Do less, achieve more
After a good break I came back feeling relaxed and recharged, and it got me thinking. Why did a week off feel so much better than a normal week? Part of it was obvious. No work, no emails, no colleagues. But part of it was that I simply did less.
On holiday I only set out to do a few things, and I did them. That felt really satisfying. I also had proper downtime: sitting, reading, watching something, thinking. Holiday really is better than work, so I wondered how much of that I could bring back into a normal week.
For me it comes down to three areas, in this order:
Home and family. I now put family time in the diary. It might sound a bit cold to plan it, but it was always the thing that got squeezed when it wasn't there. The daily dog walk counts too. It's real time outdoors instead of a fitness goal I'd never stick to.
Work. Email notifications off, email in set blocks, one thing at a time. And saying no a bit more often, so I'm not taking on more than I can do.
Me. Without this I'd be a wreck. Games night with friends, a bit of gaming to switch off, creative projects, reading when I need some inspiration.
I plan each of these weekly, not daily, and I set my goals at about 80% of what I think I could do. That way a bad Monday isn't a lost week. If something keeps knocking Mondays off course, I can build that in too.
A few things that help:
Have some kind of plan. Making it up as you go might get you somewhere, but often not where you wanted.
Take two things off your to-do list as soon as you've written it. You probably weren't going to reach the bottom anyway.
Leave gaps. Nobody can run at full capacity all the time. A break between stretches of concentration is like a palate cleanser.
Of everything here, the one thing I'd want you to try is the 80% rule. Plan your week at about 80% of what you think you can do, and see how it feels to actually finish it.
Give it a go this week and let me know how you get on.
