Rest: Why You Get More Done When You Work Less

More is not always more. Though many people view regular sleep, meals and leisure time as wimpy stuff, working long hours every day, checking e-mail at 2 a.m. and charging hard every moment you can stay conscious makes you much less likely to produce good work. Rest combines current neuroscience and psychology with examples from the lives of great scientists and artists to argue that rest is not a luxury, nor is it the opposite of work. "Restorative daytime naps, insight-generating long walks, vigorous exercise, and lengthy vacations aren't unproductive interruptions; they help creative people do their work."

Writer, scholar and business consultant Alex Soojung-Kim Pang (The Distraction Addiction) offers an enjoyable, well-organized and persuasive consideration of the relationship of work and rest. He approaches this through four main insights: that work and rest are partners, not opposites; that rest is active; that it is a skill; and that it stimulates and sustains creativity. These insights are developed in chapters focused on various forms of rest--such as walks, naps, vacations, deep play and vigorous exercise--and on schedule structuring through routines, limited hours and deliberate stops. He describes the philosophical ideas and history behind current ideas about creative work, and argues that a focus on long hours and constant attention to jobs leads people to resolve superficial problems quickly, rather than develop more difficult and worthwhile projects. This book has something to offer anyone looking for new ways to structure their daily lives. --Sara Catterall

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