We all get a little lazy every now and again and that’s okay. There are some days I push too hard to accomplish so little. That’s when it’s better to just take a lazy day.

One of the secrets to your productivity is to understand when these days occur and how to use them to your advantage. If you keep pushing too hard then you won’t get anything done. Just stop and take a long break, surf the net or take a nap and come back when your mind is ready to go.

Although, if you feel this way too often, you’ll never get anything done. The trick is to understand the routine of your emotions. If you are always a slow starter then work with these feelings. I usually start work at 9am, which means I actually get rolling around 9:30, but to trick myself I sometimes jump on the computer at 8:30 to do a quick little task. I tell myself it will only take five minutes. Before I know it, I’m sucked in and I’m off and running, accomplishing great work.

Tricking myself into starting a half hour early helps me get an early jump on a busy day.

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The blogs around the globe are improving on a daily basis. It’s amazing how ZenHabits has grown. I remember reading it when it had a few thousand subscribers. Leo wanted desperately to quit his job and give his time over to his true passion, giving his readers great content. He wrote an article that breaks down the simple habits of a truly happy person.^

Gretchen Rubin also writes about happiness over at The Happiness Project, so many great articles that I become happier just thinking about them.

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We all make mistakes that can affect the rest of our lives. It’s how we deal with these mistakes that separates the optimists from the pessimists. Over at Hunter Nuttall’s blog… I loved his explanation of how to deal with life altering choices. He wrote about Dr. Cox from the TV show Scrubs and his major mistake that cost lives. Doctors, Policemen, and Politicians face these major decisions throughout their career. How do they cope with a mistake? How do they move on and rediscover their happiness? How do you forget and move on?

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I read an article over at the Small Business Branding that made me look at my own life. We’ve all heard the phrase we need to go the extra mile to get ahead at work. The cool angle that Bill Hogg found was that it doesn’t matter if you fix the problem or not, what matters is that you try your hardest. When we try our hardest we command respect because we are putting forth tremendous energy. We may not always get it right, but people will see that we are trying to go that extra mile. When they keep witnessing this effort they will be more willing to give us that promotion or the project that we really want (well most of the time).

^ Correction - The original version of this post gave credit to Gretchen for Leo’s article on Zen habits The Only Guide to Happiness You’ll Ever Need.

Related Links that Continue Along the Same Themes:

• Should Your Company Hire an Ombudsman to Rein in the Complaining?
• Use Failure as Your Slingshot
• The Google Slide

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We all need to slow down throughout the day and take some time to relax. That’s what scheduling in leisure time is all about. Yesterday I posted Tell Your Boss You Need Leisure Time. We need to make sure that our bosses understand that we aren’t robots and we need some joking around, coffee break and just plain fun time. I was able to procure an interview with Alison Link. I thought that she would be very helpful to my Work Happy Now readers and lo and behold I was right.

I only wanted her to answer one question in order to help you understand the benefits of leisure time at work, and she answered it better than I could have expected.

I asked her, “How does someone schedule in leisure time when they don’t have enough time to get everything done that their boss asks of them?”

Alison’s answer:

Become more aware of the benefits of leisure. If you have a strong value for leisure, others will see you as a role model when they understand that your quality of life is higher than theirs. You will help them believe it is possible to have leisure in your life and not be less productive (short term and long term). You should make time for leisure because it provides the balance we need to handle non-leisure activities well and enhances resilience and life satisfaction.

While there are a few happy workaholics, most people need time away from work in order to meet all of their needs. They may have talents that do not get expressed on the job, partners or families they want to spend time with, projects to complete and values they want to support. They also need to unwind, relax, refresh and revitalize themselves.

A leisure-positive lifestyle:

• Increases physical and psychological well-being. It reduces stress and increases wellness, and enhances people’s sense of independence.
• Perceived freedom in leisure has been shown to help people resist stress-induced illness.
• Impacts professional performance, enhancing decision-making and problem-solving capabilities.
• Supports personal development by clarifying values, increasing social interaction and breaking down barriers

When people live a balanced life, they provide an important benefit to their communities as well, simply by demonstrating that such a life is possible and valuable.

My follow-up:

My readers are constantly bombarded with needing to get more done in less time. I was hoping that you might have some insight.

Alison’s answer:

There is evidence to show that leisure is linked to productivity. Adults have been shown to be able to maintain higher attention levels when they have more frequent breaks. Several U.S. and Canadian studies show that leisure programs “increased productivity by seven percent while decreasing absenteeism by 20 percent.”

Leisure education as provided by The Leisure Link builds employee morale and strengthens team functioning through its positive impacts on:

 

• Self concept, self esteem and self confidence
• Sense of autonomy and perception of freedom
• Stress reduction and relief of boredom

Employees may find a renewed sense of purpose for its own sake. Also, increasing leisure can increase creativity.

Everyone can use more creativity in their lives (even at work, even if you have trouble getting everything done that your boss asks of you). Whatever you do, being able to generate a lot of ideas about it will help you do it better.

Leisure education helps people create the conditions for nurturing creativity in their lives and in their work. People are at their most creative when they are in a “flow state.” When was the last time you became completely engaged in your work? And how about your leisure? Remember that your work and leisure both have a ripple effect into each other. Thing about what kind of ripple you want that to be.

In Closing:

Basically it’s about teaching the people at work that it’s okay to schedule in a little leisure time. If you have any trouble convincing your boss just send me an email with his/her name and phone # and I’ll give him/her a call. I’ll put on my best Tony Soprano voice and I’ll make sure that he/she allows you to relax and destress at work.

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Check out Alison Link’s website The Leisure Link Consulting. The Work Happy Now readers and I thank you for taking the time to answer my question. If you are having any trouble creating leisure time in your hectic life I would suggest hiring Allison.

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Related articles:

• Tell Your Boss You Need Leisure Time
• Renew Your Thoughts to Improve Your Work Outlook
• 8 Mental Boosts that Never Fail

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Get right up in her face and tell her you demand leisure time. Okay, that’s a bit much, but you can probably take some leisure time without being a jerk about it. It’s as simple as taking fifteen minutes here and two minutes there. There is a reason why people are addicted to smoking and it’s not just the nicotine. They get to go outside and take a break from all the stress. I find it funny to see a group of smokers huddled on a cold day, but they’re out there because it gives them a chance to have their nicotine and leisure time.

I discovered a great article in the NY Times “Why Leisure Matters in a Busy World.” The author Marci Alboher interviewed Alison Link, who believes that everyone must have some leisure time to work happy. It’s great to see so many people dedicated to helping others improve their work life.

Q. Why should we care about our relationship to leisure?

 

A. Too often, leisure time that is not used in a satisfying way turns into idle time, or is used to do a single thing to excess (like overeating, or getting into family quarrels). It can even turn negative, which is what happens often in the cases of substance use, delinquency and criminal activity. Also, wouldn’t it be great if we didn’t define ourselves by our work? It should be just as valid to define ourselves by our leisure.

We all need to take our health and happiness into account when we work. Many of us work so hard that we become ill or depressed. We need to have leisure in our life to keep our lives fun and energetic. If all we do is worry about work then what type of life is that? It’s a prison.

My second favorite question and answer was about feeling free. We all need to live our lives as if there are endless possibilities.

Q. So how do you explain all those people who don’t feel free in their lives?

 

A. Few of us really think about or plan for leisure. We think we should just go with the flow, but too often we end up feeling stressed, overwhelmed and unfulfilled. We need to plan for leisure — perhaps by doing one small thing every day, identifying long- and short-term leisure goals, putting enjoyable activities on the calendar — like we do other aspects of life. But before people start moving up leisure on the priority list, they need to appreciate and recognize the value and benefits of leisure, even when they have constraints (that may be internal or external). We all have obligations and other constraints that inhibit us from engaging in leisure that range from guilt to time or financial constraints. Yet the personal benefits and collective benefits short term and long term are worthwhile.

Click here to read the whole insightful article.

The mind needs to unwind and just have fun. There is a reason why kids are given time to eat and then run around the playground. They need to release their stress and so do you. You need to schedule in some leisure time every single day.

Here are 7 of my favorite leisure breaks:

1. Take a long lunch break and go to a museum by yourself.
2. Stretch at your desk for two minutes
3. Meet with a friend who you normally don’t see for Lunch
4. Breathe deeply for two minutes and nothing else
5. Walk around the block
6. Call your mother (only if she doesn’t stress you out)
7. Read a fictional book during your break
8. Write a Poem

It’s up to you to schedule in a little leisure time for yourself, so you will work happier and be more productive. Believe me, your family will thank you for destressing throughout the day instead of letting it all come out when you get home.

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Tomorrow I will be posting a short interview that Allison Link granted Work Happy Now. I asked her, “How does someone schedule in leisure time when they don’t have enough time to get everything done that their boss asks of them?“

You’ll just have to tune in on Friday to find out her answer.

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• Hand Massage for Stress Relief
• 7 Tips to Process Your Stress Faster
• How to: Balance Out Your Work Stress

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