Being a huge proponent of taking breaks and clearing the decks, I noticed my own summer calendar had yet to include any actual vacation time. I know I’m not alone. With all the delights that this time of year brings, what keeps us at the grindstone? Part of it is just that a worker bee mindset begets the only idea it can—just keep working. In reality, it also invokes the law of diminishing returns. Tired minds and bodies don’t produce the same results as ones that have been able to chill out at the beach. Tired minds also have a harder time realizing how much more they could accomplish after taking a chance to recharge. This is especially true given our lack of reference to what unplugging really means since Americans tend to land at the bottom of the list in the time off category. As such, having and/or taking less vacation days keeps us closer to home, never allowing us to travel farther away to experience how other cultures embrace down time and thrive by “going on holiday”.
For those of us that have to justify taking down time to ourselves, here are some ideas to consider:
1) The human mind and body both need rest to function well – much less at their best. Getting a chance to truly relax translates into having better immunity against illness, lowering blood pressure, being less likely to sustain an injury as well as having a brain and nervous system that has had a chance to literally renew its own tissues as a bodily organ.
2) Relatedly, being perpetually wired to work through our phones and computers causes the brain’s processing ability to become overloaded. According to Dr. Daniel Levitan, a neuroscientist from McGill University, this not only compromises cognitive functioning, it also triggers the release of stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. Increases in these hormones interfere with being able to get a good night’s sleep as well as managing one’s weight.
3) Being tired and stressed causes us to be less self- aware. Our perceptions can have us then thinking that we are able to contribute at the same level when in reality, we’re more likely to make mistakes and ignore the need to communicate. This includes failing to see a time sensitive email or missing your colleagues facial expressions during a sales meeting, cueing you to downshift your approach.
4) Taking breaks creates the space for us to have better relationships, both in our personal lives and our professional dealings because it shifts our relationship with time. When we don’t have to rush, we can be more engaged in the present moment. As a result, we are more likely to experience feeling lighter, having some fun and appreciate the things that can go unnoticed in the world of everyday work. If you can allow yourself to let go, everyone around you benefits.
5) Giving yourself time off allows you to see problems and challenges with a fresh and often time clearer perspective, thus coming up with a solution with less effort and strain. In other words when you take breaks, you create a greater propensity to move into a flow state. The state where focus, creativity and efficiency operate together on all cylinders.
6) People expect that you will be taking a break, especially in the summer and early fall. The trip to the Cape or up to the mountains to enjoy a hike in the foliage is in some way a common cultural experience here in New England. Having an adventure to share serves as both an ice breaker when networking and/or a way to bond with colleagues.