Taking a break can be a good thing.
Feeling stuck is almost always an uncomfortable feeling. We all have an innate need for forward movement, progression and success. After all, where would the human race be if innovation was not the mother of necessity?
It is exciting to see our completed projects, our children developing, the gardens flourishing, and businesses booming. These accomplishments make us feel like we are contributing to this ever changing society. As if we are a part of something that is measurable. We often use this yardstick to measure our worth. However, what truly propels us to be happy and fulfilled?
Once the chaos of the holidays is over and we start a new year, there are grandiose resolutions and desires to start fresh. A desire to conquer all of the projects and goals we left behind in the previous year. The promise to “really do it this time!” Then something happens shortly after we start, we begin to feel stuck. After we’ve been off work for a bit, and we’ve spent time with loved ones we realize that not working like a dog and spending time with family actually feels pretty good. Dare I say, it feels human!
The new year rolls around and yanks us from our warm cozy beds and puts us right into the cold without as much as a buffering blanket. We try our darnedest to get back into the groove, but we can’t deny that all we really want to do is crawl right back into that warm bed. It’s difficult to feel ready to go back to work or back to school. We aren’t ready to have to work at our resolutions or goals for the new year. And so we find ourselves stuck and then even worse, feeling guilty about feeling stuck.
What’s wrong with me that I can’t get started again? Why wasn’t a week off of work long enough to re-charge my batteries? What’s wrong with me that I don’t want to start the progression, the forward movement?
The truth is, as humans, we also need the leisure, the good company, social interaction, family time, and the connectedness of goodwill. We need all of that just as much as we need success and accomplishment. The holidays might be the only time during the year that we allow ourselves to take a break and do those things. It’s only natural to want to do more of it!
So if you are feeling stuck, don’t think you are alone. We are all trying to figure out how to work less, make more money and have more family and leisure time. The holidays give us a glimpse into a magical world of what could be that we need to keep with us all year long. Feeling stuck is natural this time of year. However, perhaps changing the yardstick by which we measure our worth is the key to all of this. Maybe our resolutions should be to work less, play more and enjoy each other. Maybe helping others, being good friends, parents, siblings, daughters and sons is really what happiness is all about. After all, innovation may be the mother of all necessity, but human connection is where all life begins.