Yes, rest over productivity! But first...
I am PASSIONATE about productivity.
I love bullet journals, paper planners, digital productivity tools (recently fallen in love with Notion, which I highly recommend for anyone wanting to get their digital life and brain organized), my Google calendar, lists galore, habit tracking, and goal setting. (I even offer productivity coaching.) And all these productivity tools and habits sincerely do help me live a more clutter-free, organized, and successful life.
HOWEVER, (here's the real meat and potatoes)
Productivity can also be one of the things that gets in between me and what I want most. I often focus so hard on tracking, preparing, organizing, and planning, that I procrastinate the real task at hand. And even when I am getting tasks done, sometimes those tasks are not really that important, or at least not right now.
Doing things for the sake of "productivity" alone can actually be quite unproductive. We often work super hard on things that give us little results. Or we spend a ton of time getting ready to start the thing that will give us big results, when we could have just gotten started on the thing in the first place.
Rest is a vital part of productivity. And when we leave rest out of the equation, both our efficiency and effectiveness (the key aspects of productivity) suffer. When we skip rest, we don't have the clarity or energy to do the right kind of work (clarity) with the right amount of effort or passion (energy).
Takeaway?
Whether productivity for you right now looks like tiding your space, decluttering your house, accomplishing work tasks, or building your business, remember that productivity in and of itself is not the end goal. You and those you love deserve a relaxed, happy version of you more they need everything to be done just right.
Rest, breathe, move gently, eat well, and enjoy time with those you love. Let high expectations go.
When you work AND rest in healthy cycles, that is when true productivity arrives.
Want tips on how to implement more rest into your life?
Check out these posts:
Take a break each day and talk kindly to yourself. You can use these 50 affirmations as a guide.
Create mental peace and more emotional capacity to rest by decluttering your mind.
When you are feeling overwhelmed? Try this short exercise.
No time for a break? Create more time in your life by embracing digital minimalism.
Give yourself a break by asking for help; it's the courageous. thing to do.
Declutter your notifications so you can have less daily "DING!" interruptions during your breaks.
Also give my good friend Brooke a follow on Instagram on her account all about restful living.
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