Changing your relationship with downtime is an inner job. You must let go of the guilt and value the time you need to recharge your batteries to be ready to face the challenges ahead. Here are a few suggestions to try from Forbes.com:
Call it recovery, not rest
Switch out “rest” for “recovery”. Rather than telling yourself you need to rest, reframe it as recovery. Recovery is a more active, purposeful process, which will remind you that your downtime is both meaningful and necessary.
Think about your team
If you’re a leader, it’s important to realize that taking breaks isn’t just about you. Whether you realize it or not, the people around you observe your actions. If you respond to emails at all hours, they’ll feel compelled to do the same. If you don’t take a vacation, they won’t either. People look to you as a role model and will follow your behaviour.
And if you’re not a leader, consider that you do your team a disservice if you continue to relentlessly push yourself. They probably can’t afford to lose you or have you burn out, so invest in rest as much for them as for yourself.
Take it slow
When you rush into relaxation, it can be a shock to your sensitive nervous system. You’ve gone from being totally amped up to screeching on the breaks. Focus on taking it slow. Ease yourself into taking breaks. For example, block off your calendar so you give yourself 15 minutes to decompress after each meeting.
Separate your feelings from your identity
Additionally, be mindful not to fall into the trap of emotional reasoning. Emotional reasoning happens when you believe that your emotional reactions prove something is true. Put simply, emotional reasoning is believing “I feel guilty for resting, therefore resting is bad.” Or worse, “I feel guilty when I take a break, therefore I am lazy / not productive enough.” Work on challenging and reframing those thoughts.
Set expectations and have contingencies
Many roles require you be on call for emergencies or to put out proverbial fires. If this is true for you, then establish clear working hours and escalation plans with your team that outlines how to reach you and under what circumstances.
For example, you might say, “Going forward, I’ll be unavailable after 7 PM. If you need me after that time, please send me an email. If it’s urgent (which is defined by XYZ) then please text me.”
