P2P No. 9 — Be world-class in rest too
Work pays dividends during rest.
“The mind must be given relaxation—it will rise improved and sharper after a good break. Just as rich fields must not be forced—for they will quickly lose their fertility if never given a break—so constant work on the anvil will fracture the force of the mind. But it regains its powers if it is set free and relaxed for a while. Constant work gives rise to a certain kind of dullness and feebleness in the rational soul.” —Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind, 17.5
Seneca formulates seemingly counterintuitive advice, especially from a driven person's perspective. To the type A people out there: I know exactly how it feels to have a relentless drive when following an undertaking of meaning and joy. However, being in overdrive can take its toll. I have heard it from experience.
My modus operandi during my studies was akin to a sprint after a marathon. Since I could pick my exam dates, I crammed everything into a short period. And then I could not do anything after I finished for two weeks than binge-watch/binge-read.
I made a promise to myself after each semester that I would not overcommit and then failed spectacularly every time. The hard lesson I did not realize was that the brute-force solution, i.e., throwing more time and effort at a problem, will have diminishing returns. Neither was I aware of the potential health consequences. I needed to be more mindful about resting — this was only a piece in the puzzle I needed to solve when I started my Ph.D. A very important piece indeed.
And there is an alluring way how to express this relationship to personal development in the form of the growth equation, i.e.,
Stress + rest = Growth,
the eponymous formula behind The Growth Equation. It is so simple that it cannot surely be true. But it is. It is work-life balance in disguise, though how you set the granularity is up to you. I am not advocating against giving all you have for a project. But beware:
if everything is your priority, then nothing really is.
The story of sleeping with one's books under the pillow to learn by osmosis also did not help me to believe that sleep enhances learning. But Seneca already told us so—and he was right. Ancient people had insights science recently started to uncover, which is remarkable. Besides sleep, there is mounting evidence that spending time outdoors and with your community helps recharge our batteries. Alas, science permits you to quiet your inner critic when it objects to not putting in the next effort. And the next. And the next.
Stretching my limits makes me feel alive unless I do it constantly. Then it is a fundamentally distinct experience. The growth equation made me aware that introducing variability can make us push harder for a reasonably long period. But we should not let the thoroughbred of creativity race all around the clock. Otherwise, it will collapse to exhaustion.