Why The Anxiety Of Productivity Is Killing You
250 words/min = 4 min Read
You are not alone. Many people are affected by the anxiety of productivity every day and have no idea. Our modern society tells us to compress more activities into smaller segments of time. Think about it, how popular would a weight loss program be that advertised “We will help you lose a couple of pounds a month, and in 3 years you will look amazing!” We need a 7 step process that we can execute to get us to the finish line faster. At work, we are under constant pressure to be more productive. If we are not productive enough, the company buys a robot to do the job instead. When we get off work, we buy a takeout meal on the way home because who has time to cook! We are too busy being busy!
Section 1: What is the Anxiety of Productivity?
The anxiety of productivity is a pervasive but quiet fear that if one does not produce results immediately and continuously, they will be judged and found lacking or worse, miss out on life. Every time we load our calendars up, we feed this fear with activities that we can barely fit into our day. We constantly are on the lookout for better fast ways of getting work done. We judge ourselves because we are sure “other people” do even more all the time.
Is productivity all bad? Not at all! It becomes a problem when we don’t set boundaries around it. When productivity starts directing our lives instead of our lives directing our productivity, we start the downward spiral into anxiety when we don’t limit and focus our productivity.
We have an old roof, and it was in definite need of replacement. We live in an old home built in the 1960s, and part of the roof had tar and gravel (I know, that is weird). The demo crew pushed the gravel off the roof in piles on the yard. On Saturday, I looked at the piles and realized I could use those piles of gravel to cover a small section of a driveway at our pond. So I started shoveling gravel into the bed of our UTV. At that moment, my productivity kicked in, and I thought, “You are wasting time shoveling this rock. Let the demo crew throw it in the dumpster and send it to the dump.” Then my anxiety started to rise. I started thinking of all the other things I could be doing that would be a more “productive” use of my time. I thought, “You could pay a teenager to come and shovel these rocks.” Then I thought about all the teenagers I deprived of valuable pay because I was so selfish in taking time to shovel rocks (insert sarcasm here).
Finally, I snapped out of it. I was standing in my yard with a shovel, and there was a pile of rocks that could be reused and not thrown away. My problem was not the “doing” it was the “being.” I was not present. I was only thinking of doing something else, somewhere else, while my real work was right in front of me. What’s funny is that working on the farm is therapeutic for me. When I am not working or traveling, I enjoy spending time clearing brush, mending fences, or, you guessed it… shoveling rocks. So if I enjoy it? Why was I trying not to do it? The anxiety of productivity stole my joy.
Section 2: How Does It Affect You?
The anxiety of productivity is killing us. It wrecks our bodies, steals our joy, and keeps us from focusing on what matters most. When we start trying to squeeze more meaningless activities in our day by being “more productive,” our bodies respond by increasing tension. That tension can create physical changes in our bodies like increased blood pressure and release our body’s stress hormone cortisol. Our bodies respond to anxiety by putting us in “defense mode” and living under that anxiety for long periods of time can even wreck our immune system.
We are left feeling on edge, tired, and find it hard to concentrate on the task at hand. When our tension rises and our performance decreases, our tension goes up even more. Who can enjoy working in this type of environment? I lost time and joy shoveling rocks, but what happens when we do something more meaningful? Taking your time back doesn’t mean being more productive with your time; it means being more intentional and more present.
Section 3: How to Overcome It?
When we suffer from anxiety about productivity, we can take steps to overcome it. First, remind ourselves that we are human-BEINGS, not human-DOINGS. Cultivate an attitude of gratefulness, thankfulness, and present mindset. Many joys in life come when we notice them and stop. We are drawn to beauty in music, art, or nature and it is waiting for us to notice and enjoy. Sometimes our kids or spouse needs our presence, not our productivity. We can’t be grateful and thankful without slowing down.
Second, we can think about life as if we were fine craftsmen or artists. How would our activities look different if we created a piece of work that the world would see and appreciate? Whether we are a coder, coach, business owner, financial consultant, or elementary school teacher, our work is our craft, our gift to the world. Take the time to do the right thing and do it rightly. A craftsman is productive, but productivity is less important than the craft itself and what it produces. When we live rightly and work with the integrity that comes with a craftsman mindset, there is no need to rush the process.
Finally, we face tremendous pressures in modern society from social media, movies, and magazines that tell us who we should be and what we should be doing. But if we know the “why” of our work, family, and life, we can free ourselves from the anxiety of productivity and live in our “why” no matter how fast we arrive at any destination. We can drown out all the static that doesn’t give us peace and joy and focus on things that do.
In case you are wondering, I did regroup and finished shoveling rocks. It took me most of the day. One of my daughters even came outside and helped me. We had the best conversations. When we finished, she told me how much she had enjoyed the day and spending time together. I am thankful that my 12-year-old was able to help me THINK about how I was thinking… and MOVE with intention towards what matters most (my daughter and the rightness of my work)… so I could THRIVE all day shoveling rocks.
If you have been struggling with the anxiety of productivity check out MOVE! as a resource to help gain clarity on what is most important and give your productivity healthy boundaries.
~ Coach D
Why The Anxiety Of Productivity Is Killing You
250 words/min = 4 min Read
You are not alone. Many people are affected by the anxiety of productivity every day and have no idea. Our modern society tells us to compress more activities into smaller segments of time. Think about it, how popular would a weight loss program be that advertised “We will help you lose a couple of pounds a month, and in 3 years you will look amazing!” We need a 7 step process that we can execute to get us to the finish line faster. At work, we are under constant pressure to be more productive. If we are not productive enough, the company buys a robot to do the job instead. When we get off work, we buy a takeout meal on the way home because who has time to cook! We are too busy being busy!
Section 1: What is the Anxiety of Productivity?
The anxiety of productivity is a pervasive but quiet fear that if one does not produce results immediately and continuously, they will be judged and found lacking or worse, miss out on life. Every time we load our calendars up, we feed this fear with activities that we can barely fit into our day. We constantly are on the lookout for better fast ways of getting work done. We judge ourselves because we are sure “other people” do even more all the time.
Is productivity all bad? Not at all! It becomes a problem when we don’t set boundaries around it. When productivity starts directing our lives instead of our lives directing our productivity, we start the downward spiral into anxiety when we don’t limit and focus our productivity.
We have an old roof, and it was in definite need of replacement. We live in an old home built in the 1960s, and part of the roof had tar and gravel (I know, that is weird). The demo crew pushed the gravel off the roof in piles on the yard. On Saturday, I looked at the piles and realized I could use those piles of gravel to cover a small section of a driveway at our pond. So I started shoveling gravel into the bed of our UTV. At that moment, my productivity kicked in, and I thought, “You are wasting time shoveling this rock. Let the demo crew throw it in the dumpster and send it to the dump.” Then my anxiety started to rise. I started thinking of all the other things I could be doing that would be a more “productive” use of my time. I thought, “You could pay a teenager to come and shovel these rocks.” Then I thought about all the teenagers I deprived of valuable pay because I was so selfish in taking time to shovel rocks (insert sarcasm here).
Finally, I snapped out of it. I was standing in my yard with a shovel, and there was a pile of rocks that could be reused and not thrown away. My problem was not the “doing” it was the “being.” I was not present. I was only thinking of doing something else, somewhere else, while my real work was right in front of me. What’s funny is that working on the farm is therapeutic for me. When I am not working or traveling, I enjoy spending time clearing brush, mending fences, or, you guessed it… shoveling rocks. So if I enjoy it? Why was I trying not to do it? The anxiety of productivity stole my joy.
Section 2: How Does It Affect You?
The anxiety of productivity is killing us. It wrecks our bodies, steals our joy, and keeps us from focusing on what matters most. When we start trying to squeeze more meaningless activities in our day by being “more productive,” our bodies respond by increasing tension. That tension can create physical changes in our bodies like increased blood pressure and release our body’s stress hormone cortisol. Our bodies respond to anxiety by putting us in “defense mode” and living under that anxiety for long periods of time can even wreck our immune system.
We are left feeling on edge, tired, and find it hard to concentrate on the task at hand. When our tension rises and our performance decreases, our tension goes up even more. Who can enjoy working in this type of environment? I lost time and joy shoveling rocks, but what happens when we do something more meaningful? Taking your time back doesn’t mean being more productive with your time; it means being more intentional and more present.
Section 3: How to Overcome It?
When we suffer from anxiety about productivity, we can take steps to overcome it. First, remind ourselves that we are human-BEINGS, not human-DOINGS. Cultivate an attitude of gratefulness, thankfulness, and present mindset. Many joys in life come when we notice them and stop. We are drawn to beauty in music, art, or nature and it is waiting for us to notice and enjoy. Sometimes our kids or spouse needs our presence, not our productivity. We can’t be grateful and thankful without slowing down.
Second, we can think about life as if we were fine craftsmen or artists. How would our activities look different if we created a piece of work that the world would see and appreciate? Whether we are a coder, coach, business owner, financial consultant, or elementary school teacher, our work is our craft, our gift to the world. Take the time to do the right thing and do it rightly. A craftsman is productive, but productivity is less important than the craft itself and what it produces. When we live rightly and work with the integrity that comes with a craftsman mindset, there is no need to rush the process.
Finally, we face tremendous pressures in modern society from social media, movies, and magazines that tell us who we should be and what we should be doing. But if we know the “why” of our work, family, and life, we can free ourselves from the anxiety of productivity and live in our “why” no matter how fast we arrive at any destination. We can drown out all the static that doesn’t give us peace and joy and focus on things that do.
In case you are wondering, I did regroup and finished shoveling rocks. It took me most of the day. One of my daughters even came outside and helped me. We had the best conversations. When we finished, she told me how much she had enjoyed the day and spending time together. I am thankful that my 12-year-old was able to help me THINK about how I was thinking… and MOVE with intention towards what matters most (my daughter and the rightness of my work)… so I could THRIVE all day shoveling rocks.
If you have been struggling with the anxiety of productivity check out MOVE! as a resource to help gain clarity on what is most important and give your productivity healthy boundaries.
~ Coach D
