As a business leader in today’s “always on” world it can be difficult to stop - boundaries between worklife and homelife are increasingly blurred - and things move so quickly, it can feel like you need to stay on simply to stay up. But, in business leadership it’s just as important to “stop” and step away regularly - providing a valuable chance to observe from afar, pause and perhaps carve out some time for reflective leadership.
Here are 10 reasons why you should absolutely and completely take those breaks when you can - and relish the opportunity to do nothing. Because, it turns out that doing absolutely nothing is pretty productive after all!
1.CREATE NEW IDEAS. By creating space, ideas will converge, dots will start joining - and new ideas will form. In 'stopping', our brain shifts from focused thinking to diffused thinking, cognitive processes converge and our thinking is free to wander outside the box. We take a creative leap.
2.PROBLEM SOLVE. When you are focused on a problem (focused thinking) the mind removes information that seems unrelated. But the best insights require deep exploratory thinking - way outside the subconscious framework of relevance. Break the structure - solve the problem!
3.CONSIDER OTHER THINKING & ENRICH YOURS! A holiday is a chance to do something different, a break from routine. Go to the gallery, do the walk - absorb other ideas through books, films and experiences - thus add to your own creative thinking and connect disparate thoughts to create something unique.
4.FALL BACK IN LOVE WITH YOUR WORK. A break gives us the chance to miss our work, to want to do it again and return refreshed. It reminds us why we chose this path (or why we might choose another!)
5.PLAY! To talk about something other than work with friends, family, partner - to reconnect with them, for your kids to see that you have worked hard and now you get to play. Technically, in a state of play the outcome of what you’re doing is not as important as what you’re doing - a highly desirable state for creative thinking and an antidote to burnout. So play away.
6.BRING NEW ENERGY TO YOUR WORK RELATIONSHIPS. Be happy to see your colleagues again! A wise friend talks about the “song that’s playing when you walk in a room” - (we love this idea). A break from work - ensures you bring fresh energy - and a much better song.
7.ENHANCE OVERALL HEALTH. Rest, fresh air, good food - all of those things help overall health which in turn helps (and indeed, enable) your approach to work. Health is, indeed, wealth when it comes to making the moolah.
8.REFLECT. Stopping gives a chance to reflect on where you put your energies. What worked, what didn’t? And where energy is best spent next year!
9.BE QUIET. A chance to be quiet. Hopefully. It’s a noisy world.
And finally, most importantly -
10.YOU DESERVE IT. It’s important to celebrate the wins and milestones along the way! It can do wonders for your mental health, team morale and ensure you’re having fun - enjoying the journey as well as the destination! Enjoy.
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