Take Your Full Lunch Break. Schedule Your PTO.
Many of us are either caught up in multitasking a day’s worth of work (for both for the job and home) or frozen on our couches, trying to make sense of the stunning events of the last year. Our bodies are fatigued; our minds are fogged. And while we may already have an intimate (and unfortunate) relationship with exhaustion due to oppressive societal demands, the indefatigable enervation that we are experiencing is on a whole new level.
We need rest. But we’re always telling ourselves, even subconsciously, that we don’t have the time for it.
We must make time.
If you have a job that offers paid time off, take it. Take all of it before the year is over. That is your right. If taking time off is not a feasible option right now, make sure you take breaks, especially your full lunch break. No reading emails or Slack chatting while eating. Take all of that time for yourself. That’s also your right.
I’m stating the obvious. But when it comes to prioritizing ourselves, much of the obvious things we should do, we don’t. More than half of Americans who have PTO don’t use all of it and nearly 62% of us eat at our desk while working. Those stats, of course, are from pre-pandemic times, but now? I suspect the numbers are higher, especially when there’s no delineation between work and home—for many…
