Are You Tired All the Time?

Many people are feeling exhausted, stressed, depressed. It's understandable. Covid19 and the crippling cold weather have had a multi-faceted ripple effect of negative consequences.

Yet, in the midst of all this, it's smart to set aside time for play. Even for an hour.

You may be thinking "You've got to be kidding. You don't know my life."

You're right, I don't know your life.

What I do know is psychologists say we need to counteract problems with something that gives us a break. Something that makes us smile, that makes us feel good instead of bad. It's not indulgent, it's an investment in counteracting despair and staying energized and upbeat.

I learned this the hard way. I've always felt fortunate to have a "Katherine Graham" life. She said, "To do what you love and feel that it matters, how could anything be more fun?"

Well, the only thing that could be more fun is to do work you love that matters with people you enjoy and respect - and get paid for it. That's what I get to do and I'm grateful for it.

Yet our strength taken to an extreme is our Achilles Heel.

Several years ago, I was pretty much working seven days a week. (Sound familiar?) I welcomed the opportunity to make a difference, and I was exhausted.

Then, like many busy people I know, I came down with a respiratory illness that wouldn’t get better. I “soldiered through” for weeks until I was so sick I couldn't get out of bed.

A friend took me to Urgent Care. The doc diagnosed walking pneumonia, prescribed rest (rest?!) and antibiotics, and said, “I don’t understand why people work themselves to death. You’re lucky. We can treat this with a Z-pack and you’ll be fine in ten days. But if you don’t start taking better care of yourself, your body will do something else to get your attention.”

Hmm. What is it with this Puritan Work Ethic? Why do 55% of Americans NOT take all their paid vacation days? (Fact!)

Why do so many see fun as something we do when our work is done? If our work is never done, that means we never have any fun, we just get more worn down and run down.

It's time for us to ask ourselves if our default beliefs are serving us or sabotaging us.

It's time to understand:

* Fun is not frivolous. Play is not petty.

* Play and productivity - recreation and work - your passion and your profession - are not mutually exclusive; they're two sides of the same coin of a happy, healthy life.

* It isn't selfish to do one thing a week that fills you with joy; it’s smart.

* Doing something you love isn't taking time off work, it's taking time on life.

I’m not suggesting we ignore our problems or abandon our responsibilities.

I’m suggesting we balance our problem-solving with play-creating.

I'm suggesting we balance our responsibilities to others with a responsibility to do what we need to do to be healthy and happy now, not someday.

And that means self-care. That means doing something every week that lights us up. It means making time for joy. It means having fun - even when our work isn't done.

Like today, for example. I spent all morning online with clients. I was sedentary and indoors, which can become a habit when working remotely and spending hours on Zoom calls.

So, I decided to get up and get moving. The trails of Steiner Ranch called me. I put on my down jacket, hat and gloves (we've just had a record snowstorm here in Austin) and headed out to to explore the winter wonderland, marveling at the icicles on the trees and a single red flower that had somehow survived the snowstorm.

Walking is my form of play. Everything feels right with my world when I'm walking.

What does that for you?

What do you enjoy? What do you look forward to? What do you do "just for fun?"

Here’s to making that an active part (intentional play on words) of your life. Here's to taking responsibility every single day to do something that put the light on in your eyes.

Get crystal clear, once and for all, that play is not petty, it's power.

Power is defined as "the ability to get things done." If you want to be productive, you need to recharge your batteries with activities that energize you. Play is your energizer bunny.

And in case you'd like some friendly reminders about the power of play, here are some quotes to remind us that, as Albert Einstein said, "Play is the highest form of research."

1. “Work consists of whatever a body is obliged to do. Play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do.” -Mark Twain
2. "I told the doctor I couldn't relax. He said, 'Force yourself.'" - Ron Dettinger
3. "The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct.” - Carl Jung
4. There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and to the lives of the people you love." - Sophia Loren
5. "Play is the exultation of the possible.” -Martin Buber
6. "Exhaustion is not a status symbol." - Brene Brown
7. “We are never more fully alive, more completely ourselves, or more deeply engrossed in anything than when we are playing.” -Charles Schaefer
8. "How old would you be if you didn't know how old you were?" - Satchel Paige
9. "If you are losing your leisure, look out! You may be losing your soul." Logan Smith
10. "“In every real man a child is hidden that wants to play.” -Friedrich Nietzsche
11. "The older you get, the more important it is to not act your age." - Jack Nicholson
12. "Of all the things that really and truly matter, getting more done is not one of them. - Mike Dooley
13. "For fast-acting relief, try slowing down." - Lily Tomlin
14. "Almost all creativity involves purposeful play." - Abraham Maslow
15. "Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I am going to have fun every day I have left. You have to decide whether you're a Tigger or an Eeyore." - Randy Pausch

Please get crystal clear that you don't need to apologize for making time to play.

Play is a way to honor and enjoy the gift of life.

You are remembering what it's like to experience the world with the eyes and heart and curiosity of a child.

In Pat Conroy's book Beach Music, the lead character Jordan Elliott is asked why he surfs. He answers simply, "It's like praying without words."

What's that for you? Make time for it - even if it's for an hour or two - this weekend.

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Sam Horn, CEO of the Intrigue Agency, is on a mission to help people create the life and work of their dreams. Her 3 TEDx talks and 9 books have been featured in NY Times and on NPR and presented to NASA, Nationwide, Capital One, YPO. Intel, Cisco, Boeing. This is excerpted from her SOMEDAY is Not a Day in the Week book, TEDx talk and journal.