We all need a rest every now and then….

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about burnout. From what I’ve read, burnout can come in many forms depending on the individual so how do we know if we are getting burnt out? And what is the right level of rest to avoid burnout? And is rest really the right antidote?

I write this at an interesting time. I’m writing this one week after back from a week of leave. So I’m still feeling the benefit of that week off but still aware of just how tired I was before that week off. Maybe I should be doing something different now I’m refreshed to stop myself getting so tired?

I’d got the point where I was simply staggering through each day by that final week. Clicking from one team call to the next and just trying to get through at times. The week off totally revitalised me to the point where I was ready to hit the ground running again on that Monday afterwards.

The effect of this week has encouraged me for think more about rest. How much is enough? What should we do when we are “resting”? How often should we look to step away? Should we feel guilty for taking time out to rest?

Going back to this week I had off. We were actually very busy. The kids were off for half term and we jam packed every day with activities, people visiting and meeting up with friends. I’m not sure I would have called it “rest”!

So maybe be that’s it. It’s a case of doing something different. Taking yourself away from the day-to-day grind into new situations to give your mind something new to experience and it’s that that refreshes you. Maybe. If it’s actually about giving your brain something new to experience, then we should probably be looking to try and build that into our daily lives too. Perhaps.

Putting that to one side taking time away from work is one of the most important things for me. Whether it be a two week break over the summer, a week at half term or the odd day. This time allows me to bring a freshness back to my work when I return.

This is certainly a recommendation that Jay Shetty makes on his podcast, On Purpose. Jay is an advocate of rest and taking a break from the daily grind.

Here are Jay’s top 6 recommendations for rest and avoiding burnout.

1. Every hour take a 5 min breakThis can be done quite easily through your meeting scheduler. Set your default meeting length to 55 mins and you will ensure 5 mins of time to gather yourself for your next call. During this time, walk to get some water from your kitchen. He advises not having water on your desk so that you have to get up and move. I’m not so sure about this one as sipping water is so important that I don’t think I’d risk being stuck at my desk with no water! But anyway. Jay also commends enacting the 20/20/20 rule. Ie stare 20 meters into the distance for 20 seconds every 20 mins.

2. Every 4 hours take a 15 min breakTo be honest, this feels as though it clashes a little with lunch in the morning for me, but this is a really useful suggestion for the afternoon, especially if you have an early lunch (I love an early lunch as I get very grumpy otherwise - I get little stars start to appear around my vision around 12 which is my body saying “cook toast”).

3. Middle of the day take a 30 min breakThis one should be non-negotiable. When I work from home, I tend to get some lunch and watch the last 15 minutes of Bargain Hunt. For those not in the UK, this is BBC TV programme that involves buying junk from a garage sale and selling at a massive loss at auction. Love it.

4. Take a full rest weekend every 30 daysThis one I’m not so good at. Once I’ve returned from holiday, I tend to get my head down and work towards the next holiday. However, taking a longer weekend every now and then can top up those batteries and refresh you. Weekend in Barcelona maybe?? (Maybe not with how the pound has tanked. Skegness?)

5. Take a 3 day break every quarterI’d say I would recommend taking a full week off every quarter rather than just three days. Maybe Jay positioned his list for the US audience who I think tend to get less leave than us “lazy” British.

6. Once a year, take a week off.Again, with this one I’d recommend a two week rather than one week break at some point over the year. Two weeks gives you that chance to completely decouple from real life. I know there are some who say the downer when you return outweighs the benefit but maybe those people just need to get a job they like more. You should come back totally refreshed.

So how do we avoid becoming so tired in the first place?

Rest is important but there feels real merit in trying not get so tired in our daily lives. As I said above, my recent week off wasn’t really rest in the traditional “lie by a pool and read a book” sense. It was just different from my normal routine.

I’m a firm believer that we can but we need to be a little inventive about it. I’ve actually started making small changes to my day to make them slightly different to the one before. This seems to help my brain process that day so that it doesn’t simply blur into all the other days spent staring at a screen.

One of the bigger things I’ve started doing when I work from home is do my calls from different parts of the house. This just mixes it up a little. Then, the other day I was truly daring and spent an hour brainstorming and reading documents in coffee shop.

Building in variety can also help you explore new areas on your next run or walk. As I’ve written before I’m a big fan of running. I have got in the habit of running the same routes, so I know I need to be better at trying new areas to run in. I guess it doesn’t have to be a massive detour. Maybe running a different direction around the lake next time. Small things!

I hope you found this useful and interesting. You might want to check out some of my other posts covering related areas and if you haven’t subscribed we would love to have you part of our community.

Looking for great newsletters and blogs to sign up to? Try The Sample

Each morning, The Sample sends you one article from a random blog or newsletter that matches up with your interests. When you get one you like, you can subscribe to the writer with one click. Sign up here.

Also if you have a newsletter you would like to promote they offer a great service that gets your writing out there to a new audience.