Being busy means not having time. If you want more time, don’t do things you don’t have to. Makes sense, right?

My book launch is making me busier than ever. I have four or five big in-person events coming up in February to plan and host, a seminar or two to plan and host, two classes at NYU to teach, one sales class in January to teach, … Forbes interviewed me the other day as have as maybe ten podcasts in the past week or two with more to come (I’ll link to them as they get posted), I started my webinar, and I forget what else. Oh yeah, I’m working on a long opinion piece I’m not sure where I’ll submit.

I don’t know if it’s a lot for others, but it feels like a lot to me.

I could free time up by not doing my burpees and writing here everyday, so I should, right? After all, what’s the harm in letting a few days go by? I can catch up later. Most people don’t exercise or write daily at all, let alone most of the time.

On the contrary, the busier I am, the more value I find in the structure my sidchas create. The time I’d save isn’t that great. My exercise, including the burpee routines, rowing, and lifting amount to about the time of one sitcom per day. Not that much.

The confidence and security of knowing I’m keeping things in order helps me more than the time. Nobody is keeping track of my priorities besides myself. I don’t have a 9-5 job enforcing any structure. Keeping a structure helps keep everything else ordered and prioritized. I know I haven’t lost control.

Structure creates freedom, which is different than chaos. Structure makes everything else, no matter how busy, feel in control. So while I feel pressure, I don’t feel emotionally stressed. Then I get more done and stay more calm.

While some might consider the principle

If you miss one day you can miss two. If you miss two, it’s all over.

a burden, the flipside is that as long as you keep it up, you know you’re on top of things. I don’t say that as a logical conclusion, just as the way it’s worked out for me.

• ← Op/ed Friday: How climate change scientists are failing climate change initiatives
• Non-judgmental Ethics Sunday: What to Do About a Physician Who May Be a Quack →