Press play and I’ll read this juicy article to you!

At the start of each new year, I feel so much pressure to set goals and maximize productivity.

Everywhere I turn, I see people promoting time management apps, journals for yearly planning, and vision board workshops.

I’ve done them. Used them. Bought them.

I’ve marked up my calendar with colored pens and stickers…plotted out projects…and set lofty goals to boost my business.

And once everything was planned out to the smallest detail, I would freak the hell out.

The overwhelm would set in. How the hell would I ever get it all done?

I started to do the same thing this year. Old habits die hard.

But I stopped myself before I went into full panic mode.

I realized that I was putting too much pressure on myself. I’d set too many goals. There were too many to-do’s on the list.

And I realized that I didn’t schedule any breaks, pleasure, self-care, or boredom.

There was lots of busyness in my schedule, but nothing that really mattered in the grand scheme of things.

Know what I did next?
I took a break.

I pulled up the Insight Timer app on my phone…played some instrumental music…and spent 30 minutes gently stretching.

Then, I made myself a hot cup of peppermint tea and read a book for a while.

After that, I wrote an article for Elephant Journal. (You can check it out here.)

I realized that those were the things I want to do this year. Those are the things I NEED to do this year.

Burn out is real.

We stretch ourselves too thin. Over-schedule. Try to do too many things at once.

We get tired and overwhelmed but ignore our own needs…until we collapse or walk out on a job or file for divorce.

I’ve been so afraid of slowing down, because I thought that doing so meant I was giving up on my dreams.

I’ve falsely believed that if I spend less time working in my business and more time caring for myself that my business would fail and I’d become lazy and worthless.

The irony is that slowing down, making time for self care, and adding more pleasure to our daily lives actually increases focus, concentration, creativity, and productivity.

But before we can shift gears and change our ways, we have to have very good reasons for doing so.

Here’s a list of good reasons to take a break right now:

1. You deserve it.
2. Moving your body activates the release of serotonin and increases happiness. (Kitchen dance parties highly recommended.)
3. Nature has healing properties. Getting out in nature lifts your mood, grounds you, and strengthens your connection to a higher power.
4. Your body wants you to pay attention and care for it.
5. You deserve it.
6. Adding daily pleasure increases creativity- a crucial ingredient for success.
7. Sexual pleasure feels good and you should enjoy it more often. (Here’s a book recommendation to give you some ideas.)
8. Giving your brain a break gives you fresh ideas and makes the process of completing a task easier.
9. You deserve it.
10. If you live to be 80-years-old, your life is made up of just 4,000 weeks. You could spend that time hustling and grinding or enjoying the precious moments of your life. (Enjoying life fully is strongly encouraged.)
11. When you take exceptional care of yourself, you feel happier, lighter, and more relaxed. As such, you exude positive energy and attract all the right people and opportunities into your life.
12. In order to make positive contributions to the world, you have to fill up your energy tank regularly. You can’t pour from an empty cup. Take a break and recharge so you have something to give.
13. You deserve it.

So, if you’re feeling meh…or you’re overwhelmed by your 2022 goals…or you’re sick of a ten page to-do list…or your body and soul are crying for attention…

…take a break.

You have 13 good reasons to do so.

Then share this post with a friend. They probably need a good reason to take a break too.