Piddling Around
“It is in the piddling around time
where magic happens.”
— Friend of a friend
This episode is addressed especially to those readers who tend toward workaholism – who value productivity above all else, even if they don’t like to admit it. Like me.
Bad Wrap
My friend Laurel Elders wrote a blog on the value of Piddling Around, which included the above quote. That prompted me to piddle around by researching piddling around. Here are some definitions I found in various dictionaries:
• To waste time doing something that is not important or useful. We should stop piddling around and get busy – Merriam-Webster.com
• To spend time aimlessly - The Free Dictionary
• Doing little or nothing worthwhile or constructive, same as fiddle farting. – Urban Dictionary
Even the definitions seem to yell, “get back to work.”
I found some synonyms for this aimless way to spend time: doodling, noodling around, fiddling around, fooling around, fribbling, goofing off, messing around, puttering, playing, dallying, putzing, dawdling, dillydallying, lolling, horsing around.
And then, the antonyms: buckling down, knuckling down, setting to, settling down, all of which are supposed to be better.
Guilt Wrap
We’ve somehow come to believe that working all day – nose to the grindstone, is what we SHOULD be doing.
Who said so? And what if doing that makes us miserable or is not sustainable?
A coaching client who feels guilty when she goofs off told me the other day that she often goes through her days like an automaton. From task to task - feeling heavy. Then she stopped to reflect and wondered how others could stand to be around her.
Many of us grew up with the message “Play after all the work is done.” So when we play before all the work is done, we feel guilty. Which puts a damper on the play.
What if the work is never done?
Good Wrap
I want to shine another light on Piddling Around and its friends.
• Piddling around rests and refreshes body and brain
• Putzing can create space for great creativity and innovation
• Fribbling allows us to lighten up and we’re more pleasant to be around.
• Goofing off is fun. And fun is healthy. For people locked into productivity, Piddling Around is good for our physical and mental health.
There is something about fiddle farting (my favorite definition) that expands the space both inside and around us. That spaciousness allows for many more possibilities.
What about these words and how they relate to Piddling Around?
• Wondering
• Wandering
• Being Receptive
• Innovating
Invitation
Grow the magic and the creativity in your life by piddling around more. Intentionally and with purpose. The intention is to grow your enjoyment of life, and the purpose is to have a sustainable work habit, so you can live long and be healthy.
Coaching Questions
- How often do you goof off, piddle around, putter – without guilt?
- How would you love to goof off, but you don’t, because there is just too much to do?
- Intentionally give yourself the gift of piddling around, to let the magic happen.
- Don’t let, “I can’t, you don’t understand, easy for you to say” stop you. Just do it.
I am a coach. To find out how I might be helpful to you, please email me at sharon@sharoneakes.com to schedule a Discovery Session.
I've written Fresh Views every month since 2000. The best have been collected into a book titled Fresh Views on Resilient Living. Purchase it here from Amazon.
My partner in Two Wise Women, Nancy Smyth, and I have published another book, Chocolate or Lunch, How Choices Impact Relationships. If you have any tense relationships that need help, this book is for you! Find it here: Chocolate or Lunch on Amazon.
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