If you and I were to meet today and I asked you how you were what would your answer be?

“Tired?”

Possibly, depending how your week has been and if you have any sick children at the moment.

“Calm?”

Maybe, if you’ve been making a conscious effort to relax and be calm – or have just come from a massage!

“Busy?”

Yep – this is the answer I think you’re more likely to give.

Why do I think that?

Because we are all busy. Those of you who are carrying life memberships of the ‘busyness’ club know exactly what I’m talking about! For some reason the busier we are the greater badge of honour we feel we carry – or society gives us.

But why is that? If everyone from our partner to kids, friends, work colleagues and Mums at the school gate are saying they’re busy, surely that’s not a good thing?

Now I’m not saying Mums aren’t busy – because we are – but to me the ‘concept’ of busy has negativity plastered all over it. Where we sit on the busyness scale is extremely subjective but for some reason we feel the need to be ‘busy’, to be full of busyness – something of which is extremely subjective anyway.

Because my ‘busy’ is most likely completely different to your ‘busy’.

This whole concept of busy doesn’t sit well with me – so we decided it was time for a new definition of busy, one that is positive, has proven strategies that busy women can work through, keep coming back to and apply today to make a huge difference in their lives.

(Yes, I do know I said ‘busy women’ in this sentence. I’m not saying we aren’t busy – I just want to help you look at BUSY from a different angle – one that’s not so negative.)

So what does this new definition look like?

B = Balanced

This is the ability to create balance in your time, yourself, your family, your work (paid and unpaid – because all Mums work) that supports and encourages you to reach your goals. Only you know what this will look like for you and your family so the trick is to recognise when you’re off balance and try to bring things back to centre as best as you can. Sure the balance will go askew again – maybe straight away, maybe in a few hours or days – but that’s OK. Acknowledge it, work with your family, and try to bring your life into balance.

U = Uncluttered

There are three areas we hold clutter – in our minds, our physical space and our schedule. You may be more cluttered in one area than another, or all three, and that’s OK. Again, acknowledge the clutter, analyse what’s going on for you, come up with a strategy to fix it and get going. If this sounds too difficult may might like to consider getting the help of a professional to move your forward.

S = Sustainable

Any system that we set up, whether it’s in the workplace or home, needs to be sustainable. If it’s not sustainable things go pear shaped very easily! When organising your home it’s important to create super-easy sustainable systems that suit your family so that everyone can follow and maintain them. This shifts the emphasis from “mum knowing everything” to everyone taking ownership of the home and routine.

Y = You

The most important part of this new definition is you. Mums are usually the glue that holds the home together. Because of this is super easy not to focus on you and constantly give to everyone else in your life. If you do find it hard to focus on you just remember that there are 168 hours each week – even if you took 20 minutes each day that still leaves you nearly 166 hours each week to do everything else.

I know this new definition is challenging you, making your brain fire in an uncomfortable way and maybe even saying “Is she serious!”. That’s a good thing! It’s making you re-think your relationship to ‘busy’ and how it currently has a hold on your life.

Keep coming back to the meaning of each letter in this new definition over the next few weeks and see if it has an impact on your day. You don’t need a huge amount of time to help move forward with this new definition of ‘busy’ – you just need to try.

Owner and Director of Clutter Rescue, Helen Butler is an Accredited Expert Professional Organiser who works with Mums to organise and declutter their space and time. Visit the Clutter Rescue website to do the Mum Organising Style quiz and sign up to receive a free copy of the Eight Traits of an Organised Mum and to learn more about Clutter Rescue’s new definition of BUSY.