The Discipline of Rest
Last week, I got my second Covid booster, and boy, did I prepare for it well. I scheduled it for a Tuesday afternoon, so I could take a nap before my son was home from daycare if I needed to. I drank my last cup of coffee on Sunday morning and had my last beer that afternoon (with Rustin’s great turkey chili and golf on TV – my favorite kind of Sunday). I drank tons of water with an electrolyte hydration multiplier several times on Monday and before I got the shot on Tuesday. On Wednesday morning, my arm was sore, but I felt great. I’d arranged to take the day off and wondered if I still should since I felt fine. ...I took the day anyway. I spent it reading outside, taking walks, and doing an easy pilates class via my Peloton. Meaning, I rested.
I’ve shared here more than once that in the past, I’ve struggled with rest, for fear of being perceived as lazy or not capitalizing on experiences that would allow me to meet my goals. But the problem is, 2022 has been the most challenging year of my life (maybe 1993 comes close; wait for my memoir for that story), and it’s taken a lot out of me. I’m a solutions-oriented person, and I’ve found myself not as readily able to come up with ideas, largely from fatigue.
So, I have committed to learning the discipline of rest.
This doesn’t mean that I’ll be sitting on my couch doing nothing for the rest of my days. I love my work and my clients, and I couldn’t see myself doing anything other than what I’m doing because I literally have my dream job. It does mean that I’ll be looking at my work differently, not from a place of obligation, rushing, or the need to prove anything, but from a place of confidence, knowing that I’m doing my best work and my clients are getting their best results.
It also means that November’s Emerging Manager RoundTable will be the last, maybe not forever, but for a while. I’ll also be concluding VY Advisors’ LinkedIn and Twitter pages indefinitely, starting in mid-December. I’ve loved building this community and offering resources, and I’ll still make them available, but I want to take the time to step back and recharge.
I so much admire my Jewish friends who observe the Sabbath and put their phones away come Friday night. From my one day of intentional rest, I felt, well, restored. As a result, some new ideas started percolating. I’d like to relax into them and see what turns up. I’ll keep you posted, of course.
I invite you to take an assessment of yourself: Yes, we’re all busy people doing important, busy people things, but could you do more, or more importantly, better if you took the time to rest? Let’s get those imaginations going and see what greatness results.