Embracing rest
As you read this, I’m sitting on a beach in Florida. I’m taking a break from the busyness to just be with family. If I’m honest, this is difficult for me.
I know rest matters, but it’s hard to turn things off. The playlist in my head turns to, “What happens to the business while I’m away?” “This is lazy. I have work to do.” “Can I really afford 3 days away?” “I’ll tell people I can still take calls if they need me.” “I’ll wake up early and work while the family is asleep.” “This is the worst possible time to be away, things are so busy.”
Yes, I realize how ridiculous that sounds.
But this is what fear does to us. It makes us think that if we aren’t “on” and working or thinking about work, then we are failing. And then we wonder why we are exhausted, burnt out, dissatisfied. We think resting will cause us to drift, but it’s the lack of rest that actually causes drift. And learning to rest, for me, has been a process. I’m much better now than I used to be, but I still have some growing to do.
Rest matters. It is something we work on with the leaders and teams we consult with. You cannot be at your best if you don’t rest. The best athletes in the world know that they perform better when they are rested - that isn’t an athlete thing, it is a human thing.
The mind of man cannot bear continuous tension; it will lose its elasticity if it is not sometimes unbent.
We must take time for ourselves. It doesn’t have to be a vacation. It can be a walk. It can be a workout. It can be reading a book. It can be time with friends or family. It cannot be scrolling on your phone. Because the work will always be there. But the work also deserves our best.
We don’t need to feel bad for it. We don’t need to believe the fear that we are falling behind. We don’t have to justify it. It is not a distraction, it is optimization.
Rest makes you a better man. At home, at work, for yourself.
Live above the line.
For you,
Kevin
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