When was the last time you did nothing?
By “nothing” I am not referring to the things you might do that distract you from the myriad of things on your “to-do” list.
By “nothing” I do not mean that you lazed around and watched television, or read a beach novel, scrolled social media, listened to a podcast while doing the laundry, or even called a friend.
“Nothing” is also not reading a magazine, getting a pedicure, taking a nap, or even meditating.
What I mean by “nothing” is actually “nothing.”
Sitting still and staring into space.
Being a bump on a log.
Not engaging in any “thinking” — at least not consciously.
Not sorting through the contents of your mind. Not figuring things out. Not planning for something in the future.
When was the last time you simply allowed yourself to take up space without even the pretense of attempting to “be productive”?
If you’re like me, and like most people, you might have to think about this for a while. (This time does not count as “doing nothing.”)
If you can recall such a time, here’s a bonus question:
When was the last time you did nothing and did not feel any guilt or shame about it?
That one may be even harder to remember. You might have to go back to childhood to find that memory.
Undoing the Culture of Busy
We live in a culture that has conditioned us to the myth that our value lies in producing things, in doing things, in adding value to the world.
In this paradigm, “busy” is used as a virtue signal. The culture of personal development tells us to “optimize” and “maximize” every waking hour by filling the spaces with podcasts, reading, and other information intake. The speed with which you respond to messages is viewed as a metric of your value.
Under the dominant productivity paradigm, to do nothing is to waste time and talent.
This is a story that persists even though it has been proven false.
Our bodies and brains need to rest.
Our souls and spirits need to recharge.
Our nervous systems need to recalibrate.
Doing nothing allows the subconscious to expand. When we do nothing and we allow our minds to wander, we activate the brain’s default mode network (DMN) — the region responsible for connecting dots and creatively solving problems.
Doing nothing offers us a chance to step out of the false construct of linear time.
And it helps us erase the false narrative that our value is based on how much and what we do.
If you really want to “maximize” your productivity, if you want to be more efficient and effective in your work, and more present with the people you love, giving yourself time to do nothing is crucial.
The Hardest Skill to Master
Doing nothing may sound easy in theory, but let’s be real:
It’s not easy to sit and do nothing, especially in a culture that has conditioned us to the habit of being busy and preoccupied.
To do nothing — and to do it without guilt or shame — is a skill.
It’s a skill that will preserve the quality of your life. And a skill that will teach you that you are inherently valuable as a human being — not just as a human doing.
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