I believe taking breaks is a normal part of life and no one should feel guilty for taking a pause.
Sometimes our bodies force us to take a pause because of illnesses, writer’s block, restrategizing, new structures, and so on.
However, the greatest danger of taking a break is becoming so familiar with the break, to the point that you can’t go back to how things used to be.
Trust me, I have been there.
Sometimes you battle with the thoughts of; “Do I still have what it takes to get back? Will people understand? Where do I start?”
Are these all, not familiar thoughts?
It is human to take a break and the sooner you make peace with that, the better.
Oh, and breaks are relative. For some, a full day is enough, for others, it’s months, and others can go for up to a year.
I have recently had the privilege of taking a break from work and in my experience, it has really been beneficial.
Here are some of the benefits I have seen from it:
1) Restoration of your body strength
Your body needs rest to function at its best, and if you don’t give it the break willingly, it will demand it and not in a nice way.
Sometimes tension builds up in our bodies because of the day-to-day.
Breaks will relieve you from stress and recharge your body for a new race.
I kid you not, you even experience the physical strength, literally.
2) Recenter your focus
When you are so used to go go go, it’s easy to pick up things along the way that you shouldn’t be doing.
Anything to make us look busy, right?
This is the notion that many believe and honestly it’s not their fault. It’s what is being sold all around us- busyness*.
Taking a break really helped me see what I was missing and reminded me of the goals I had initially.
3) A new motivation
Breaks breed a new motivation. I remember the mindset I would have any time we went back to school after a mid-term break.
Lack of motivation can be due to doing the same thing over and over.
Normalize taking breaks here and there within the course of the day.
4) Boosts your creativity
For any creative you know breaks go a long way.
You get new ideas to execute.
I’m sure you’ve listened to banger music albums that were released after an artist took a break to recharge.
5) You become more productive
The freshness you come out of a break with ensures you are on top of things.
You can even go for several hours before taking a pause.
Additionally, your mind can focus on the task at hand without being distracted.
6) A better sense of awareness of when to take breaks or slow down
Breaks help you reflect on how you did things previously, that might have probably led to burnouts.
It becomes easy for you to identify patterns that indicate fatigue.
You become very mindful of what you are doing and slow down whenever you can.
What does your comeback plan look like with the lessons learned out of the way?
I’ll admit that getting back to my work was not easy, and it might be the same for you especially if you’ve taken a long break.
You might even start doubting if you are doing the right thing.
I assure you, you are. You just have to understand a few things.
These are the things that have worked for me:
What to do to get back to your groove:
1) Give yourself grace
Don’t be too hard on yourself. There is a time to push yourself to achieve something and there is a time to allow your body to recharge.
I needed that break to breathe and strategize.
So it’s okay to be gracious to yourself.
You only got one body and if you don’t listen to it when it’s communicating, it might backfire on you.
2) Start small and gain momentum
I know there can be the temptation to get from 0 speed to 180 ASAP, but you have to pace yourself.
Think of it like being weaned back to your routine.
You slowly pick up the speed so that you don’t get overwhelmed quickly.
Otherwise, it’s pretty easy to resent what you do.
Do a few things each day and add an item to your to-do list as you pick up the pace.
3) Go back to your goals and remind yourself
Take time to go through your goals.
And this is not a one-day affair. You keep coming back to the goals to align your actions to the goals.
It brings in the motivation bit by bit. Your goals will help you be very purposeful with the effort you put in.
Goals help you see and assess whether you are on the right track.
I had to adjust a few things to accommodate the season I am in.
If you find yourself doing this, it’s okay.
You are probably shedding off things you should not have been doing in the first place.
4) Celebrate each achievement
Don’t disregard any small win.
It’s like adding to your ‘psyche-tank’. You might not be where you want to be but you are making steps to get there.
Celebrate those steps and be happy about them.
You’ve probably heard this countless times: You are your biggest cheerleader!
It’s a bonus if you have people who are patient with you and celebrate with you but remember the buck stops with you.
Those are four few things you can do to get back to your groove.
Go you and keep winning!
Let me know what resonated with you the most.
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