When I was a kid, it seemed necessary to always do something. My mother was constantly doing something and expected me to do the same. In the meantime, this attitude hasn’t changed, and everyone seems to always be busy in some way. Amazon lists more than 50.000 titles linked to time management nowadays.

Transactional Analysis provides an interesting concept that allows one to explore existing busyness. It’s called passivity and describes non-problem-solving behavior.

It’s a behavior that becomes visible when people find themselves in a situation they cannot manage or when facing a problem, they believe they cannot solve. The behavior that becomes visible then serves to signal emotional tension and distress. It rarely is intentional or something one may be aware of.

The term “passivity” may be confusing when thinking about people being constantly busy, however, it becomes logical once seen in relationship with the problem that would need to be solved. Of the four types of passive behaviors, it is agitation that is most closely linked with being busy. Instead of addressing a problem, the person may suddenly change priorities, find other tasks to take up, or simply keep themselves busy enough to have no time to think about the problem they really want to address while, for example, using their agitation to avoid feeling their need or desire for support.

And yes, sometimes there is no problem to solve.

Which aligns with nobody suggesting that they are solving a problem with their activity.

Everything else either qualifies as problem-solving behavior or as non-problem-solving behavior.