By Jean Santos, President, Business Consulting Resources
Resting is hard for me.
Not physically hard—believe me, I can lay on a couch with the best of them. But truly resting? Mentally unplugging, emotionally decompressing, giving myself full permission to do… nothing? That’s where it gets tricky. I don’t even know how to take a nap. Can’t recall the last time I really took a nap. That’s another story though, since I don’t even like to nap.
I’ve been conditioned (maybe like you?) to always be doing something. The checklist is never-ending, the inbox always refills, and there’s this underlying belief I’ve carried for years that my value is tied to my productivity. Even when I try to relax, I find myself mentally scrolling through the to-dos I didn’t get to yet or wondering if I should just sneak in one more email.
And then, yoga came into my life. Thank you, Kyler, for almost literally dragging me to my first yoga class in LA.
Now, before you picture me peacefully balancing on one leg in a candlelit studio, let me set the record straight: most of the time, I’m trying not to fall over or forget to breathe. But that’s exactly the point. Yoga is one of the few places where my mind has no choice but to be present. I’m too focused on trying to keep my hips square or untangle myself from whatever pose I just got into to think about anything else. Somehow, in the wobbling and stretching, and the heat when I find myself in a hot yoga class, my brain quiets down—and for about an hour, I actually rest my mind.
It got me thinking: maybe rest isn’t just about being still—it’s about finding something that takes you out of your head, quiets the monkey brain voice that’s as bad as an Ever-Ready Battery, and back into your body, or into your heart. Something that gives your mind permission to stop producing and start restoring.
So, if you’re like me and struggle to sit still without feeling guilty, here are a few ideas I’ve been experimenting with:
- Find your version of yoga. It doesn’t have to be yoga; it ideally is something that grounds you in the moment. It could be a walk without your phone, a swim, gardening, sketching, journaling—something that gently demands your full attention.
- Schedule stillness like it’s a meeting. I know, it sounds silly, but I literally have to start to put “REST” on my calendar to make it happen. If it’s sacred enough to schedule, it’s sacred enough to protect.
- Redefine what rest looks like. Rest doesn’t mean doing nothing. For some, it’s a quiet cup of tea. For others, it’s dancing in your kitchen to 80s music. Rest is whatever allows you to return to yourself.
- Train your brain to value recovery. Start tracking how you feel after you truly rest. Do you think more clearly? Feel more creative? Kinder? Productivity isn’t the only measure of success—rest is a crucial part of sustainability.
- Start small. Don’t expect to go from 100mph all day every day to Zen monk in a day. Even five minutes of intentional stillness is a win. Celebrate that.
This summer, I’m committing to the practice of stillness—not because I’ve mastered it (far from it), but because I’m finally seeing the benefit of slowing down.
So, here’s your (and my) gentle, encouraging reminder:
Let your mind rest. Let your body breathe. Let your spirit be still.
Whether it’s yoga, a nap in the sun, or just sitting in silence with your phone turned off (gasp!), give yourself permission to unplug.
This summer season, maybe I can find the courage to rest—and the humor to laugh out loud when I fall over doing yoga in the process.
