Deep Work and Deliberate Rest
The Right Balance For a More Productive & Creative Life
Work smart, play hard. Life is about balance, so don't let the pursuit of success make you forget the joy of living.
~ Emmanuel Apetsi
It’s not easy living in a 24/7 world where your job often defines you (as if all the things you do when you’re ‘off the clock’ don’t count for much at all.) You know, things like maintaining a home and car, raising a family, caring for elders, volunteering with nonprofits, writing hundreds of postcards to save the republic, helping friends/neighbors in need, and so on.
The value placed on paid labor and how many hours worked/money earned is so out of proportion to the rest of our lives, but isn’t our ‘downtime’ equally important? The hours (or has it turned into minutes?) spent with loved ones, enjoying a favorite hobby, reading, reconnecting with nature, or simply taking a nap!
And…can we possibly do this without feeling guilty?
The Time article below talks about these issues and the significance of balance, something we hear a lot these days but often don’t do much about.
So, read on for tips about how to schedule leisure time, breaks, and vacations. Learn why it’s beneficial for your physical and mental health, in addition to your creative life:
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
“What time of day are you most creative?”
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I'm more creative in writing it seems, in the morning. Afternoons are more for drawing and visual. If I nap, sometimes I can write in the evenings, but it's rare. Breaks don't work for me at all, I must stay with it until finished, deep work, I suppose. If I stop it's usually for the day. Editing works much differently, in fact it works better if I take breaks every half hour, or so.
Well said. I’m learning to steal 20 minutes in the day—including on waking—for yoga nidra and other restorative practices. We have to be able to switch off and coalesce.