The Importance of Intentional Rest
By: Allie Edmonds
If you scroll through any social media platform in January, you will probably encounter New Year's resolutions, in-your-face motivation, and the ‘new year, new you’ mentality. While the opportunity to create resolutions and set new goals for the new year serves many of us well, we often forget the significant role rest plays in helping us achieve them. While societal pressures compel us to make focused resolutions each year, the problem with these resolutions is that, instead of trying to help us shape a healthier narrative surrounding goals and productivity, by looking at the year ahead holistically, they often just jump to lofty conclusions. As a result, we often focus on short-term goals and how we feel temporarily, rather than looking at the long-term benefits of healthy habits, like resting to prevent future burnout or illness.
Americans are among the worst offenders when it comes to not resting enough. According to the Families and Work Institutes, less than half of U.S. employees take all of their vacation days (National Study of Employers).. In 2014, a Glassdoor Employment Survey reported that 61% of employees work during vacation. Rest is an essential component in working well and maintaining a productive work ethic. When we do not take the time to rest, we are more prone to chronic stress and fatigue that actually hinders our success. According to the Mayo Clinic, the long-term activation of the stress response system and the “overexposure to cortisol and other stress hormones” can disrupt almost all of the processes of the body. If left untreated, long-term stress can cause chest pain, headaches, an inability to focus, digestive issues, anxiety, depression, and many other health concerns. The Mayo Clinic also highlights that the rewards for learning to manage stress can include “peace of mind, a better quality of life, improvement in conditions such as high blood pressure,” as well as other benefits such as better self-control, improved focus, and stronger relationships.
We tend to think of vacations and days off as an indulgence that we cannot afford to fit into our schedules, especially when we set out to accomplish a set resolution. As we strive to keep up with a seemingly endless workload, we often forget the importance of intentional rest. We neglect that rest is an essential element in achieving your goals. The strict devotion to maintaining a perpetually busy schedule does not in fact translate to greater productivity. In fact, the brain requires substantial, undistracted downtime to remain industrious and generate new creative and innovative ideas.
Taking time to rest is paramount to managing stress. I recently listened to Emma Chamberlain’s podcast episode titled Rock Bottom, in which Emma addresses the internalized guilt she felt when she decided to choose rest over productivity after experiencing extreme burnout. In the solo conversation, Emma discusses exactly why she often lacks inspiration, creativity, and motivation. “Every time I would relax,” she explains, “I didn’t feel like I deserved it.” She also emphasizes the benefits of taking intentional time to rest: “You have to let yourself [recharge properly] and the truth of the matter is, if you let yourself relax fully without any guilt or any shame, you can return quicker than you can imagine.” When we treat rest as equally as important as work, or, at minimum, find ways to rest more effectively, we actually learn to value taking time off. Whether that means you choose to take a walk to clear your mind, a nap to recharge, or simply unplug from work for a few hours, resting allows the brain to contemplate old ideas and problems and look for new information. This additional time off can help the brain not only to sift through the busy, working mind but also allows space for creativity and a new mindset to emerge. In this way, for some of us, the most productive thing we can do this new year is taking the time to rest.
Reference List:
Families and Work Institute (2017). 2016 National Study of Employers. Mayo Clinic Staff (Jul 8, 2021). “Chronic stress puts your health at risk,” https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/stress/art-20046037
Glassdoor Employment Confidence Survey (Q1 2014), “Average U.S. Employee Only Takes Half of Earned Vacation Time” https://www.glassdoor.com/press/surveys