We all get time off from work–whether it's in the form of paid leave days, holidays, weekends, or sick days. Time off work in whichever form is essential to our well-being. However, due to the excitement of not being at work, sometimes we end up wasting our days off and not actually reaping the intended benefits.
Granted, it's your time off, and there's technically no wrong or right way to spend it. But, there's ways we can optimize this time away from work. This article examines the phenomenon of time off, and suggests exciting things you can do to fully enjoy your days off.
Why is Time Off Important?
Besides the fact that you don't have to get up at the break of dawn, take a rushed shower, skip breakfast, and do a lightning dash to beat traffic, time off is important for all employees, and here's why;
Better Health
Whether you work a desk job or a physically demanding job, work takes its toll on the body. Office workers actively engage their minds to get tasks done, while industry or plant workers rely on their body to keep things moving. People in the service industry probably need to engage the physical, mental, and emotional trifecta to properly serve their clients. Regardless of the job, we call upon our bodies to get us through.
Without proper rest, it is possible for the body to slowly burn out and be less efficient at handling tasks. Repeatedly straining your muscles without a break could lead to pains and aches. Your brain tends to be less creative when it's working in a loop. And emotional burnout prevents you from being able to effectively process the emotional needs of the people you're serving or being able to properly assess the best way to navigate issues.
Work-Life Balance
It's thrown around a lot, but a healthy work-life balance is one of the most important aspects of any job. Having a healthy work life is great, but if it comes at the expense of your life outside of the office, then it eventually becomes harmful. For example, a sportsman that has to train year-round, morning till evening, attend functions, attend matches, has great sponsorships, and gets well compensated sounds like a man living the dream.
But if this person is not present for his kids' birthdays, does not show up for their spouse, is never around for family and social events, or has no life outside of his team and what they require from him, the support he needs from home to keep him focused at work begins to crumble. His family and friends might become less enthusiastic when he comes home or gets the time for them, which starts to mentally affect him in training, or possibly during matches. And remember, the perfect job is not as perfect when you're not bringing results.
Optimal Emotional State
There's not a great deal of people in the world that truly love their jobs. We need it for survival–that's the motto. But there are outliers that take great delight in their occupation. No matter your stand, we all admit that there's a different kind of happiness that comes with powering down and just being free of obligation.
Yes, successfully completing a project at work can make you happy, but so can taking a walk on a sunny day, eating ice cream and breathing in the fresh air. The difference is that success at work often comes after a period of extreme stress, while happiness on your off days is simply there for the taking.
Happy days leave you re-energized and ready to take on the next challenge. But how can we ensure that our off days are happy days?
9 Things To Do on Your Off Days
There are many things to do on your off day–but we'll mix a bit of healthy activities with a few productive ones and a bit of crazy too, to give you a wholesome experience during your days off.
Sleep In
Cancel your alarms and let the body rest. You wake up refreshed, happy, and are generally nicer to be around. You'll probably still wake up pretty early as a force of habit, but without the stress of knowing you're needed before the sun rises allows the brain to slow down and actually enjoy restful sleep.
Watch a Movie
James Cameron put in a lot of work towards producing the second iteration of the award-winning film Avatar. Why not catch that? Or attend a theater play. Go to the Opera if that's your thing. Whatever your poison, watching others creativity sparks your own, and you're bound to return to work better placed to solve problems.
Spend Time Outdoors
Catch the morning sun. It's good for your bones and it's good for full-body wellness. The feeling of the sun against your skin has a psychological association with mental clarity. You don't even have to think about anything, just be in the moment appreciating nature, appreciating works of man, appreciating your own existence–both the grand and the granular.
Unleash Your Inner Child
Kids are forever happy for a reason–they are not too constrained by the rules. Try that (within reason, of course). Eat breakfast for dinner, stay in your pajamas, leave your bed unmade and your dishes on the table (I hear it too), be messy, play in the sand if you live near the beach, go to a park and get on one of the rides, buy yourself a sugary/salty treat, watch some easy shows, and even call your parents with no agenda at all. Sometimes going back to the basics works better than powering through the complexities of adulthood. And you can take the next day to clean up after yourself and laugh at the craziness of taking a day off from being an adult.
Work Out
Your day off is the ideal time to get your endorphins going with a good work out, or a nice walk in the park. You don't get a lot of time during your work days for physical activity. And if you do, it probably demands that you get up earlier than usual, or do it quite late in the evening. Get a comfortable workout on your off days, without the rush to get to other tasks.
Social Media Break
Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube–take a break from it all. Social media is flooded with well-doctored versions of an alternate reality that sometimes leads to a sense of ungratefulness, self-loathing, unnecessary consumerism and a desire to change your life in pursuit of what you see with others. It's not real–nobody ever shows their real struggles on camera. So take a break to stay in focus of what matters as opposed to what a good marketing spend wants you to think is important.
Stay Organized
The most sure-fire way to stay on top of your schedule is to remain organized. Whether you need to draw up a calendar of events, make a to do list, follow up on a check list, etc., organization has a way of duplicating your time resource. Schedule in your laundry or housekeeping on off days to avoid the madness that comes with jumbling it up on days that you have reports and meetings to think about. Go shopping and ensure you are stacked on your necessities until the next off day. And make meal plans to reduce the amount of time spent thinking about what you're going to eat on your work days.
Discover a Passion
Passion invigorates the desire for life. Find something new you're good at. This can be quite the exciting journey, and if you have the resources, sign up for a bunch of things. It could be a dance class, theater, pottery, cooking class, rock climbing, horse-riding classes, a beauty and make-up class, etc. Think of things that align with who you are as a person and just go for it. In the very least, you get to meet a bunch of new people and discover you're not an "artistic person", and in the best case scenario, you meet like-minded people, and discover something you're really good at.
Face Your Fears
Are you water phobic, do you fear heights, do you get stage fright, or do you jump at the sight of crawling insects? Facing your fears is a time-proven therapeutic way of overcoming emotional and mental barriers. For instance, I was deathly afraid of heights, and despite that, I went paragliding–just jumped off a cliff. Now everytime I’m combated with feelings of inadequacy, I look back to that day and think, "I took the leap," and I stay unstoppable. Sign up for an improv class and challenge your fear of public speaking, or a deep sea diving class and slowly work at your hydrophobia. Whichever the case, you come out a more empowered person.
Conclusion
It's easy to let the pressure of responsibilities rope you into a never-ending cycle of work. But, you're not a tightly-wound clock, and the best part about being an adult is having the power to stop whenever you deem it necessary. Take your days off, and let your body rejuvenate. You don't have to take a mega vacation to feel like you've been on one (although that is a very ideal way to spend your time off).
Enjoy release right where you are. And as you return to work, don't let the rigid structure wear down your new-found resolve. In fact, get a fun, ergonomic work setup–maybe get a standing desk so there's something new and different about your work day. Or get an ergonomic office chair with a swivel and a good tilt angle, and make sure to enjoy it as a child would. That way you can have some fun work days, and before you know it, it's the weekend and you can try something new from our list.
