Why Doing Nothing is Actually One of the Best Things You Can Do
In a world filled with
major stressors and to-do lists, it can be difficult finding time to
just do, well, absolutely nothing. But, here's why you should start.
Try not to try too hard at doing nothing
Default Mode Network (DMN), which allows us to connect new dots and come up with novel ideas and even assess ourselves and psyches in new ways.
“The DMN is thought to play a role in helping us make sense of the experiences we have and the narrative we tell about ourselves,” Smalley says. “In that way, it’s connected to our sense of
self.”
You don’t have to be doing nothing to activate the DMN — we accidentally trigger it all the time. Any time you space out and mind-wander during a conversation or a task, you’re tapping into your DMN involuntarily. When we “come to” and realize that our mind has been a million miles away, we typically force our attention back to the conversation or the task at hand.
“I think we need skills on how to be alone with yourself,” Winston says.
“Many of us don't know how to work with our minds. This is where mindfulness and mindfulness education comes in. If I did not have a
mindfulness practice and I just sat there, and all I did was I worry,
worry, worry, that’s not very nourishing.”
Simply focusing your mind on your breath, and then
redirecting it back to your breath when thoughts inevitably pop up — be
they negative, positive, or neutral — is one way to practice this. It’s
important to suspend any kind of judgment during this process, to be
gently awake to what your mind is doing or not doing.
Though
mindfulness meditation is slightly different from intentional
mind-wandering, it’s still very effective at relieving stress, building,
build self-awareness, and boosting creativity and problem-solving.
Listening to music doesn’t engage the conscious
mind like a TV show or article or podcast, which can give your brain and
break, and it also triggers the DMN, just like mind-wandering.
Hardy
also reminds us that doing nothing as a means to an end — to boost
creativity and productivity, to sort of enhance yourself — defeats the
purpose entirely and probably won’t give you the desired result.
“If
I’m trying to get myself to fall asleep, it’s that much harder to fall asleep. It’s the same thing if you’re doing nothing. You can’t try at it or look for results.”
So go easy on yourself.
Above all else, remember that it’s not wrong to
turn off your to-do list for a day, or even a few days. You’re not a
horrible person if you do it, even if it means putting all your
obligations on hold, be they to yourself, your boss or client, or your
family and friends, as long as they’re not urgent matters.
Trust
that you’ll get back to it. Have faith that if you chill for a bit, the whole world won’t come crumbling down. Because the truth is we always have things we could be doing — if you wait until your to-do list or reading list is at zero, you’ll never find a moment to do nothing.
“People
feel guilty doing nothing or not being productive, they might think it's selfish, but taking care of ourselves gives us the capacity to take care of other people,” Winston says. “And if we don't do it, we burn out. So I like to remind people all the time about how important it is.”
Tracy Chabala's personal essays and journalism have appeared in the
Los Angeles Times, the LA Weekly, VICE, Motherboard, Salon, and other
publications. She holds an MFA in Professional Writing from the
University of Southern California. Twitter: @TracyAChabala
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