Welcome back! Hopefully you’ve been finding success and time to take care of yourself during these unusual times. Today, I’d like to discuss the importance of laziness in caring for yourself.
Okay – you’re probably already wondering what I mean when I say “lazy.” Simply put, I literally mean being lazy. It may sound contradictory to what you’ve heard people tell you in the past, and while too much laziness is detrimental, that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t at least have some, in moderation!
We’re busy college students – we wake up each day, attend classes, and do our homework and studying. Not to mention, we’re living in uncertain and stressful times, and there’s probably other personal life events going on on top of all that! Unless you’re a robot, working hard everyday of the week is just not possible, which is why it’s important to give yourself a lazy day at least once every couple weeks, if not more often. Believe it or not, there are a variety of benefits associated with just taking it easy.
By using this day to focus on yourself, you can direct your attention away from stressors and when you come back to these problems, you’ll feel more refreshed and ready to tackle them. Additionally, you can take some time to reflect and reorganize your priorities – in today’s busy world, it’s easy to lose track of deadlines and events, and sometimes, you just need a day to let your mind untangle itself, write down a few notes for the coming days, and even meditate. Plus, lazy days mean you can do whatever you’d like – so go ahead and catch up on your favorite TV series, watch a movie, eat some good snacks. And don’t feel guilty about it either – you are taking care of yourself by doing what you find satisfying and fun, and this will greatly help in the long run!
Figure 1-1. List of Tasks on a Lazy Day. Patrick May.
Now, you may not be completely convinced of the benefits, but trust me – it’s better to have a higher volume of productivity over 6 days than a fatigued, restless, and forced work ethic over 7 days. I myself try to take a lazy day (or even afternoon) once in a while, and it really does help refresh my mind and body and aid in my problem solving skills afterwards. Plus, spending the afternoon in bed, hanging out with friends, or even having ice cream has benefits, contradictory to what one usually thinks. The best part is that some of the activities can even prolong your life – who thought laziness could be so useful?
Figure 1-2. Slowing Down and Relaxing. Nikola Stavrovski
And also, it’s worth noting that none of us are too busy to have a lazy day, especially if you have good time management skills. In fact, I think implementing a lazy day once in a while, but on a regular schedule, could be quite beneficial in developing time management skills. By knowing you have a day where you can rest, but won’t do difficult work, you’ll be able to plan ahead and therefore get a better sense of your weekly outlook. I’ve noticed this for myself, and that extra degree of planning will surely come in handy later on. You may even come up with some crafty ideas for that project you’ve been assigned, or for that story you’ve been writing! All those hobby-related activities you’ve wanted to do no longer have to wait, and you might learn something new and creative from finally getting to do them! And in general, having something to look forward to in an otherwise uncertain world really goes a long way. Being able to remind yourself that “Sunday will be an easy and good day” can definitely help during that mid-week slump! So give it a try – like everything self-care related, it may take a few tries to find your groove, but I guarantee that it will help you in the long run and that your mind and body will be super thankful for it!
I think this post highlights something I need to do a little better. I am pretty good at managing time for work and other tasks, but my time management for relaxing is lacking. I completely agree that planning times to relax and avoid working is a crucial part of performing better when I have to work. Effectively planning for relaxation should help me a lot.
I definitely agree with your message that sometimes it is best to do nothing, because nothing is ultimately something. Doing nothing is doing something for oneself. It is about taking the time to allow for someone relax and reflect, without getting caught up in the stress of the real world. Planning out time to relax, can save someone from burnout. When I was younger I became stressed when I was not stressed, which led to a lot of issues further down the line. Yet, this pushed me to discover, in high school, that it is okay to take days of to give yourself a mental health day, to relish in relaxation for once. COVID or no, online school or not, life is stressful, so it is best to plan out when to destress and do nothing.
It is really interesting to read this because I was actually just thinking about how much I wish I could have a real break. A time where I am not worried or thinking about anything important or life changing. A moment where I can watch trash TV or just sit on my own. Relaxing is something we tend to overlook especially in today’s society with today’s standards. There aren’t enough moments of simply enjoying the moment.
You mentioned some really good points. Sometimes it’s hard to be able to set aside a day of leisure, either because you forget that you need a break, or because you procrastinated on your work and now you need to catch up quickly! But it is really important to manage your time well enough that you have periodic days of rest. For me, that’s often Saturday. After a 5-day week of classes and homework, it’s nice to be unproductive for half the weekend.