Breaking the Busyness Cycle. When your worth feels tied to rescuing others

Breaking the Busyness Cycle. When your worth feels tied to rescuing others

When Sarah stepped into leadership, she was known for being helpful, reliable, and always available.
Need a last-minute fix? She was there.
Someone struggling? She stepped in.
Team running behind? She stayed late.

From the outside, it looked like commitment.
On the inside, she was exhausted.

The Hidden Pattern

Sarah took on tasks that weren’t hers.
Apologised for setting boundaries.
Joined meetings she didn’t need to be in.
All driven by a quiet belief:
“If I’m not fixing this, I’m not adding value.”

Her self-worth had quietly become tied to her busyness.
And the more she rescued, the more the cycle reinforced itself.

The Shift

In a coaching conversation, I asked:
“What might happen if you didn’t step in?”

It was uncomfortable. She feared letting people down.
But she gave it a go—with small shifts:

 🔸 “Is this mine to do?”
🔸 “Am I helping—or holding someone back?”
🔸 “What does support look like, without doing it all myself?”

From Rescuing to Empowering

Here’s what Sarah practised:

Pause before jumping in
→ “What do you need from me?”
→ “What have you already tried?”

Redefine the role
From fixer to facilitator. From solving problems to building problem-solvers.

Challenge the story
→ “I don’t need to be busy to be valuable.”
→ “My value is in the space and clarity I create—for others and for myself.”

The Impact

Slowly, things changed.
Her team stepped up.
Her time became more focused.
Her energy came back.

She didn’t care less. She just stopped proving her worth through overdoing.

The Takeaway

The busyness cycle is sneaky—especially when we care.
But leadership isn’t about doing it all.
It’s about knowing when to lean in, and when to let go.

So if you feel stuck in fix-it mode, ask:
“What might happen if I didn’t jump in this time?”

You might just find that stepping back is the boldest move forward.

Go well this week,
MA :-)