deepstash
Beta
Deepstash brings you key ideas from the most inspiring articles like this one:
Read more efficiently
Save what inspires you
Remember anything
How to use a day off from work to recharge your energy, focus & motivation
8
Key Ideas
Save all ideas
Benefits of taking time off
People who create a proper work-life balance experience less work-related fatigue, lower rates of procrastination, and even better mental and physical health.
Time away from work improves problem-solving skills and improves creativity.
272 SAVES
350 READS
Taking time off
Binge-watching TV can make you feel more anxious, stressed, and impact your sleep.
290 SAVES
354 READS
Do nothing (on purpose)
Purposeful idleness is no small task. A few tips:
- Start with small sessions and take the time to build up your endurance.
- To help you do nothing, keep your devices out of reach (or out of the room) and re-orient your furniture away from the TV and out a window.
- Try open-ended toys or games like kinetic sand that promote idleness.
297 SAVES
342 READS
Engage in “Deliberate Rest”
It means engaging with restful activities that are often vigorous and mentally engaging.
Deliberate rest activities help you relax and recharge as they focus on something tangential (or completely unrelated) to your work. Examples: playing chess, painting, editing photos, etc.
269 SAVES
307 READS
Tasks you;re putting off
Committing to crossing one of them off of your to-do list on a day off can improve your overall well-being.
Whether you’ve been putting off answering an email, calling a friend, writing up your personal budget, or anything else, a day off is a great time to catch up.
255 SAVES
312 READS
Do nothing (on purpose)
Too many of us equate doing something with being busy. We don’t need to fill every moment of our lives—both at work and at home—being productive.
Engaging in doing nothing can help you be more creative. It can also make you more productive and focused when you return to work as you’ve had time to get out of your head, disconnect, and see the bigger picture.
245 SAVES
342 READS
Engage in “Deliberate Rest”
Deliberate Rest means engaging with restful activities that are often vigorous and mentally engaging.
For example, Winston Churchill and Victor Hugo painted while Leo Tolstoy played chess.
210 SAVES
301 READS
Catch up on that one thing
Most of us put off tasks that stress us out. Unfortunately, this avoidance kicks off a cycle of procrastination that just causes more stress.
Instead, committing to crossing one of them off of your to-do list on a day off can improve your overall well-being.
209 SAVES
284 READS
SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
4
Key Ideas
Alex Soojung-Kim Pang
Why we don't take time off
- We think more work should equal more output: we see productivity not as doing more with less. But simply doing more.
- We’re afraid of being “left behind”: not only could we miss out on some important conversation, but we worry that we’ll be left behind.
- Work has become a larger part of our identity: we feel personally connected to the work we do. Taking time away opens up all sorts of questions that can be hard to face.
Deliberate rest
It is a play on the term “deliberate practice” and it means engaging with restful activities that are often vigorous and mentally engaging.
It is not a continuation of work, but a way to find activities that let you recharge from your workday, while still being mentally productive.
Tactical Laziness
Laziness or Sloth is the disinclination to use energy and is seen as a negative trait in most cultures. Being lazy has also been associated with being a slacker, or a good-for-nothing person wastin...
A New Approach To Slacking
Humans may be seeing laziness upside down, as it may not really be a sign of inefficiency or unproductivity, but a result of being able to work smartly and free up time to do nothing. Sitting lazily can also trigger further smart work.
10
Key Ideas
Being purposeful with your day
Time management is about taking control of the time you do have available and using it optimally for productivity while creating balance.
How to plan your day
Much advice about time management is about creating a to-do list, reminding you what you want to do. However, it's more important to use a schedule, which tells you when you're going to do it.
- Create "bookends" for each day. Consider your morning and evening routines, then "block" in time for your most important tasks. For example, a 2-hour writing-block every morning after breakfast.
- Set aside time for your most important projects. The object is to be purposeful about what and when you're going to do something.
- Schedule in breaks. A schedule has to be realistic. That means including time for breaks, food, exercise, social time, and other "non-school" tasks that keep you happy.
Be aware of how you’re spending your time
To build a better time management system, you need to know what you currently spend your time on. You need to know where you're losing time to the wrong things.
To track your time, spend a few days writing a "time log" to track how you spend your day.