The Concept of Seasonality
A recent article in the New York Times (Feb. 16, 2024) describes the need for breaks in the intensity of our work. Originally, in primitive societies, there were seasonal variations in their work; but since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, work in the factories and mills became constant, creating misery in the lives of the workers. This tradition of work at a constant intensity has continued with the predominance of office jobs.
Applying the Concept of Seasonality
But with cognitive work, it is counter-productive to work constantly because the human brain needs downtime both to recover from the effort of creation and to incubate new ideas. Might employers be aware of this and build in variability in work schedules? Some do. For example, the software development company Basecamp has employees work for six to eight weeks on one or more specific projects and then have a two-week period where they can do maintenance tasks and consider what they would like to focus on next.
But many organizations don't allow for this. Hospitals and schools in particular are two types of organizations where the way the work is structured, and the disregard for the needs of the professionals who work there, inevitably leads many to burnout or moral injury. What can we do?
Quiet Quitting? No
The article refers to the "quiet quitting" phenomenon that has been in vogue lately but acknowledges the downside of this. My understanding of why people do this is that they are unhappy with their job but not able to immediately leave it. "Quiet quitting" isn't very helpful because, first of all, employers don't like it; and more importantly, it is the use of rebellion or passive-aggression to enable avoidance. These are not usually positive habits to make a part of your repertoire of responses to problems.
Surreptitious Ways? No
The article suggests "surreptitious ways" to create downtime for yourself, such as avoiding optional activities and saying "no" to requests for extra work. I'm not sure that being "surreptitious" is a good response, either. You don't want to be sneaky.
For the Self-employed, it Can be Easy
If you are self-employed, the way to schedule periods of intense work followed by periods of relative downtime can be easy, as long as you aren't locked into the habit of working intensely without breaks. (My last blog described how you can unlock a locked-in habit.)
For the Employee, it Can be Problematic
But if you are an employee, what is the most positive way of creating breaks for yourself? Because there is such variability in these situations, there is no one right answer.
The Inner Guide
But your Inner Guide can be of great help. Because it has access to your entire memory bank, which includes all the perceptions you have ever had, it has much more information than your aware mind does. It can use this knowledge to find ways to create downtime for yourself. And because it has access to all of your subliminal perceptions, it can judge how your actions are being experienced by others, including the people you report to. If you don't yet have an Inner Guide, you can acquire it here: https://emotionalcomfort.com/blog/post/you-can-acquire-an-inner-guide-part-4
