In this post:
- How wasting time benefits us
- Embrace being unproductive
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How wasting time benefits us
In an era where we are constantly connected to every device imaginable—smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc., –it would seem that our brains are becoming more and more incapable of shutting down, much like our devices. But psychological research has shown that ‘wasting time,’ or what I like to think of as downtime, is actually beneficial for us in a number of ways. As a psychologist (and daydreamer) myself, I know that downtime presents a number of advantages for not only one’s productivity, but also mental and physical health.
Think of a time when you were intensely focused for a long period of time. Perhaps you were nerding out, studying for a test. Or perhaps you were working on a spreadsheet for several hours. Did you find that your focus stayed the same, improved, or diminished as time went on? If the latter, then congratulations: you’re normal!
The next time this happens and you find your thoughts drifting away to other topics, try to not be so hard on yourself when your mind insists on “wasting time.” Downtime is not only a necessary experience for every human, it can also be exceptionally fulfilling and satisfying in more ways than one.
Tony Schwartz, author of The Way We’re Working Isn’t Working echoes similar beliefs: “Human beings perform best and are most productive when they alternate between periods of intense focus and intermittent renewal.”
Great performance doesn’t occur just because you’ve kept your nose constantly to the grindstone. It happens when we can alternate between work and rest both effectively and efficiently. Rest is just as important as work. It enables us to renew our energy, so that we can return once again—refreshed and rejuvenated—to the task at hand.
Being unproductive is also beneficial for our physical health. At the State University of New York, research was conducted that illustrated just how important downtime is. Data was collected over a nine-year period and involved over 12,000 men that were at a high risk for developing heart disease. Men that enjoyed regular annual vacations were shown to have a lower risk of developing serious complications during the study period than those who had skipped their vacations.
So why do we find it so hard to take downtime to ourselves, and gain that much-needed mental break? Take a look at our societal standards. So much of how we live and work is geared towards productivity. The smartphone you carry everywhere makes it so that you can work literally from any location worldwide. The noise-canceling headphones you use enable you to intensely focus on whatever you’re working on, wherever you are. The purse or bag you carry was designed with a special sleeve just for your laptop. Coffee shops are no longer just a place to catch up with friends over a latte; they’re a place to connect to Wifi and get work done.
It’s hard to escape the incessant pressures of being productive wherever we are, and it makes it normal to refuse taking a break, no matter how much you need it.
Worse, we feel guilt when we do finally take a rest, and we find ways to make our breaks more productive, as a result. For example, when we do finally sit down to watch TV, we still insist on looking at our phones and “multitasking,” browsing sites that pull us away from the present and contribute very little to our fulfillment and productivity. It actually benefits our mind and body more to be completely immersed in just one activity when we do eventually engage in downtime.
Embrace Being Unproductive
In all honesty, we don’t need to set aside as much time as we do for work. Some of the greatest, most accomplished figures in history, such as Charles Dickens and Charles Darwin, worked for five hours a day or less. Our schedules today, however, dictate that work fills a prescribed amount of hours daily, rather than completing work when it is actually done. Realistically, we could work less hours at our jobs and still accomplish the same amount of work.
Wasting time and disconnecting requires a shift in your perspective. Instead of seeing it as lost time being unproductive, shift the focus to you and recharging your batteries. Be completely absorbed and immersed in unproductiveness, whether it’s daydreaming, watching TV, reading a book, etc., and chances are that you will be able to be that much more focused and productive when you do work.
