When Did Busy Become the Goal?
Between trying to maintain an Instagram worthy home, often being the sole cook and cleaner for the household, holding down a full-time job and somehow finding time to look after ourselves, we women are exhausted.
We're rushing from one thing to another. Exercising. Eating healthily. Trying to look our best. Trying to keep everything organised. Trying to keep up with the carefully curated lives we see on social media
When did being burnt out become something to be proud of?
There seems to be a constant pressure on women to be doing more, looking better, working harder or somehow becoming better versions of ourselves. There is always another goal, another trend, another thing we could be doing.
And perhaps we're beginning to wonder: when is enough actually enough?
The Endless Pursuit of Being Better
Why are we encouraged to be constantly productive? Why are we made to feel guilty when we dare to take time to rest? When did resting become synonymous with being lazy?
Has social media encouraged this constant, endless pursuit of "better"?
We're encouraged to measure our worth by our productivity. To become "boss babes", start side hustles, achieve more, earn more and somehow look better through increasingly unachievable glow-ups.
Every day, we're bombarded with reels encouraging us to spend hundreds on supplements, beauty treatments and the latest health trends, all in pursuit of looking and feeling like the carefully curated lives we see online.
Even self-care has become another task to complete. Another box to tick. Another version of ourselves to perform.
When does it all end?
“When did you last get creative and make something with your hands? Bake a cake simply because you fancied one?”
Perhaps many of us have forgotten how to simply enjoy being alive. What happens when we slow down enough to actually notice our lives? When was the last time you sat down and relaxed without feeling guilty? What simple pleasures are you overlooking?
When did you last get creative and make something with your hands? Bake a cake simply because you fancied one? Spend an afternoon wandering somewhere with nowhere else to be and no particular time limit?
Slowing down and setting aside time for yourself isn't lazy. It can be one of the kindest things you do for yourself. Slow, intentional living doesn't mean being unproductive or wasting time. It means being more deliberate about where you put your energy and attention.
You can still have a wonderful career. You can still work hard and be ambitious. You can still exercise, take care of your home and have goals.
You just don't need to make exhaustion the price of a successful life.
What If We Chose Differently?
Instead of cramming our days full of tasks, what if we started asking ourselves what actually deserves a place in them?
How do we want to spend our time, energy and attention?
What's genuinely important to us?
Could we spend more time with our friends and family? Could we find a form of movement that leaves us feeling energised rather than depleted? Could we make time for something creative simply because we enjoy it?
And what about the little things?
What could we wear today that makes us feel good about ourselves, regardless of whether it's currently on trend? What could we say no to? What could we make space for? Perhaps a beautiful life isn't about fitting more into our days. Perhaps it's about choosing what is worth keeping in them.
The Beauty of an Ordinary Life
There is something wonderful about having time to be creative. We often do our best thinking, and sometimes our best work, when we've had the opportunity to rest and step away from the constant noise.
Spending time in nature or making something with your hands can be a wonderful way to switch off from the stresses of everyday life.
And creating a beautiful, luxurious life has very little to do with how much money you have. More and more of us are rediscovering the simple pleasures that have always been there.
A walk with the dog. Buying yourself fresh flowers. Taking the time to make a meal from scratch. Reading a good book. Music playing while you clean. Sitting outside with a coffee. Wearing something simply because you love the way you feel in it, rather than because it's currently on trend. Learning something new simply because you're curious, rather than because you're going to turn it into a side hustle.
These things aren't lesser. They are the little moments that, together, make up a happy and fulfilling life.
Creating Your Own La Dolce Vita
The Italian philosophies of La Dolce Vita, the sweetness of life, and Il Dolce Far Niente, often translated as the sweetness or pleasure of doing nothing, have been appearing more and more across social media, usually accompanied by beautifully curated Italian scenes.
But what if La Dolce Vita isn't somewhere you go? What if it's something you create? And what if you don't need to live in Italy to experience it? It could look completely different for everyone.
For one woman, it might be a Mediterranean holiday. For another, it might be gardening on a Saturday morning. For another, it could be Sunday lunch with the whole family gathered around the table, telling stories and laughing together.
There is no single version. There is no perfect Instagram life. There is simply your life, and the opportunity to make more of it feel like your own.
A Final Note
What would you make more room for if you stopped trying to fit everything in? What would you cut back on? What would you like more of?Perhaps you don't need a completely new life. You don't need to "level up". Maybe you simply need to notice the life you already have. And perhaps, somewhere amongst the rushing and the doing and the endless pursuit of better, there is a little more room for you.
Welcome to your own version of La Dolce Vita.