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You Don’t Have To Fill Every Minute
Contemplation, Conversation & Joy Are Hard To Schedule
It puzzles me when people express surprise or disappointment at studies showing that we are spending more time working and less time at leisure.
If an economy is growing it probably means that the quality and quantity of people’s “work” is increasing, which in turn means we’re all getting busier. Growth doesn’t just miraculously appear.
We seem hellbent on constant growth so we are likely condemned to ever more busy (or stressful, or both) lives. The victim is “nothing” — the gaps in our schedules where we’re not committed to anything.
We don’t realise how vital these gaps are. Just like the “green belt” of countryside is the lungs of the nearby city, downtime re-energises us to even be capable of our work.
Don’t fill every minute. Make room for contemplation, conversation and joy.
