Hard to imagine, but I've discovered that I have to be ambitious
about being "lazy.” As a professional coach, I work with high-
achieving professionals, executives, and entrepreneurs, and I’m
no slouch myself. If you're like me, and most of my clients, you
take pride in the number of tasks and projects you can juggle,
and the sheer number of initiatives you're involved in on a given
day.
You may feel, however, that some of your personal priorities need
more time and focus than you presently have in your packed
schedule. My client Connor, for example, had an extremely
profitable software business, but he felt like a slave to it. He
wanted to pursue real estate investment, and spend more time with
his family and friends, but how? Finding a solution can be
especially challenging because sometimes what you need to give up
seems to have equal value. So does this mean, that instead of
paring down, you need to be even more productive? Not
necessarily. Very busy people like us often have a tendency to
push ourselves hard toward our goals, to go and go until we're at
least a bit (if not a lot) frazzled, exhausted, or frustrated.
And some goals require enormous effort and take forever to
materialize. In such cases, because we've learned in the past
that hard work can pay off, we can’t help wondering why some of
our efforts seem so ineffective.
In fact, research shows that taking a breather helps improve
achievement in any endeavor. In their book The Breakout
Principle: How to activate the natural trigger than maximizes
creativity, athletic performance, productivity, and personal
wellbeing, Dr. Herbert Benson of Harvard Medical School and co-
author William Proctor document that leaving the room, going for
a walk in the woods, or even taking a bath can help solve the
seemingly unsolvable problem. It turns out that taking time out
is a powerful biological trigger than can convert conflict and
confusion into clarity and extraordinary performance.
How? Well, you may have noticed that when you are clear about
your goal and your strategy, you get there a lot faster. However,
that lucidity can sometimes be elusive, especially with more
important objectives. Benson and Proctor say that we can best
develop that crystal clarity if we relax and "do nothing" for at
least a few minutes a day, and in my experience, they’re right.
Beth, a consultant for Oxfam, was worried that the organization
wouldn’t extend her contract, or implement her new ideas for
improvements. However, after she devoted 10 minutes a day over
two months meditating and journaling about her goals, the
regional director called with good news and praised Beth’s clear
and thoughtful presentations.
How ironic: what we would have called "laziness" a couple of
years ago is now a wise business and personal investment. Whether
it's being absorbed in watching or playing a sporting event, just
sitting quietly for ten minutes, lying in bed for an extra 10
minutes in the morning, reading a book for pleasure, or petting
the dog, it takes a bit of courage to step back and have faith
that doing "nothing" will help you achieve your objectives. For
most of us, it's a new paradigm. However, it works...and quickly!
Tom, a sports medicine specialist, was overwhelmed with patient
charts and paperwork. He needed organization, a more lucrative
business and a better lifestyle. His “lazy break” became a daily
half-hour game of basketball. Within four months of
incorporating this time out, he’d gotten his office systems
largely under control and had reworked his practice to allow him
to move to a more upscale community.
There seems to be a powerful contradiction at work here. Yet,
practicing the laziness habit increases your full engagement, and
generates a more productive and optimally functioning state. You
learn how to better allot your energy, your time, and your
resources. I tell my clients to schedule a break into the
calendar, just like a business appointment.
If you’re feeling resistant and nervous about giving laziness a
try, here are a few suggestions:
1. Consider it an experiment and stick to it until you get
results. You didn’t get to be a high net-worth individual by
giving up, and being lazy is no exception! Try different types
of time-outs, and don’t worry that you’ll get addicted to putting
your feet up, that’s not your style!
2. Five or ten minutes are all you need to start with, and maybe
all you need on a regular basis. This practice is different for
everyone, so see what works best for you. Some days call for more
laziness than others. Be flexible.
3. Don't make relaxing burdensome; you don’t have to do it every
day in the beginning, and you want to make sure you’re having
fun. If it helps, get a time-out buddy and hold each other
accountable.
4. Have a choice of activities, and pick whatever feels most
appealing in the moment. Remember what you loved doing as a kid,
or what you have always wanted to do. Choice is key.
5. Pay attention to your results, otherwise you might be inclined
to discount its effectiveness. For those of us who are
workaholic high-achievers, it’s a big step to accept that “doing
nothing” can be even more productive than constant effort. It’s
counterintuitive, but brilliantly so.
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