Four Reasons Being Busy Can Prevent a Promotion

In our fast-paced culture, we tend to see being busy as a positive thing. It means, we assume, that a lot of people are demanding your time, so you must be doing a good job. But being busy is not the same as being successful. In fact, having a schedule that’s too busy can get in the way of your successes, like promotions. Here’s why:

Smart time, not more time. At first glance, it might seem that the employee who is willing to work the most hours – who stays late on a regular basis and consistently works through the weekend – is the most likely to get a promotion. But if your work is creeping into time that should be spent sleeping and recharging, you’re likely to feel burned out and you may not perform at your best.

Guilt may be to blame. Maybe it’s not your workload that’s making life feel so hectic. It’s possible you’re spending too much of your time outside of work on activities that should be bumped down on your priority list. It’s easy to fall into the trap of over-giving to others and feeling guilty about taking time for ourselves. But if you feel like you’re constantly firing on all cylinders, you’ll probably be too worn out to excel at the office.

You’ll lose your joy. Overwhelm can make it difficult to enjoy life – even the activities we love. If you’re always worrying about the next 10 things on your to-do list, it’s nearly impossible to keep your mind in the present moment, focused on the activity at hand. You may love your work, but if your schedule is making you feel like there’s never enough time to complete your tasks, you’re going to rush and your work will suffer.

It’s about quality. We all know the stereotype of the supposedly “successful” woman, talking on the phone, working on her laptop and making dinner for her family all at the same time. But just because she’s getting all those things done doesn’t mean she’s doing them well. We tend to believe that multitasking demonstrates efficiency, but the opposite is often true.

-Sarah Cooke