When To Be Productive - And When To Let Go

My parents signed my brother and I up for a speed reading class when we were in high school. I remember going willingly, especially because I felt like a slow reader who didn't remember what I'd read particularly well.

During the few sessions of the class, the instructors taught us a bunch of techniques to read fast while comprehending and remembering the most important things.

We learned to look for headlines and deeply read the first and last sentences of each paragraph while scanning the middle sentences that were usually less important.

Everything they taught us was about efficiency and productivity.

It was fairly helpful, but that's not what I remember most about the class.

The part that has stayed with me for over 20 years is when they told that we SHOULDN'T use these techniques when reading fiction.

Because being as efficient and productive as possible is not the point of reading literature.

Instead, the purpose of reading fiction is to enjoy every word. To notice the beauty of how the phrases are strung together into sentences and paragraphs. To feel the emotions those stories provoke.

In short -- reading literature isn't about the end game. It's about enjoying the process of reading.

The same is true for life.

There are SO MANY articles, podcasts, and even entire books out there to teach you how to be more productive.

They tell you to follow an ideal calendar and create the perfect morning routine to set you up for the rest of the day.

They instruct you to work hard for 25 minutes and then take a 5 minute break. To implement a rule to only touch any piece of work once.

To file and categorize and block time with the end goal of getting as much done as humanly possible.

There's nothing innately wrong with being productive. I LOVE getting in the zone and feeling super productive. It's rewarding to cross tasks off my to-do list in record time.

I also have SUCH an aversion to all these tips on productivity. My entire body lurches when I see a headline about another productivity hack.

They indirectly push the message that we're supposed to be productive and efficient ALL THE TIME.

It's not true.

Your life is not a to-do list to check off.

There's value in going slow.

In savoring every bite of your dinner, lingering in a conversation, and stopping during a walk to feel the wind on your skin.

THIS is when aliveness exists.

When you're following pleasure and enjoyment and sensing and feeling it all.

When you just ARE.

So choose.

Choose the parts of your day that need to be productive and efficient -- and choose the parts of your day you want to be slow.

And then ENJOY the slow parts. Whenever guilt or discomfort shows up, recognize it's because of the messages you've gotten that you're supposed to be productive 24/7.

It's not your fault you feel this way -- and you also don't have the feel it for the rest of your life. You can make a different choice.

Start paying attention to how you react to slowing down.

If you feel a constant pull back to your to-do list, even during times when you want to relax, my book will help you get underneath the root causes and give you a framework to let go of the weight of proving, pleasing, and perfecting so that you can start living your truth.

Get signed hardcover copies of An Overachiever’s Guide To Breaking The Rules on my website or the paperback, ebook, and audiobook on Amazon.