1. Start very early in the A.M. – Wake up earlier than everyone else around you, before your phone starts pinging with a barrage of social media notifications and while there is a sense of calm in the air. Also being a little sleepy usually lowers your inhibitions and gets those creative juices flowing.
2. Work, take a break, back to work – Try working for about hour and a half to two hours, while focusing your mind on the work at hand with the utmost concentration you can conjure up. Then take a break for 20 minutes.
3. Please don’t multitask so much – It doesn’t work. Try to keep the message checking - email responding - call answering - financial planning juggle to a minimum and do one thing at a time. The wise know they can do more in two focused hours and a day spent distracted.
4. Go on a walk - It’ll calm your mind and maybe even come up with some great ideas to solve those problems that have been worrying you.
5. Naps are good too - Your boss won’t like seeing you dozing at work, but a 20 minute nap is said to work wonders too.
6. Stop your work mid-way, then get back to it - Odd trick this one, but stopping your work mid-way will keep your mind alert and engaged enough to get back to the work as soon as possible and do so with the utmost sense of urgency and enthusiasm.
7. Work should not be brought home – Don’t bring your work home. More specifically, create a boundary or a time limit for when you work on your business if you’re doing so at home. The point here is to create a balance between how much time you spend on yourself and family, and how much you give to work.
8. Make use of all those vacation days - Your office gives you vacation days, take them. It’ll ensure you don’t burn out or have a midlife crisis a decade into your professional life. And if you’re a founder, well, we are sorry you have less vacation days. But do try to tune out and take a few restful days off to rejuvenate yourself.
9. While you’re at it, find a good hobby too - It will keep your mind engaged and busy even while you’re not working. The great thing about that is your mind is relaxed yet active; those are the times life changing, ground breaking, revolutionary epiphanies hit.
Like the time Newton was said to be chilling under a tree and an apple hit him. You know what happened after that.
10. Never wait for people to tell you to rest – This is very especially for the obsessive compulsive workaholics who can’t switch off. Don’t assume your boss will let you rest if you zoom through your work. If you complete all 20 tasks, you will get 20 more. Work is never ending, so you need to be the best judge of your own capabilities and exhaust limits.
By all means work hard, very hard. But when you’re feeling the pressure getting to you always stop for a while before you’re ready to get back to the grind.
This list was compiled with the help of the book
Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less by Alex Soojung-Kim Pang.
BW Reporters
Regina is a reporter for BW Businessworld. In her previous assignments, she has worked with Independent television Network as a news anchor and reporter in Sri Lanka
