summary ofOverwhelmedBook by Brigid Schulte

first KEY POINT

Embrace balance: Less stress, more joy

Brigid Schulte was part of an internal group at the Washington Post that researched why only a few women read the newspapers. Their study revealed that only women in retirement have time to read the papers. In contrast, women between the ages of 18 and 49 seemed to be so encumbered with many things like house chores, taking care of the kids, and trying to meet deadlines at work that a newspaper subscription wasn’t a priority.Schulte was also responsible for gathering data on how women used their time to reveal how busy they were. She started her research by Google searching “time busy women,” and John Robinson's name popped up. Robinson happened to be a sociologist who had spent about 50 years studying the way people spend their time.Schulte called Robinson and told him that she felt women were too busy to read the papers. He replied in the negative, asserting that women have a minimum of 30 hours of free time weekly. This came as a shock to Schulte, as she recalled all the stress she went through on a typical day, days when she felt so overwhelmed, she could hardly breathe. Sometimes, she stayed up late to finish her son’s school project, bake valentine cakes, or write stories. She often conducted official interviews in unconventional places like sitting on the floor outside her children's dentist's office, in school bathrooms during events, and from her car. Robinson later invited her to go on a time study with him, and this invitation led to many discoveries and insights into how people spend their time. The study revealed how men and women need to create time for leisure if they desire to live their best lives.

This summary aims to teach you how much you have devalued your leisure time by burying yourself in work to the extent that you no longer value time alone. You will learn that it’s okay not to be perfect but ensure you always give your best and do the little things that count.