Essays

Why are we busier than before?(C2)

Many people seem to lead very busy lives, and as a result, they have much less free time than they would like. Explain the causes of this situation and give suggestions to improve it.

As countless advancements and inventions transform the society we live in within the blink of an eye, few facts about the modern lifestyle seem more indisputable than how much busier everyone seems nowadays.

However, according to research, the amount of time in which people work was less than that from the 1960s, especially in Europe and the United Kingdom. On the other hand, due to modern inventions, it came as no surprise that the number of time spent on household chores has decreased drastically as well.

Improbable as it might seem, people aren't actually working more in terms of productivity. As a result, the discovery raises more suspicion and wonder as to why we always seem busier than ever.

There are various causes of this widespread phenomenon. First of all, the society we live in today has become increasingly competitive. Regardless of what profession people hold, which city they dwell in, what age group they belong to, there's always a rat race involved.

As people attempt to keep up with the mirage of being successful, they are not only consciously trying to work more, but also unconsciously pressured to do so under influences all around, for instance media, peer pressure, commercial pressure, and so on.

Studies indicate that an individual's perceived level of busyness may also be heavily connected to their self-worth and status. Individuals who are busy by choice may feel needed, in demand, and important to others, thus elevating their feelings of self-worth.

Secondly, contrary to common belief, we tend to work slower and less efficiently when we multitask. By rule of comparative advantage, providing each individual multiple tasks has proven worse than providing separate departments to each their own specific task to focus on, albeit with the same workload.

In short, multitasking reduces efficiency, quality, and overall performance, however people often report feeling as busy, if not busier multitasking compared to singletasking. Effective planning, time management and minimizing distraction are highly recommended as alternatives, and should be widely implemented among the workforce and the educational system.