“Almost everything will work again if you unplug it for a few minutes… including you.” – Anne Lamott
While we know that rest is important, we often hesitate to take a break from work. We may worry about missing something important, falling behind, burdening colleagues, or appearing undedicated. So, we continue to push through on an empty tank. When we take vacation, to mitigate our concerns, we may check and respond to emails and requests throughout our time away.
While our concerns are real, they don’t have to prevent us from taking time off work. We need to remember that when we truly step away, we give ourselves space and time to rest, reset, and return with greater clarity, renewed energy, and restored focus. We also strengthen our ability to be present, improve our capacity to lead with intention, and model the behaviors we advocate for our team members.
So if you’ve been putting off that break…
Unplug. Refill. Let your system reboot.