Kanisa George
WE LIVE in a hustle and grind, fast-paced reality that glamorises non-stop movement.
Going after the money is the driving force behind most of our actions, and we barter blood, sweat, and time to rack it up, often at the expense of our personal lives and health.
Those of us who spend most of our time plotting our next power move or tactically arranging pieces to ensure professional domination rarely consider slowing down.
Even without the desire for world domination at the forefront, navigating multiple roles, no matter how minute, can make it difficult to take stock of everything around us.
In a fast-paced world, even the concept of taking annual leave often contemplates non-stop action, trips, and adventure, with little thought for rest.
While I am not advocating that we disregard the joys of adventure and fulfilment, most of us, in our downtime, often don’t factor in pausing.
We have been so conditioned to believe that the hustle-and-grind culture is all we need to succeed that we see rest as a sign of weakness instead of a builder of resilience.
I recently stumbled across a video about the power of rest and how, as a society, we’ve adopted a skewed perception of its relevance. And I’m not talking about the prescribed seven hours per night that most of us seldom achieve.
When I speak of rest, I’m referring to time set aside to give yourself “your undivided attention.” Where work, other responsibilities or the demands of an active social life don’t take precedence, and you give yourself permission to slow down.
Interconnectivity and accessibility have bred within us the fear of missing out, which drives the feeling that we “can’t and won’t stop because we won’t succeed, or perhaps someone else will be rewarded.
Contrary to popular belief, we aren’t superhuman, so it doesn’t matter how capable or adept you are at managing many roles; if you don’t value pausing, your health and well-being will suffer.
No matter how you slice it, the hustle culture doesn’t always make you resilient. It often puts you on track to feeling burnt-out or an overwhelming sense of lack of fulfilment.
Many fail to accept that a busy, high-activity lifestyle comes with high stress levels.
Too much stress puts our bodies into "fight or flight" mode, causing our body functions to rev up so we can escape the apparent danger.
This can happen multiple times during the day and can potentially damage our well-being if we ignore it.
When we don’t take a moment to pause, we become sucked into this whirlpool and become more susceptible to chronic stress, which can cause a host of conditions such as gastrointestinal issues and high blood pressure, and an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
Researchers found that while it is expected to get caught up in a routine to the point where nothing else matters, you won’t effectively make the most of an experience, like working through kinks or problem-solving, without the benefit of a break.
Switching focus is one thing, but the real power lies in tak
