Abolish stress. Rediscover joy. Replenish your energy. In Crazy Busy acclaimed psychologist Thijs Launspach examines why we often work ourselves to the bone and what we can do to prevent this. He explains how to cope with stress and create more peace and calm in your life. He draws on the latest scientific knowledge, the methods used by experts and the stories told by those who have learned the hard way what stress can do to both body and mind. All to provide you with the answer to the question: how can you free yourself from a life of stress? A full diary and no time to think; the feeling that you are always playing catch-up and never quite hitting the mark: our lives today are almost invariably crazy busy. Being busy is one of the hallmarks of the modern era. But the pressure is taking its toll on us. The number of burnouts has risen dramatically over the past ten years. In fact, it has now reached epidemic proportions: approximately one in seven of all workers suffers badly from stress or has been forced to take a break from work because of stress-related complaints. And even if you don’t reach the actual burnout stage, stress can still make your life a lot less enjoyable. Why are our lives so hectic? Have we all become workaholics? Why are we so susceptible to FOMO (the Fear Of Missing Out)? And most importantly, what can you do to cope with the stress in your life and prevent a burnout? Do you find yourself rushing to get things finished more than once a week? Do others often offer you well-intentioned advice on ‘how to slow things down a little’. Do you ever suspect that the stress you feel prevents you from being as happy as you would like to be? Are you more addicted to your smartphone than you would care to admit? Is it the first thing you reach for when you wake up in the morning? Do you often find yourself longing to stop and take a break from it all? If your answer to one or more of these questions is ‘Yes’, then this is the book for you.

Table of Contents:
Introduction ix 10 Ways to Lower Your Stress Levels -- A Quick Guide xv 1 WE'RE ALL WORKAHOLICS NOW 1 #LoveMyJob 6 Continuous change 10 Committed to the cause 12 Always on 16 The terrible tale of e-mail 20 The need to switch off 25 2 ALWAYS IN A HURRY 27 FOMO 31 Overclocking 34 Choice overload 38 The dictator in your pocket 43 Organising stuff 48 Tackling the symptoms 51 3 BEING BUSY IS A CHOICE 53 Have to versus want to 57 Being busy versus being under pressure 61 Procrastination 64 Perfectionism 69 Not my patch, sorry! 75 Setting boundaries 81 Choosing a more relaxed life 86 4 YOUR BOSS IS A BEAR 89 Hormones and the nervous system 92 Fight or flight 93 Cave dweller with an office job 95 Stressors 98 Baseline stress level 100 Breathe 103 5 BURNOUT 107 What is a burnout? 111 How do you recognise a burnout? 116 Past the shame 119 Recovering from burnout 121 Hello body, are you okay? 124 After a burnout 126 Intermezzo: relax! 129 6 WARNING! 131 Essential maintenance 135 Recognising your warning signs 139 Taking action 141 Contingency plan 145 7 PEACE OF MIND 149 Make time for yourself 153 An empty mind 155 Goals 159 Priorities 161 Planning for professionals 166 Pulling rank on e-mail 172 The power of habit 174 On becoming a robot 179 8 FOCUSED ON THE JOB 181 Mindfulness 186 Deep work 193 The pomodoro method 198 From source of stress to source of solace 200 Your attention is yours alone 203 2030 BURNOUT-FREE -- A MANIFESTO 205 When you are worried about someone 207 At work 209 Drastic measures 214 Two scenarios 219 THE DARK ARTS OF STRESS RELIEF 223 References 225 Notes 231 Index 233