I’m here to tell you, that you need to give yourself permission to rest because no one is going to tell you to do so. What happens when you think of the word “rest”? What does it mean for you? Now think of the word “hustle”. How does that make you feel?
I don’t know about you but there was a time of my life when I thought resting was tied to being selfish and hustling meant getting everything I ever wanted. That mindset led to burnout. I only allowed myself the time and space to fully rest after long periods of hustle. I would think, “You only get to read your favorite book with a nice cup of tea on the couch – WHEN:
– the dishwasher is empty
– laundry is folded
– every item on your to-do list is checked off and
– no one is waiting for a response from you in your inbox“
Yikes! I had to do all that just to feel worthy of having 30 – 45 minutes of me-time. Imagine what goes on in my head about taking a vacation? Forget about it.
My mentality when I worked in corporate was the same. “I am going to work really hard for my employer, bank that vacation time, stow away money, and then – and only then – will I take the vacation.” The only person benefiting from the situation was my employer with a super-motivated, zealous employee. Sadly, it didn’t change when I became an entrepreneur and my own boss. “Hustle hard and the rest will follow.” But I just kept hustling and the “rest” never followed. It wasn’t until recently that I broke this ridiculous inner dialogue for myself and why I am writing this post for those who may feel the same.
Nobody is going to tell you to rest except for you.
You don’t need to take a luxurious island vacation to rest. Although I highly recommend it at some point in your life. Why can’t we incorporate more rest days, that feel like vacations, into our daily lives without feeling like it has to be earned or worse guilty about it?
I challenge you to take a full mental health day – just because. Go to the spa, get your nails done, have an extra-long lunch with a friend, go to the beach, check into a hotel and use the sauna/pool, spend the day sightseeing in a nearby town, do whatever you want as long as it is relaxing and what you want to do.
We need to make sure that we build those moments into our calendars and rest days into our lives. No one is going to do it for you. Give yourself permission to rest, embrace the space, fill the time on your own terms, don’t question it, just do it. Life is short, no one is going to give you that break but yourself.
