We are a planned society. As much as the word "goal" and "plan" can make us cringe, we really do plan out each moment. You may not have that five year plan set up, but you probably know that ...
- this morning you will go to work
- during lunch you will run to the post office
- on the way home from work, you will stop and pick up groceries
- you will cram in time to work out
- you will make dinner
- you will get the kids started on their homework
- you will talk to your husband about finishing the taxes (or you will do them yourself)
- you will shove dinner down your throat
- you will call your mother, father, brother, or sister
- you watch your favorite TV show
- you check your mail and respond to your 8 friends
- you check all your favorite websites, forums, and blogs
- you will work on your art, your book, your music
- you notice the time and then go to bed
Our weekdays and weekends are packed - filled to the brim with activities we feel we must do. Our downtime was supposed to be used creating, making art, playing songs, writing stories. But now, those activities are just as planned and lack the fun they used to. What to do?
- Erase your mental plan of today, tomorrow, and the weekend.
- Take one day and leave the computer off.
- Leave the TV off. Heck, unplug it if you are that addicted.
- Think of one thing you don't really have to do.
- Think of one thing that can just wait until tomorrow.
- With that new block of time, do the first relaxing thing you can think of.
It's so easy to get burned out and it's impossible to create when there's no fresh energy behind the initiative. When was the last time you just did nothing. Or more importantly, had some true fun.
Sometimes I'll get the entire DVD box set of a TV show I enjoy. What first turns out to be a fun time of watching the show, it soon turns into me trying to watch as much as I can. Then I get fun overload which obviously isn't that much fun. I carve out a block of free time and must cram as much fun in as I can. Not good.
When we don't take regular breaks for downtime, "do nothing" time, and just plain ole fun time, we starve our creative selves and our spirit. Then, like a starving person, we gobble down the "downtime" until we get sick off that, too. We go from one extreme to the other.
Today, put aside half an hour or even a full hour to just do something completely random, fun, and relaxing. It will give you the energy you need to get through the rest of your day. I've even read that meditating (or simply doing nothing) for five minutes a day can refresh and reset your constantly running mind.
Try it. Get some downtime. Your mind, body, and spirit will thank you.
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