I didn’t think that saying I was crazy busy was necessarily a negative thing until I read a recent article by author, Tim Kreider called The ‘Crazy Busy’ Trap. In the article he gave examples of how we have become to busy for things that we used to do routinely, like connecting with family and friends, and he contends that we allow ourselves to get sucked into more busyness. “It’s not as if any of us wants to do this,” he wrote. “It’s something we collectively force one another to do.”
That comment particularly resonated with me as I thought of all the things I now do in my hours at work that have nothing to do with writing. Much of it is at the request of my publishers – you must have a marketing plan and be out there promoting. And some of it is peer pressure. When I read blogs by successful authors who outline what they do to reach more readers and generate sales, I think I should be doing that, too.
A key is to find a balance between the time one spends promoting and the time one spends writing, keeping in mind that some quiet time in between feeds creativity the way food nourishes our bodies.
Kreider encourages us to consider the benefits of idleness, suggesting that out of idle contemplation come some of the greatest ideas. He suggests that “The space and quiet that idleness provides is a necessary condition for standing back from life and seeing it whole, for making unexpected connections and waiting for the wild summer lightening strikes of inspiration – it is, paradoxically, necessary to getting any work done.”
There is some truth to that. I know that I often get a solution to a plotting problem when I am not working so hard to find it. Morning walks are often very fruitful, although that is not really being idle as in doing nothing.
I have a hard time with the idea of spending a chunk of every day in total idleness. Maybe because my grandmother told me about idle hands and all that, and I took her much too seriously. Or maybe I’m just one of those people who have a hard time turning it all off. I will sit very still for maybe a half hour to watch TV or listen to an audiobook but soon start looking for something to do. Is there a crossword puzzle handy? How about a jigsaw puzzle, or a bit of knitting. Even petting the cat would satisfy me, but sitting and doing absolutely nothing is so hard for me.
Kreider, an author and cartoonist recently made a choice to add more idleness to his days. He moved to a remote area where he has no television and no Internet. He says he has written a lot in the time he’s been there, and the writing is better than what he was producing when trying to fit it in between all the other ‘work.’ He acknowledges that this decision may mean that he will never get rich and famous as a writer, but he is okay with that. He says he would rather spend time with people he loves doing things that he loves than being absorbed with work. “Life is too short to be busy.”
I don’t think I would ever take that kind of drastic step, but I am happy to have validation for the time I stop everything else to take a walk, do some quilting or coloring, or pet my cat.
Grandma will just have to get over it.
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Tim Kreider is the author of We Learn Nothing , a collection of essays and cartoons.
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Since I’m super busy with my impending move, I’ll be sharing some older posts on my blog through the month of September and into October. This super busyness flies in the face of the message in this blog post that first appeared in a blog for Venture Galleries in 2012, but I think Time Kreider will give me a pass here. I promise to find an hour each day to not be so busy.
Sadly, Venture Galleries closed not long after the death of Caleb Pirtle III, a prolific author as well as great mentor to other authors. I was happy to call him friend. When he died in 2023, I wrote a tribute to him.