How Relaxing Can Make You More Productive

Halloween is around the corner and with it, the beginning of the holiday season. When I was working at my last job, I would always be looking forward to this time of the year because it meant that I could travel and host Friendsgiving and Christmas parties.

Now that I’ve been working on my own ventures, there are no set vacations. During my first few weeks as a full-time entrepreneur, I packed my schedule so tightly that I forgot to book a time to each lunch! I was getting so overwhelmed with the fact that I gave up a 40-hour week job for an 80-hour week job with no pay!

While I was initially excited and optimistic about my journey, I didn’t take the time to evaluate if I was doing things effectively. I was in the “ready, fire, aim” mentality, and tried a bunch of stuff that yielded little results.

I never gave myself the time to pause and reflect. Were my actions effective? And was I bringing value to others before asking from them first?

This past week, I decided to shake up my routine. I took a few days off to relax and refocus. I started reading the autobiography of Sam Walton (of Walmart fame) and finished half the book in one day (it’s a great read). One of the most important things I learned is that you need to take care of your customers and your employees, and they will take care of you.

By taking a break, I was able to reflect on what I’ve been doing for the past few months and decided to double down on what has been working and to scale back at what hasn’t yielded results.

Periodically taking the time to step away from the daily grind can give you a great perspective on your life and your business. It’ll help you in the long run.

So for the next few days, take a break, relax, and use the time to be creative.