work. Not trying to figure out when all the home improvement projects will get done. Not worrying about current events.

I don’t think I’m alone in this. As a society, it seems we think busy is better, going through our days with the mindset that we are lazy if we aren’t spending all of our waking hours on professional endeavors.

Maybe some inefficiencies are what we need. If we are running full-steam ahead all of the time, we will eventually miss a curve in the road and crash. Hard.

If a US Secretary of State can schedule an hour a week, I’m pretty sure we can too.