In today’s hustle culture, doing nothing is often seen as lazy or the hobby of someone with no goals — but that’s a false perception. You can have goals, be a hard worker and be lazy when you want to be. Taking breaks isn’t even being lazy — sometimes, everyone needs to sit down and do nothing to recalibrate and get their focus back on their goals.

What Doing Nothing Entails

Doing nothing doesn’t need to have a formal definition. You might consider it abstaining from productive tasks, or you might think of it as lying down and suppressing any thoughts about responsibility. Others may consider it meditation, the practice of simply being in the moment without thinking of any outside influences to reduce your overall stress. 

However you define the process of nothingness, you should put it into practice. It may be out of your comfort zone to stop hustling and grinding, but it’s well worth it. For your first time practicing this activity, consider lying down somewhere comfortable and dark. Just don’t try it when you’re tired, lest you fall asleep. You might find plenty of mental benefits that arise from sitting still and being alone, with or without your thoughts.

The Many Benefits of Doing Nothing

Doing nothing is as simple as it sounds — but you might not find it that way at first. You may struggle to turn off your thoughts or be completely still. Even so, you may find that one attempt is all you need to convince yourself that you should take breaks more often.

1. Boosts Creativity

When you’re alone, doing nothing and meditating on your thoughts, your mind starts to wander. As your brain expands and thoughts flood into your head, you might obtain a boost of creativity that can benefit you once you leave your safe meditation space. Meditation and daily reflection can be especially helpful for artists, as this time can allow them to have a time where they aren’t actively working on or thinking about something — the ideas can just come and go as they please.

2. Recalibrates Your Mind

Spending time alone with yourself can help you focus on your goals again. If you’ve been so lost and bogged down by stress that you aren’t sure where to start with your priorities, take some time to think it over in solitude. Being alone can give you a moment of clarity that you don’t often get in the hectic world. Once your thoughts have the opportunity to run amok in your head, they’ll soon settle down, leaving you with ideas for what to do next to pursue your goals.

3. Improves Happiness

Yes, you can actually become happier by sitting with your thoughts. When you become more mindful of your thoughts and surroundings, you can start to feel happier about your life. Mindfulness can help you appreciate the things you didn’t previously feel grateful for. Once you sit for a while on your own, you realize all the blessings you have and can remember to count them every day.

4. Increases Problem-Solving Ability

By letting thoughts filter in and out of your head of their own will, you might find the solution to a problem you’ve been trying to solve. Because you have no distractions while you’re doing nothing, you’re able to think through the processes of solving problems. With this practice, you’ll grow your critical thinking ability and possibly transfer that skill set to your everyday life. Additionally, working on your problem-solving skills could eliminate stress from your life.

5. Eliminates Stress

If you get overwhelmed by spending time with other people, consider using this time to relax and recuperate after your social battery has been drained. While loneliness can be detrimental to your mental health, intentionally spending time alone can impact your mental health in a positive way. To improve your mental health, you have to spend time alone with your thoughts with the intention of self-improvement.

Lean Back and Allow Yourself to Relax

Doing nothing sounds like a treat, but it’s a vital part of self-care that everyone should build into their regular schedules. If doing nothing sounds too overwhelming, then accomplish the most pressing tasks on your to-do list, then evaluate how you feel. If you feel drained, it might be the perfect opportunity for you to sit back and do absolutely nothing.