Give Yourself the Gift of Getting Away with Something Every Single Day
Overachievers Anonymous life hack #1
Let´s see, so on Monday, I decided to hide in a corner of the cafe across from my workplace and drink a big cup of tea while listening to a 15-minute podcast about something delightfully frivolous.
On Tuesday, I left work one hour early to go steam myself in a sauna.
On Wednesday, I sneaked away from my colleagues to eat lunch and enjoy the view on the roof deck of our office building in perfect silence.
On Thursday, after a very long meeting finished, I took a walk down to the ocean so I could enjoy the last of the warm air before the frost settles in all too soon.
Friday, I opted to take the bus that comes 20 minutes after my usual bus so I could put on some questionable music and dance in my kitchen (thoroughly scandalizing the cat).
An entire week of getting away with stuff that any pre-recovery overachiever would break out in hives over.
None of this happened by itself. I plotted it. In the first five minutes after I woke up. Because priorities.
The time has come for an upgrade
A lot of us lead lives that are non-stop. A lot of us have digital tools and multinational connections that give us the “opportunity” to work anytime and anyplace. A 12–14 hours working stretch is not uncommon in some lines of work.
And however many hours you are willing to put in, there is (real or imaginary) pressure to do even more. Maybe you have noticed the to-do list is often longer at the end of the day than it was at the beginning? Yeah. All of that has got to be resonating.
Here’s the thing: A lot of us are in careers we love and doing things we are genuinely happy to be doing. So we embrace the workload that comes with it, laser-focused on the next launch, campaign, convention, report, project kick-off or whatever is on its way down the pipe. We are there for it! And wouldn´t really want to not be in on the action.
But… what about that other part of your waking day that has nothing to do with your job, family obligations, preparing your taxes or any of the other numerous requirements of modern life?
What about that time you should be spending each day actually just enjoying an unstructured moment of life? It needs to happen. But it won´t just happen by itself. You will have to lean in and take it.
The sky won´t fall. No great accomplishment will be derailed. No spectacular opportunity will pass you by. Instead, you will probably be pleasantly surprised to discover that the time you spend away from the computer screen, the office environment and all of the demands-of-the-moment contributes to recharging your energy and enthusiasm. For everything — including your work. It will probably also result in your taking a more conscious approach to being kinder to yourself in general. Which is golden from any perspective.
How to start getting away with stuff
It started with a promise to myself that I would find/make/steal some time in my day to enjoy having no responsibility for anything but tuning into whatever good thing to do that I thought up. And I have been getting away with it ever since.
Now, it's your turn. Start first thing tomorrow morning and make sure you do not get out of bed until you have committed to stealing 10–15 minutes out of your hectic workday that has nothing whatsoever to do with accomplishing anything other than making you feel more relaxed, energized or inspired.
Start small, but aim to work your way up to the kind of things that put a smile on your face like the one the Grinch has when he has cooked up something particularly…cunning. When this is the first thing on your mind each morning, you will be significantly less irritated by the alarm clock.
Most recovering overachievers have a lot of catching up to do on the getting away with stuff front, so start right now. Go ahead, your life will thank you.