The Pressure to be Productive is Making us Less Productive
Being busy is a seen as a badge of honour in the modern world, or at least the one I’m living in. Did you really stay up till 2 am working if you didn’t tell everyone you saw about it the next day? It’s something I’ve definitely fallen victim to, working myself too hard mostly just to create the impression that I’m working myself too hard. Of course, everyone has busy times in their lives and this blog post isn’t saying that we should’t complain about them or that we should keep our stress to ourselves. What I’m trying to say, instead, is that there’s more to life than work, whatever form it comes in, and the pressure to be constantly productive isn’t letting us embrace that which means we are failing to ‘be the best version of ourselves’, as the cliché goes, in work and in life.
Something I realised when I set myself the new years resolution to take more time off from work is that taking time off actually makes the time I spend working far more productive. For example, I mostly take Sundays off university work now, which means the work I do during the rest of the week, especially on Fridays and Saturdays, is much more focussed, as I’m determined to get it done so I can have a guilt free Sunday off. Taking Sundays off also largely means that I feel much less exhausted and depressed about starting work on a Monday because I know it’s only 6 days until a day off, meaning the quality of my work is usually better.
Of course, taking a day off isn’t some brand new thing that I’ve discovered. Most people in ‘normal’ 9-5 jobs always have weekends off! But, since starting my A-Levels almost 4 years ago, I have never had a proper day off and would spend my days feeling lethargic and not doing the best work that I could because I was so exhausted and bored by its never ending nature. I truly believe that, for most people, spending less time working doesn’t mean that you’re going to get less work done.
That belief is the main reason why I think the pressure to be productive is making us less productive. So many of the people who are bragging about staying up till 2am working have probably spent hours of that procrastinating, which is fine. We all procrastinate and no one is 100% focussed all the time! But often the only reason, I’ve found, that people work, for example, till 2am is for the gratification of doing so, not because their work really requires that amount of time.
If you’re reading this and thinking ‘But I really DO have that much work!’ Fair enough, maybe you do! I know I did last month when I had 3 essays due in the space of a week (humble productivity brag, I’m just THAT used to it). I’m not trying to tell you that you’re not as busy as you think because a lot of us are busy. But just stop and consider if you’re only spending so much time working because you think you should be, when your work could realistically be done in a smaller time frame by, maybe, cutting down on unnecessary routines/habits.
For example, I used to make notes on my laptop on all the books I was reading for uni whilst I was reading them, which was very time-consuming and largely useless as I only ever ended up writing essays or exams on a 3 or 4 books and I had notes on 10 on them. It felt very good to have all my notes there though. I love being organised and preparing for all outcomes so this way of studying felt like, well, the only way for me. But as part of cutting down my working hours, I realised that this time-consuming method wasn’t really necessary. So now I just do it for the books I’m particularly interested in or the ones I decide to write my essay/exam on after reading the book.
That example is very specific to my English Literature degree but I’m sure everyone has similar things they do as part of their working routine that aren't really necessary and that they could cut out or spend less of their time on. I’ve cut down the time I spend on university work by about 30% and I was honestly very worried that it was going to affect my grades negatively, but it hasn’t so far because cutting down in this way has improved my mental health so much which, in turn, has allowed me to do things faster and, often, better.
I still sometimes feel the pressure to tell everyone how busy I am, especially when others tell me the same thing. And I definitely feel guilty about taking time off. Because I do feel busy and I feel like taking time off suggests I’m not as busy as I am. But you know what, who really cares? It’s not healthy to be productive ALL the time - I should know as living that way has been so detrimental to my mental health - and we need to stop treating an overly busy and ‘productive’ life as a positive thing as this only encourages overworking.
This post feels a little bit all over the place but changing the way I think about productivity really has been life-changing for me so I just wanted to get my thoughts out there. I think the best thing we can all do to dismantle this complex many of us have around being busy and productive is to stop bragging about it; next time there’s empty space in a conversation, try not to fill it by talking about how much work you have or how much work you’ve done. It’s such a bad habit of mine and it’s so hard not to do but leaving it out of the conversation can generally only be a positive thing.
I’m just talking about this productivity complex from my perspective but if you really are feeling completely overwhelmed and stressed by your work please do talk to those around you about it and maybe think about talking to a mental health professional too.
Otherwise, if you’re going to take anything away from this blog post let it be that:
Spending lots of time working doesn’t equate to doing productive work.
Time off is necessary and can actually make you more productive and, more importantly, can benefit your mental health in so many ways.
Constantly talking about how busy you are will only make you and those around you more stressed and feeds into many of our productivity complexes.
Enjoy your week, take some time off, and try not use how busy you are with work as a conversation filler!
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On Being Alone & Balancing My Time as an Introvert
(some links used are affiliate links which means I earn a small amount of commission if an item is purchased)
Top- Topshop
I love being alone. I am a self-proclaimed introvert and, generally, time alone is something I always look forward to. I remember when I was younger, in my early teens, I would saviour weekend nights spent only with myself; I could stay up as late as I wanted to and do whatever I pleased with my time, which usually involved writing blog posts (on a blog that no longer exists), scrolling through Tumblr and reading. My time alone now is spent much in the same way, apart from that Instagram has replaced Tumblr (which is probably for the best because despite Instagram’s many issues, at least it isn’t trying to convince me that thigh gaps are cool.)
It seems then that time spent with myself is time to be creative. It’s also time to binge-watch my favourite Netflix shows, don’t get me wrong. But I definitely spend most of my alone time working on creative projects and if I do spend too much time with other people, I quickly develop an itch to be on my own, so I can re-charge and work on these things that I love and care about so much.
I find the ideas surrounding extroverts and introverts interesting and largely baffling. I often question how anyone could re-charge by spending time with others because it is so natural to me to restore my energy by being on my own. This isn’t necessarily because I relax in conventional ways when I’m on my own; most of my time spent doing ‘nothing’ (i.e. watching TV, chatting and generally chilling) is when I’m with my boyfriend and my friends and, as I just explained, most of my alone time is spent working, even if I am working on things I enjoy. It sounds kind of counterintuitive really: I relax when I’m with others but I re-charge when I’m on my own.
But I don’t think re-charging and relaxing are necessarily the same thing. It’s true that I feel exhausted after spending the entire day socialising or even just being around other people but collapsing into bed and binge-watching TV isn’t always the answer to that. More often than not, turning to my blog or other projects that I’m a part of feels like the ideal way to end my days. I think I crave this kind of ending to my day because I feel the most like myself when I’m doing something creative/something that I’m interested in. And I think that’s what this concept of ‘re-charging’ is all about- where it is that you feel most like yourself. Alone or with others? Watching TV or working? etc.
I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer to the question of where you feel most yourself but I do think that my ways of re-charging can be problematic. Re-charging by working (even work that I enjoy) can definitely cause problems, namely me becoming completely over-worked (how many times can I say work in a sentence?) It’s pretty normal for me to leave my house at 9am and stay in university till 5pm, to come home, eat something and spend the rest of my night working on my blog with maybe an hour of Netflix when it gets to about 10pm. This isn’t me pushing myself because I feel like I have to, (I find it very frustrating when people force themselves to work more than they need to just to feel worthy), it’s because I want to, well when it comes to my blog anyway! I love my blog and I love working on it. It makes me feel good and if I didn’t do it in the evenings and on the weekend, I wouldn’t have time to do it at all.
But re-charging in this way certainly does blur some lines of what is work and what isn’t, and how far enforced relaxation (even if relaxing in the conventional way isn’t what I feel like doing) is necessary. Right now, it feels like this way of living works for me. But then again, I haven’t been to university in a week (it’s the Easter Break) and a couple of weeks ago when I had been enforcing this routine for 8 weeks straight and was feeling burnt out to say the least, I might have felt very differently.
I love being alone but maybe I don’t quite know how to yet in the ways that are best for me and my mental and physical health. I think as I grow older and learn more and more about myself (and I hopefully spend my days doing work that fulfils me creatively so I don’t have to spend my nights doing so), I’ll learn what is best for me though, and I hope Ii find a healthy balance between genuinely relaxing whilst also being able to re-charge, whatever that phrase really means.
Writing this post has made me realised that being alone is much more complicated than many people, including myself, like to think. Maybe I’m just thinking into it too much (I mean, I am an English Literature student so that’s a fair assumption) but considering much of my time is spent by myself, I think this is a worthy topic as any to spend my time thinking and writing about.
Let me know how you feel about being alone in the comments! Do you love it or hate it? Are you an introvert, an extrovert or somewhere in between? As you might be able to tell, I’m very interested in this topic so I’m keen to hear your thoughts!
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20 Things I've Learnt in 20 Years
Today is my 20th birthday! I feel very weird about it. I’m no longer a teenager which freaks me out but I also feel like I’ve been part of the 20-something generation for some time now. Anyway I’m officially joining the 20-something club today! Who knows if that’s a good or bad thing? I’ll let you know in 10 years. For now, let’s go with good because I’d rather not live my life with a constant sense of impending doom.
On that positive note, here’s all the things I’ve learnt in the 20 years of my life so far, that is other than learning to walk, talk, eat, write, read… you get the idea. Really, this post is more about what I’ve learnt in the last 5-10 years of my life, but I’m sure some of it started to click a little bit earlier and 20 things in 20 years sounds much better so there you have it.
Anyway, let’s start my 20th year off with a little less rambling than normal and get on with the post! Here are the 20 things I’ve learnt in 20 years of being alive…
1. I’m a very hard working person and that’s probably one of my best and worst traits.
2. It’s ok not to enjoy the same things as everyone else.
3. I’m an introvert… definitely.
4. However much I think otherwise, I enjoy exercise and it’s one of the best things for my mental health.
5. Friendship is so, so important.
6. I’m a summer person through and through- the only thing I like about winter is Christmas. Period.
7. I have a sweet tooth.
8. It’s important to be engaged with politics but not at the expense of your mental health. It’s possible to be engaged without it being overwhelming but there’s a fine line.
9.It is actually possible to drink too much water! I am living, breathing evidence! It has affected my sleep and it’s just very inconvenient to need a wee all the time. But then again, nothing beats a refreshing glass of water- I’m an addict!
10. Travel is the best thing to spend your money on, or at least I think so. New clothes are all well and good for a couple of weeks or a month at best, but the anticipation, experience and memories that travel provides is unbeaten in terms of its longevity and how it can make you feel.
11. I’m happiest when engrossed in a book, preferably on a beach, and reading is something that I’ll never get bored of. I am a bookworm, always have been, probably/hopefully always will be.
12. I am a cat person and no one brings me joy like my little (he’s actually huge) cat Harley.
13. Working 24/7 doesn’t make you successful or even productive. Time off from work is so important and you can excel in your work without dedicating every breathing moment to it, probably even more so.
14. It’s ok to admit that you’re not coping with something and to ‘give up’. I’m not the most resilient person in the world and I’m learning to accept that. There’s no point pushing yourself through something you hate just to prove something to yourself or the people around you.
15. There’s nothing more rewarding than a good bargain from the charity shop. I will never stop feeling smug over my £2 favourite ever pair of jeans that I found.
16. Always eat the ice cream, or the chocolate, or the crisps. Restricting your diet is tiring and boring. To quote the great philosopher Drake, you only live once, and I’d like to spend my one life eating as much delicious food as possible.
17. You’ll never regret taking photos on a film camera. Whatever the cost and the hassle, they’re so worth it.
18. Romantic relationships don’t have to be easy to work. The harder times make the good times all the more incredible and they’re both just as important. I’ve learnt never to take advantage of any of my relationships, but particularly romantic ones, as the joy they bring and the things they can teach you are often unmatched.
19. Liverpool is the best city in the world.. I’m not biased okay? Honestly. I’m yet to visit a city with people as friendly as in my home town and that’s always the thing that makes me most homesick when I’m anywhere else. There are many other amazing things about it, but that deserves a blog post to itself.
20. Finally, life has bad moments, life has good moments, life has extremely mundane and in-the-middle moments. All of them are overwhelming. All of them will usually make you feel as though that’s what life is like when you’re in them, which can be as depressing as it is exhilarating. Perspective is key and learning to appreciate these moments, whether they’re minutes, days, weeks, months, or years, will only ever make you develop as a person. And I’ve done a whole ‘lotta developing over the past 20 years, let me tell you! (Very aware that this sounds like something a life-coach would say, but it’s my birthday so just let me get away with it, pleeeeease?)
Anyway, happy birthday to me! I’m off to drink cocktails in a hot tub whilst having a massage. Joking! I have an exam tomorrow and I’m not drinking alcohol at the moment, so I’m probably currently sat at my desk with a glass of water (or cordial, I mean it’s my birthday, I’ve gotta live it up a little!) 20 is a very adult age anyway so I might as well embrace it! Here’s to a great 20th year with more life lessons, more ice cream, more quality time with my cat and the people around me (but most importantly, my cat) and more of doing what makes me happy!
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Healthy Habits I'm Putting Into Place In 2019
Jumper- Urban Outfitters (old, similar here)
Necklace- ASOS
Jeans- Topshop (old, but these ones are basically the same)
We’re almost a week in to 2019 and this first week has been a weird one. I was expecting a rush of motivation and excitement about my work, but the reality is that a large part of my University work is just as dull to me as it was before Christmas, if not more! I’m trying not to put to much pressure on myself to feel super motivated though. After all, just because the calendar year has changed, it doesn’t mean anything else has or that it should.
That’s why when I was setting my New Years Resolutions, I tried not to make them too far-reaching or pressurised because that’s just not helpful. I know some people are totally against the idea of New Years Resolutions but I, for one, like them. They’re a good opportunity to take some time to think about what you’d like to do and how you’d like your life to be in the next 12 months and a year is a good amount of time to set and work towards any goals you want to reach.
Some of my New Years Resolutions are more goals based, although, like I said, none of them are too ambitious because I don’t want to be putting pressure on myself. But today I thought I’d just share my resolutions that are more about habits I want to introduce into my life, mostly to look after myself. In fact, more than half of my New Years Resolutions are focussed on self-care because the last 3(ish) years of my life I’ve been really difficult for me and my mental health and I don’t think I’ve focussed on looking after myself enough. So I’m hoping 2019 is going to be the year of self-care for me! Work and everything else is important but I can’t do any of it if I’m not functioning properly, so here are the ways in which I’m going to try and ensure I can be a fully(ish) functioning human in 2019…
Have A Day Off Every Week
This one is going to be the most important for me. Being a student, it often feels like if you’re not working 24/7 at unusual hours, you’re not doing enough. I don’t know where this attitude has come from but it’s well and truly embedded in student culture, at least at my University, and is upheld by most students. But as December came around last year and I felt not only physically and mentally exhausted but completely drained and bored by my work, I realised that this culture of overworking is not only harmful to my mental health, but also to my studies and the quality of my work.
I was literally counting down the days until the Christmas break because I was so desperate to just not think about work for a period of time. But as the Christmas break came to an end (it only really lasted about a week because I have January essays and exams) a feeling of complete dread came over me, and I was becoming so anxious and feeling really down about the thought of starting work again.
So I started thinking about my options. Dropping out of Uni? Doing barely any work and scraping a pass? Working myself to death and feeling miserable? None of these options seemed like they would have positive effects. And then I realised, what about if I take a day off every week? I wasn’t really sure if it was possible because of my workload. But I’ve thought about it and put some plans into place and realised, not only is it possible, but it’s going to be so positive for me, my social life, my mental health and (I hope) the quality of my University work.
I am still going to be doing blogging related ‘work’ on my day off, which is going to be on a Sunday, because, firstly, I don’t really have time to do it during the week very much and, secondly, because blogging doesn’t really feel like work to me. But my university work is going to be restricted to Monday-Saturday, no exceptions. My next habit will explain how this is going to be possible…
2. Get Into A Working Routine
As mentioned, student culture tells you that if you’re not staying up all night to work, you’re not really doing enough. But I’ve come to realise that this is only true for people who don’t wake up until the afternoon or would rather abandon their work for 3 weeks and, instead, pull a couple of all nighters and get it done then.
But, personally, I’m happy to get up at a normal time (pre-7am is kind of impossible but waking up at 7:30/8 feels completely fine for me). I also generally feel quite anxious in the evenings, so this really isn’t the best time for me to be trying to complete important work. I actually feel my best, and therefore do my best work, in the day time.
So I’ve decided that from Monday-Friday, my work hours will, mostly, be restricted to 10-6. I’ve gone with 10am because that’s when my University day usually starts (i.e. this is when most of my lectures and seminars start) and 6pm because an 8 hour working day feels like a good amount.
My working routine prior to 2019 was kind of similar to this, but some Wednesday afternoons, for example, I would decide to have a nap or go shopping, which would mean working into Wednesday night and feeling utterly exhausted the next day. Or sometimes it would just mean falling behind on my work which would mean I didn’t have a day off in months (Uni work can catch up on you very quickly). I don’t think I’ll be able to stick to this routine 100% but I think I can stick to it for about 90% of the time, which is enough.
So I’m hoping to be able to stick to this routine and, in doing so, I should be able to get enough work done during the week that I can always have my Sundays to myself. Oh, and on Saturday’s I want to do about 5 hours work, giving myself an extra 3 hours to sleep or socialise. It’s probably going to be an 11-4 working day or something like that, we’ll see!
3. Get Out In Nature At Least Once A Week
I am lucky enough, when I’m home from Uni, to have a beautiful beach literally on my doorstep, as you can see from these photos. But I just don’t make the most of it enough! Every time I visit, I vow to go more often as it’s so relaxing and refreshing to be by the sea. But I always forget or let life get on top of me. So this year I’d really like to get out in nature and head to the beach (or wherever else I fancy in the great outdoors) at least once a week, probably on my day off.
Whether it’s on my own or with my family, friends or boyfriend, I think it will be really beneficial for my mental health. I also think it will benefit me creatively, as I always feel super inspired after getting out in nature!
4. Exercise At Least Three Times A Week
On top of my weekly walk in nature, I’d also like to exercise at least three times a week. I started going to the gym (after a 2 year hiatus) in October, when I was going through a bit of a shit time with my mental health, as I was hoping it would help relieve some stress and clear my head. And it did! It really made me feel better and ‘lighter’. So this year I’d like to commit to exercising three times a week, at least.
It’s an easy habit to fall out of but as long as I’m paying for a gym membership, I generally feel motivated to go as it’s something I can’t really afford so if I am going to be paying for it every month, I feel the need to make the most of it.
I’m also doing Yoga With Adriene’s 30 Days of Yoga challenge this month, which, as the name suggests, means I will be doing yoga every day for 30 days. I’ve attempted this challenge every year for the last few years now, and have completed it a couple of times. It’s difficult both physically and mentally but it also has SO many benefits. Hopefully there will be a blog post on my experience with it when (if) I finish it!
5. Write More For The Love of Writing
I spend A LOT of my time writing, from blog posts to essays to Instagram captions. But I’ve fallen out of the habit of writing for myself, that is writing that is limited to my eyes only. Journalling is something I’ve tried and given up on, and tried and given up on a whole lot over the years and I’m still not really sure how I feel about it. But I’d really just like to pick up a pen and write about my surroundings, my feelings, my day or anything else I fancy more often as it is something I enjoy and I feel as though writing when you know no one else is going to see the words on the page is a really relaxing and freeing experience.
So there we have it! The habits I want to introduce to my life in 2019. Maybe I’ll do an ‘update’ blog post on how they’re all going in 6 months time, and then one at the end of the year? Maybe not though, if they’ve all gone to shit…
But I’m optimistic! I know that implementing all of these habits will have a really positive effect on my life, so hopefully my perfectionist mindset won’t get in the way of them. I’d love to hear about your New Years Resolutions, especially if any of them are centred around self-care, in the comments or over on my social media! Do also let me know if any of you’re thinking of introducing any similar habits into your life as well!
Oh, and FYI, blog posts at Words By Alice are going to be weekly from now on. There might be an extra post every now and then but as a general rule, there will be one new blog post a week every Sunday. So I’ll see you back here next Sunday!
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