by Dr Elenia Kolokotronis
Before I continue writing this article I would like to specify that the word nothing in this article title is directed to the meaning of nothing relating to a stress activating scenario or lifestyle. For example we are blinded by the idea that the more we do, the more we accomplish and the more productive we think we are, the more we are able to keep ourselves occupied and for most people, the more educated, successful and ultimately more elevated we will be. But at what cost?
In my profession I have seen mostly over productive people bring along many costs to living this way of life particularly negative knock on effects to their health – stress related insomnia, stress related bad eating habits such as eating fast, unhealthy easy foods, time constraint related unfit lifestyles and so forth. Emotionally there is concerns related to this incessant and very busy way of life by means of self neglect – the belief that any extra time for oneself should be spend being very busy or should be spent on work or extra productivity, emotional concerns relating to relationships strain as well as even becoming a double edged sword that can ultimately impact your work, productivity and success.
Let us look at what is meant by the words “doing nothing”. What does this mean in this context and in actuality? Is sitting in the sun with your devices turned off and just being still for half an hour to calm yourself and be still after a hard morning deemed as doing nothing? Is staying in bed on a Sunday morning a little longer than usual after an exhausting week thought of as doing nothing? Perhaps unwinding in front of the television and getting lost in a film of your choice for a while may be thought of being unproductive and doing nothing. To me this is completely the opposite of doing nothing. In fact, depending on the individual we are picturing here, these little acts may be lifesaving.
As humans we have a need and especially now to feel that we are not worthless, that we are not lazy and that we are not unsubstantial. And how do we ensure this? We more often than not exhaust ourselves mentally and physically by doing too much (that is a real thing). We become overwhelmed and start to sink in our constnt juggle to force the overwhelming needs, demands, wants and ideas that we put upon ourselves every single day, by ourselves, our loved ones, our working counterparts and whomever else we feel the need to do this for. If we find we have a gap in time to be idle, to not overwork or over think, that that is a signal for us to feel that we are not using our time properly, that we are wasting precious time. As I say to may of the wonderful people I have the privilege of working with – what is time to you? Is your time meant to always overwhelm, exhaust, unsettle and overwork you? No, you do that yourself. Time has nothing to do with that. Nothing at all.
Technology has a bad wrap of always being a temptation for allowing us to fill any free time with whatever device or social media platform we like to indulge in. But is that true? I feel it is the individuals ideology and belief that he or she needs to stay busy and therefore has that techolonoly need and want to occupy them constantly. Again I say we need to go to the source of the individuals ideology, psychology and try to alter their understanding and belief of what doing nothing may mean for them. Many may feel guilt or frustration or boredom if they are doing what they feel is nothing. We need to understand and explore where this thought process stems from and move forward regarding the benefits and successes can be for them.
If we look to the rest of the world we see many nations that do a lot of “nothing” that stands them in good stead. For example, most of Europe live by a practice of a Siesta – a way of life where in the mid afternoon all businesses and operations will close for two or so hours (depending on where in Europe) and the individuals may eat lunch, catch a swim, sleep, rest or just do nothing for those hours. And in this we see less stress, less stress related illnesses and a very social group of people. There is less work related absenteeism, less staff illnesses, less staff burnout and a lot more overall productivity. A win-win. Relationship wise we see less intimate issues related from one partner feeling lonely as the other overworks. There is less breaks in communication as these couples have time for one another with a lot more social and experience related time – thus building their relationship foundations with solid basis.
The individuals themselves show a lot more self care and self motivation regarding this. As they have more Me-Time they are able to divide work and home or socializing. There is enough time for the individual to be successful at work but also in their own setting as a partner, parent, student and so on. They are afforded the time to let their bodies and their mind rest. They are able to work well and live well. They have the right balance of both. The key word here is balance. Very important in all spheres of our lives. There are many who fear doing nothing. Who are uneasy to be still. There is a plethora of reasons for this – mostly psychological, however there is help for that if they feel the need to seek it and so there truly is no excuse to further push ourselves to our complete limits to reach the unattainable to the detriment of our health and lives. Time can never be recovered. A chronic diagnosed l illness can never be overcome. There will always be things to do. But included in these things should be some time dedicated to doing nothing at all. Say no to a lot more than you already say yes to more than you should. Make yourself more important than you think you are. And value time for what it can do for you, not what you can do in as much of time as you can push yourself to do.
