When doing nothing is really something

The end of March is around the corner. It's the end of the first quarter of the year. About 25% of 2023 is in the rear-view mirror.

If you're anything like me, it's flown by. As in, it feels like I just put away the holiday decorations and suddenly it's April next week. How is that possible?

When it feels like time is flying by so quickly, I try to slow down a bit and ask myself some questions. One of those questions I try to ask myself when the days are flying by because there are so jam-packed is this one:

Am I taking time for myself to recover?

Sometimes we push and push for days and weeks on end. We exhaust ourselves and drive our minds and bodies at a breath-taking pace. But that can only last for so long. If you don't plan in some intentional time to recover, you'll end up in burnout or illness.

Where can you plan some "down time" for yourself? Can you make some time after work at the end of the day for some time doing something that restores you? Can you make a date with yourself or with friends for the weekend?

I recently watched "The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse" on Apple TV after I saw it had received an Academy Award. I have the book (and it's fantastic! You can check it out here.), but the short film was similarly sweet and insightful. One quote that stuck out to me was "Doing nothing with friends is never doing nothing, is it?' asked the boy. 'No,' said the mole.”

More generally, remember that "doing nothing is never doing nothing." Doing nothing IS doing something -- it's restoring you. It's taking care of you and your well-being. It's sharpening the saw so you will not only feel better, but think better and perform better.

Doing nothing is never doing nothing.

I hope you can find some time in the coming week to do nothing. Just for a little bit.

Because doing nothing is something very important to your well-being and long-term, sustainable success.