Guilty of thinking you can do it all? Join the club. We’re supposed to always be busy right? Because if we are not doing something constantly that’s a sign of laziness. Or so we’ve been told.
If you’re lucky life reminds you that you need to slow down. The other day I crashed. I was so tired I didn’t care if the to-do list doubled while I took the evening off.
The next day my brain still felt fuzzy. I was just about to force myself to attack the to-do list when I said: No, it can wait. I turned off phone, computer and plopped on the couch to read and take a nap. Obviously I felt a lot better afterwards and somehow the world didn’t end (gasp).
It’s so easy to think the world will end if we take a break. I mean, we’re that important right? We actually are. Just ask your family. But we are no good exhausted. Our creativity goes down. It affects our health. Our mood. When we are tired and exhausted it affects everything in a negative way.
Still, we have these expectations of ourselves that we can just push through that fatigue, cram everything in and keep going. It’s always…do more, be more, get more done. In addition to that we are always supposed to be available, even on vacations! It’s expected to answer emails, texts and notifications right away. We’ve been fooled into thinking multitasking is the way to do it all. It’s insane!
As I was laying on the couch I realized the only one to blame for my busy schedule was me (don’t you hate when that happens?)
After all, who is creating our schedule?
Who decides what to put on our schedule?
Who is forcing us to add extra curricular things to our already busy work-life schedule?
Who is forcing us to say yes to everything?
Who is forcing us to believe we can build Rome in one day?
Who is forcing us to be available 24/7/365?
We are. Which also means we can fix it by eliminating things from our schedule, decide not to be available 24/7 by turning the phone off, learn how to say no, tune out and incorporate quiet times. I read a great article from NY Times that truly puts things in perspective and that gives you a scientific proof why you should do all those things. Here’s the link: Hit the Reset Button in Your Brain.
Print that article out and give to your boss. Give to your friend that expects you to text him or her back at midnight. Give that to anyone that needs to slow down. Add that link to your out of office vacation notice. Leave the headphones at home when you go for a walk and let your brain reset. You have scientific proof that your brain need you to take some down time and not be available all the time. You now have a valid reason to be a little “lazy.”
I’m going to be “lazy” and take a week off blogging. I haven’t taken a break from writing or blogging for over a year. I could have a post ready to go but then that won’t give you a week off either. In other words there will be no new post on Monday September 1st landing in your inbox. I’m going to embrace Labor Day weekend not working. I hope you join me.
Now tell me. Do you feel guilty when you take some time off doing nothing? Share in the comments.
Wow, another timely post…
I’ve not had a day off since June 25th. 61 days of straight working!! I’m mentally and physically exhausted!
Thank you for your words and knowledge!!
Steve recently posted…#14 The First Jobs I had.
There is a Brad Paisley song (big surprise, I know) called “Time Well Wasted” The lyrics refer to wading in a stream, spending time on the couch. The best line is:
It was time well wasted
And there’s no way I trade a few more dollars in my pocket I could’ve spent
For a day I’ll never forget
No, I didn’t get a thing done
But I sure soaked up every minute of the memory we were makin’
And I count it all as time well wasted
Eric recently posted…Remember when?
Love Brad Paisley songs. That’s great lyrics. I agree…time well wasted. Thanks for sharing that! 🙂
I always feel guilty taking a day off for my own benefit. But, I know I will be better for it. I’ll be better at home and at work.
Rick Theule recently posted…Reading, Writing, Baseball, and Slavery
I’m a voracious hustler by nature. So it’s REALLY tough for me to take a day off. Yet every time I do I feel refreshed and am more productive overall. So what I’ve started is alternating super hustle weeks where I work late and early with calmer weeks where I just work late and sleep in. Adding a complete day of “calm” is a great change of pace. And lately I’ve been intentional about building up high-impact activities so while “I” may be “off,” my hustle continues without me.
And hey… if “science” says I should take a break… maybe there’s something to it!
Nick recently posted…Marriage Check-ups, Safe Accountability, and An Exciting Site Announcement
I like the idea of alternating between super hustle weeks and calmer weeks. Great idea! Then downtime and relaxing is on the schedule. What gets scheduled gets done. Now you may need to print out that science article and hand to your wife when she asks why you’re on the couch doing nothing 😉