Take time to rest
Photo by Aleksandar Cvetanovic on Unsplash
One year (long before the pandemic), my husband and I each got sick right before the holidays. We were so ill that all we could manage to do for days on end was lay on the couch in our pajamas and watch Hallmark Christmas movies. So we watched all of them. As the endlessly-recycled plot tropes became increasingly obvious to us, I even made Hallmark Christmas movie bingo cards to keep us entertained, but that’s another story. Somewhere between the second storyline about saving the small town’s Christmas festival and the eighth movie where a character has to leave for a new job on Christmas Eve, we realized that if you don’t take the time to rest, eventually your body will do it for you.
Honestly—and I’m not proud of this—there were moments early in my career when I actually hoped to get sick. In these moments, I had been feeling so overworked and overwhelmed that all I wanted to do was just lay down. But, I had convinced myself that unless I was actually sick, I couldn’t take the time to rest. And I thought maybe if I were sick, then people couldn’t judge me for taking time off. When you start wishing for an illness just to get a break, that’s a sign that something needs to change.
Now, as we move from the chaos that is the end of the semester into a different kind of chaos, full of festivities and family gatherings throughout the holiday break, I am here to remind you to take time to rest. It’s ok to take time off from work AND from all the parties. It’s ok to do whatever it is that you need to do in order truly rest and recharge. That may be sleeping in, that may be watching endless football games or Hallmark movies, or that may look like taking a walk in the park with your kids and some hot apple cider.
However you choose to rest and recharge, the one crucial part of it is that you don’t feel guilty about it. In fact, if you start to question whether you can afford to take time away from work, tell yourself that resting will make actually make you better at your job. Because it will. We’ve all heard the phrase ‘You can’t pour from an empty cup’, and we’ve all experienced how much smoother the work goes after we’ve had a good night’s sleep. Rest is an investment in yourself and your career. If you find yourself ruminating on unfinished work, ask yourself whether it is truly urgent. If it’s not, schedule it into your calendar for a later time. Then, if you start to worry about the work again, remind yourself that you have dedicated time for it in the future so you no longer need to concern yourself with it at this moment. If you can’t seem to let the work go, to the point where it is beginning to affect your mental and physical health, it may be worth talking to your family doctor, a professional therapist, or seek out resources within your university or institution to get support.
Your work matters, but so does your health. Take time to proactively and intentionally rest over the holidays. Trust that the rest you take will propel you into the New Year with renewed energy and focus. Ask yourself, ‘what kind of rest do I need?’ And then block time off in your calendar for it. If you need support, you can book a call here. If you’d like some bingo cards, send me a message!
Happy holidays!
Next week: Word of the year: Consistency
