Let's do nothing (and reclaim our lives)

Notes from the book: Do Nothing

You got some free time?

Well, in today’s day and age, somebody with free time is probably looked down upon as a loser, a ‘jobless’ person.

And on the other hand, somebody who is super busy, juggling with many things (hello, Elon!) is considered successful. Right?

Well, here is the truth: Our fascination with productivity is making us depressed, stressed out, and physically ill.

The question to be answered is this 👇

Why are we so efficient and yet so overwhelmed? Why are we so productive with so little to show for it?

Don’t know about you, but I was definitely among the ones who was super busy, always hustling only to realize that it was causing not just burnouts, but resulted in a sense of ‘what am I doing?’.

Welcome to the cult of productivity, the cult of effectiveness that forces us to measure each and every minute of ours, only to leave us asking for a moment of peace!

This weekend, I bring you key (atomic) ideas from the book (Do Nothing: How to Break Away from Overworking, Overdoing, and Underliving) by Celeste Headlee, especially on how to ‘do nothing’ and reclaim your life.

6 key ideas.

The Never-ending Marathon

If your to-do lists seem to be getting longer every day, you are trying to optimize your hours, and hoping to find extra hours in the day, you may have fallen victim to the “cult of effectiveness.”

This is a mentality that assumes that the busier we are the better.

We Aim for Productivity in Our Private Relationships

Things have been very simple so far. We also explored the roots of the productivity cult and examined some of the ways jobs can “contaminate” our time off and compete with our pleasure.

One of the most significant points about the rise towards productivity is that it left its roots in the office quite rapidly and became an approach towards life in general.

The notion of free time is as distant from most people’s everyday experience as open space.

Spending Quality Time Means It is Limited By Nature

The notion of enjoying “quality time” with family is one way that we can track the penetration of productivity into our personal lives.

There is nothing unusual about having to spend time with loved ones; it is always a satisfying remedy to our normal emphasis on “getting things done.”

The idea of quality time suggests that in a few satisfying, condensed, yet unforgettable hours we can and should pack our family responsibilities.

Bonding time, in other words, is family life tailored to a philosophy of success, a mentality only limited to the office.

How to reclaim your life?

Check Where Your Time Goes

To enhance your time perception, begin by maintaining a list of your tasks. Log all that down, even though it’s just social media surfing.

When you have a good vision of how you are spending your time, build a plan that outlines how you would like to look at your days. Note, this is a timeline that promotes recreation, not efficiency. To encourage yourself to be completely lazy and inefficient, set aside a bunch of time each day.

Differentiate Between Means and Ends to Reclaim Our Free Time

One of the challenges of celebrating success and performance is that these ideals can allow us to lose track of the bigger picture. Not only does a society that emphasizes hard work and busyness convince us to ignore free time; but it also allows us to rely on means rather than ends.

How To Do Nothing

Examine the “productive” things you do and make sure that they bring you closer to your long-term goals in life.

Is looking at emails on a Sunday morning helping you achieve the things you want in life? If not, forget about it.

Once you learn to drop unrewarding tasks, you’ll find you have much more time for leisure.