Your To-Do List Is Killing You—Here’s What to Do Instead

You’re exhausted. You’ve got too many expectations on yourself, and it’s really hard to survive. Forty-three percent of all families in the U.S. fall short of meeting basic needs. So you go to therapy, and the therapist tells you to do stupid stuff like: breathe, take a walk, drink more water, try a weighted blanket, make a new friend, and paint a picture. None of these things help you get your already huge TO-DO list done. Why are you paying for this? 

Sound familiar?

Throughout history, communities have always made time for creativity, even when survival was hard. Why?

Because survival isn’t just about paying the bills and getting to the next deadline. If you look at Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, basic things like rest, water, and warmth sit at the bottom, sure. But as you go up, there’s esteem—the need to accomplish something, to express yourself, to be seen. Our ancestors didn’t just grind to survive; they made time to create.

When life feels overwhelming—when you’re buried in work, keeping your family afloat, or just trying to make it through the week—your brain lies to you. It tells you the answer is more grinding, more focus, more effort. Capitalism makes it feel like every minute of every day is an emergency, and that you’re alone in solving it. But you are not a machine. You are a human being.

"You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have." — Maya Angelou 

Integrating creative practices into our daily routines can serve as a powerful antidote to the relentless pressures of modern life. When we engage in activities like painting, dancing, or writing, we not only express ourselves but also reconnect with our innate human need for creation and exploration. This reconnection can provide a sense of fulfillment and balance, helping us navigate stress more effectively.​

Art, dance, connection—these aren’t just trendy “self-care” tips. They’re ancient. They are how we remember that we are more than our responsibilities. That we exist outside of our roles as parents, students, executives, caregivers.

What might it be like to drop all these identities for a moment and do something that makes you feel fully alive? What if, when faced with a stressful deadline, you chose to dance?