How To Be More Productive By Doing Absolutely Nothing

So we’re nearing the end of January,
and if you’re anything like me, you’ve
filled the first month of the year with
good intentions, taking all your New
Year’s Resolutions head on. Great!
Congratulations!
It’s a great feeling to feel as though
we’re moving towards our goals. It’s
motivating and it fills us with happiness,
but it can also fill our time and
eventually, we may begin to waste it.
This month, many of us will have noticed
a little less white space in our diaries as
we go to work, go to the gym, visit our
families and friends, pursue our passions
and try to introduce new and positive
habits into our routine that will
hopefully last the year. It can be
exhausting and the more we do it, the
more time we might actually be wasting.

‘There comes a time when the world
gets quiet and the only thing left is your
own heart. So you’d better learn the
sound of it. Otherwise you’ll never
understand what it’s saying.’
- Sarah Dessen

I was gifted some free time this
weekend and although there were
plenty of things I could have been
getting on with, I chose not to. I simply
spent time with the people close to me
and some on my own. I cast everything
else from my mind.

Reflect
It’s helpful to take time like this,
especially in months as hectic as
January, to reflect on your progress,
your goals and that for which you are
already grateful. Of course, on the
road of self-improvement, we are
always looking ahead and seeking that
which is better, but if we always look
ahead we will miss so much that is
already around us. So how can we again
centre ourselves and make certain
we’re on the right track?

Enjoy What You Have
Hopefully, we will all be closer to our
dreams at the end of the year, but
some of them have already come true;
so enjoy them.
Spend time with the people you love.
Indulge in the activities you most enjoy.
Use your body, get outside. Go and see
that movie that you think looks good!
Enjoy yourself now; don’t put it off
until you’ve achieved your goals – give
yourself permission to have fun today!
This just might give you the energy you
need to revitalise and work towards
your goals and increase your happiness.

Refine Your Direction
Capitalise on some quiet time to think
about what direction you’re moving in
and if you need to alter your course at
all. If we don’t stop to evaluate our
progress, we might walk a mile in the
wrong direction. So sit down, grab a pen
and paper and look over your goals.
Break them down into smaller steps and
see which ones you’ve been working on
and which ones need more attention.
Refine your direction accordingly. What
has worked and what hasn’t?

Be Busy Doing Nothing
Although it may outwardly appear that
you’re not doing anything, you could
actually be doing some of your best
work when you sit down and reflect.
That hour to yourself could save you
hours of wasted time in the future.
Sometimes, when I have a post to write
or some fiction to work on and my mind
is too busy to produce anything, I simply
sit down and let myself daydream and
before long, I’ve had an idea. So go
now, lie down on the sofa and tell all
around you that you’re hard at work and
you mustn’t be disturbed!
Wishing you all the greatest success.