We often feel guilty because we’ve been pumped with information about filling our day with productive things and “never wasting a second of our precious time”. Whilst there’s definitely merit in living a productive life but there’s a fine line between beating yourself up about it and realising when to stop and just… chill.
This phenomenon is called productivity guilt, defining it as the guilt and disappointment we feel when we are not creating, achieving, or working hard and it has (probably) been around since forever.
But how can you handle it? Here are some things, you can do to manage productivity guilt.
Keep your agendas for the day clear. Make a list of things that you will be doing for the day, not in a tightly scheduled way but in a flying bubble way, so that you can easily reach it and pop it to get it done.
Following on the previous point; The idea is to keep achievable tasks on the list that needs to be done during the day. Be mindful of what you need to accomplish and what feels most important to you.
However, your list does not always need to be work-related. It can be something just as simple as going on a walk or even finish a major project that needs to be done sooner or later. Remember, it can be whatever gives you emotional satisfaction.
Comparison often causes us to focus more on what we're not doing or what we don't have instead of recognising the positive things we are accomplishing. Remember you're doing the best you can. Just be honest with yourself, if you could be doing more without spreading yourself too thin, do it. But if you're at a good place and accomplishing things at a pace that is just challenging enough, then don't feel guilty about it.
You can not just work yourself out to the point of insanity and tiredness. If you do this chances are you’ll end up with unmanageable emotions and aggressive behaviour towards others.
You cannot force creativity, which makes taking breaks even more important. Relaxing and doing nothing can actually be a vital part of the creative process. Our minds are free to wander and create new and exciting things, when you restrict yourself from this, your mind will automatically lack the creativity and mental capacity to break out of your routine and dream big ideas.
So remember, most things in life are all about balance. focus on the quality and not the quantity.
