I’m Not Anti-Rest

This week, I’m resting.

I’m currently writing this from a weekend getaway, in an airstream on Pender Island, B.C, Canada.

I took a trip with my partner and decided that this week would be rest and relaxation.

It’s a little on the nose for my typical productivity talk, but it acknowledges the aspect of the productive life that people sometimes forget; that rest and relaxation are part of your mental well-being.

For everyone, rest and relaxation has a role in our lives.

it isn’t something reserved only for the weak.

It isn’t a weakness either.

It isn’t something you need to power through, to ignore in yourself, or disregard. Your body’s need for rest is an important cue for your mental and physical health.

Every capable CEO, entrepreneur, and successful professional needs rest and relaxation. If that weren’t true, the richest of the rich would never stop working, they wouldn’t buy the most luxurious vacation homes or spend their money on restful experiences like the spa, massage, and all the rest.

We wouldn’t be envious of their lives with all the luxuries and experience that they have.

The stereotypical successful billionaire laying by a pool or private beach, although a typecast, highlights the understanding that even the elite of the world need rest.

Professional athletes have an off-season where they travel, relax, and rehab from the strain of the season.

Celebrities and the like have vacation homes, go away months at a time, and certainly live a life of relaxation.

I think the thing that is important to take away is that we are deliberate with our rest.

That we are deliberating setting the time aside to rest when the goal is rest.

Rest can be productive if it aligns with your goal and intention.

The issue is more to do with whether the rest is deliberate or interfering with the intended work period. Is the rest taking place when the intention is to work? Is the type of rest you are taking different from the intended restful period?

I would argue that if you intend to sleep at 12 to ensure you slept long enough but instead stay awake scrolling TikTok until 2am, that type of relaxation would interfere with the intended rest and be unproductive.

If however, you had a stressful day and watching TV or Youtube for 30 minutes before making dinner was a way to destress and relax, then that may be productive for your needs.

Only you can decide for yourself how much of a balance you need between rest and work.

Only you can decide what you need, what is excessive, and what works for your lifestyle.

Again, the goal though is to be deliberate in designing a life that suits your wants and needs.

As for me, this week is for rest!