⌛️ Introduction
In today’s fast-paced world, many of us are trapped in a cycle of constant busyness. We wear our busyness like a badge of honor, but what if I told you that doing less could help you achieve more? 🤯 Welcome to another episode of Business Story of the Week with your host Joshua Lori, where we dive deep into inspiring conversations. Today, we’re joined by the incredible Peggy Sullivan, a self-proclaimed “busyness addict in recovery.” Peggy is a performance management consultant, speaker, and bestselling author who’s on a mission to help people overcome time poverty and achieve more by doing less.

🛠 Peggy’s Busy Busting Framework
Peggy Sullivan has developed a “Busy Busting Framework” that’s all about eliminating low-value activities that rob us of precious time. For example, how often do you find yourself checking emails in the morning instead of tackling your priority tasks? Or saying yes to a quick five-minute request that turns into 20 minutes of your day gone? Peggy emphasizes that recognizing these time wasters is the first step toward reclaiming your day for strategic thinking, breaks, and even a good night’s sleep! 😴

🙋‍♀️ Peggy’s Personal Journey
Peggy wasn’t always the time management guru she is today. In fact, she was a single mom working in a high-pressure career, trying to juggle it all. Sound familiar? It was during one particularly chaotic evening that she found herself eating cat food (yes, you read that right!) because she was so burnt out that she didn’t even notice what she was doing. Peggy’s “cat food moment” was a wake-up call—a signal that her busyness had taken over, pushing her into a state of burnout.

🚨 The Wake-Up Call
Peggy’s journey toward balance came to a head 10 years ago when she survived a serious car accident. While driving to the grand opening of her nonprofit, Peggy crashed, and as she lay upside down in her car with five firemen pulling her out, all she could think about was missing the event. This pivotal moment made her realize how much busyness was controlling her life and, worse, how it affected not only her but everyone around her, from her board of directors to her clients and even her personal relationships. 😔

🌿 Step 1: Eliminate Low-Value Activities
What does Peggy recommend? Start by subtracting low-value tasks from your day. Are you spending hours responding to emails instead of focusing on what really moves the needle? Low-value activities might even be personal relationships that no longer serve you. By eliminating these, you free up mental and emotional space for more impactful work.

💡 Step 2: Mojo Making
But wait, it’s not just about cutting out the unnecessary. Peggy teaches what she calls “Mojo Making”—a way to inject happiness into your day through small, intentional actions. For Peggy, this looks like enjoying three pieces of dark chocolate 🍫 every day at 11 a.m. for a quick dopamine boost. These “happiness rituals” are not just for fun—they are proven to increase focus and productivity. In fact, Peggy implemented these rituals in her previous role at United Healthcare, and they led to a 33% improvement in performance metrics and a 40% boost in employee engagement!

📊 The Busy Barometer
Peggy also developed the Busy Barometer, a survey that helps identify 24 low-value activities that might be sabotaging your success. In her experience, busyness is often habitual, but the Busy Barometer can help break these unproductive cycles. 🌱

🔥 Final Thoughts
To Peggy, happiness is not a destination but a series of micro-moments that you intentionally create for yourself. Whether it’s indulging in a quick chocolate break or simply taking a walk with your 25-lb cat in a stroller 🐱, the key is to recharge and refresh regularly. In a world that romanticizes hustle culture, it’s time we slow down and get off the hamster wheel of life.

Ready to reclaim your time and live a life that’s not just productive but meaningful? Get Peggy’s book, Beyond Busyness: Achieve More by Doing Less, and start your own journey to overcoming time poverty.