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Hustle Less, Thrive More: The Power of Rest
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Episode Summary:
In today’s episode, Krista Jones and her crew challenge the work “hustle culture” and dive into the importance of taking breaks — whether you’re the boss or the employee. With co-host Chauntel Shaffer and special guest Stephen Whalen from Whalen Architecture, the trio explores the science behind rest, the role of leadership and setting boundaries, and practical tips for unplugging without guilt.
What You’ll Learn:
The Science Behind the Break: Why your brain needs downtime to boost creativity and prevent burnout.
-Boss’s Role: How leaders can set the tone for a no-guilt rest culture.
-Employee’s Role: Advocating for your own boundaries and embracing the power of “no.”
-Practical Tips: From scheduling quiet hours to embracing tech-free moments, small changes make a big impact.
-Redefining Success: Why we need to celebrate balance, not burnout.
Take a break and spend 30 minutes taking a breath!! Learn why the world needs you to take a moment.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to the Episode
00:00:04
Speaker
Welcome back to Exhausted Sparrows Unite. I am Krista Jones, your host, joined by some of my amazing friends today. And we are going to talk a little bit about giving yourself breaks, not just breaks in your personal life, but we're going to talk today about giving yourself breaks in your professional life.
00:00:28
Speaker
Have you ever felt like, I don't know, work is just running your life? Whether you're the boss or the employee, the pressure to always be on is real. But here is the truth. Burnout is not a badge of honor.
Guest Introductions: Stephen Whalen & Chantal Schaefer
00:00:42
Speaker
Today, I'm diving in with my friend Stephen Whalen from Whalen Architecture. And of course, my lovely co-host, Chantal Schaefer, my friend, employee extraordinaire. Okay.
00:00:56
Speaker
And we're going to talk a little bit about all of that and why stepping away is so important and might even be the secret to coming back even stronger. So I want to welcome you two to the show today.
Rethinking Burnout and Work Culture
00:01:09
Speaker
and this is a topic that I have been wanting to do since we started this podcast, I don't know, 12 episodes ago because it hit me strong.
00:01:20
Speaker
I was like, this is something that every single person in our life needs to hear and can apply because we are living in a world where we do not get a break and burnout is real.
00:01:34
Speaker
And today we need to talk about why that is not a badge of honor. And so many of us wear it as if it's a badge of honor. Like, look at me, i do 18 hour shifts. I mean, I have said that quite a bit, but it's not a badge of honor.
00:01:48
Speaker
Not at all. um in Hi, Steven. Good morning. How are you? I'm very well. Thank you. Thank you.
Experiences of Burnout in Business
00:01:56
Speaker
So yeah, absolutely. And you know I think every business owner goes through this.
00:02:00
Speaker
you know When you first start out, you know you've got all that energy, you've got that drive, that dream. you know And i think that's what that's what pushes you. But it eventually will get to that point.
00:02:12
Speaker
You were just saying, you're like 18-hour days. You can probably do that when you're first starting out, but it will catch up to you. And it it'll burn you out. And Steven is a business owner. he owns his own architect firm. He actually here at Sparrows Nest helped design this beautiful building we're now in.
Project Collaboration Insights
00:02:30
Speaker
if you guys are listening from Argentina or Italy, it's really cool to hear where people are are checking in.
00:02:36
Speaker
We are a local charity here in the Hudson Valley, which is in New York. ah the beautiful New York, and we feed families and individuals that have a cancer diagnosis. Stephen built helped to build this building for us. He did all the beautiful drawings for it.
00:02:49
Speaker
And throughout the entire process, he had to listen to Krista Jones as his client. And i was like, there's really windows there. There can't be a door. And he was like, you're killing. me. No, it was all a pleasure. You're killing me. you But um you know you can talk about it from from from a business standpoint. And there's a lot of people here that own their own business that are going to be listening.
The Value of Taking Breaks
00:03:10
Speaker
And it really is true. When you start your own business, there are no vacations. there There are no breaks. Your passion has to kind of fuel that. But then there is a point where you learn, and for me, it was the older I got.
00:03:23
Speaker
you you said i said you know People said it to me when I was in my 20s, and I just never really caught on to it. But it is better to have a productive eight hours than a really exhausted, tired 18.
00:03:35
Speaker
Yeah, and especially like the number of days you work, you know, because I had a string, you know, when I was first starting out, I had a string of just seven days a week for months and then didn't realize that when you take a step back, when you take a day off,
00:03:50
Speaker
you know you get You get recharged, you get like rejuvenated, you wanna get back to work. And that's like where the burnout and like your're you it's like you don't miss work.
00:04:03
Speaker
um And I think it it has to get to that point. You have to actually miss what you're doing so that you can go back into it. It's just like I was doing it you know every single day. And when I was first starting out, I was trying to you know make a name for myself, you know start to you know get out there um so that people would start referring me. And I grew up my business. And that that was the fuel. But I wasn't taking a step back. I wasn't taking any time off.
00:04:30
Speaker
And yeah, it's like, and Burn It will like creep up on you and you won't even know that it's it's coming. And then when it does, it's like, oh, I got to take a step back. i gotta to you know I got to want to miss this. Well, yeah, because it also takes this this passion, right?
00:04:45
Speaker
And all of a sudden you're like, i don't want to be here anymore. I don't want to do this anymore. You know what I'm saying? And so like like you said, if you take some time off, then you're refreshed when you go into work the next day.
00:04:59
Speaker
Absolutely. And especially if you've already gotten to the point of growing your business and now you have people working for you, you get to that point where it's like, i don't want to do this anymore. It's like you're not only affecting yourself, you're affecting everybody around you. That's true. And especially you're walking into your office, you're walking into your business and it's like, I don't even want to be here right now.
00:05:17
Speaker
Everyone's going to hear that. they're goingnna They're going to sense that and be like, wow, I don't want to be here either. And that's a good point though. I want to talk about, you know, when you are a boss, it's really important that you lead by example.
Leadership and Break Culture
00:05:29
Speaker
So if you're not taking breaks, if you're not taking vacations, Chantel probably side eyeing me right now, but if you're not doing any of that, your employees feel that they cannot do that.
00:05:40
Speaker
And sometimes you kind of have to go to extremes here. um I said to her, we're shutting the office down on Fridays. We have to, I mean, it's it's a real extreme. But in order for me to get a break, I need to know that my employees are getting these breaks, right?
00:05:56
Speaker
And so... um ah They were laughing when I said this. I just said it this week. I said, you know, but we're going to start wrapping some things up and we are taking Fridays off because I have to take this off and I need to know my staff's not here working while I'm taking this off.
00:06:11
Speaker
It's a weird thing with me. I don't know where that comes into, but, you know, i think um as a boss, if you're listening to this too, your employees are are are looking at you.
00:06:22
Speaker
They're looking to see if you're taking the time for yourself. They're looking to see if you really still love your job. I mean, I think, you know, Chantal can tell you, I at least recognize it. Sometimes it's hard to put it into action,
00:06:37
Speaker
Well, it's very difficult when my boss goes on vacation and is calling and texting from an island for a few hours. Island in the stream. Because then when I go on vacation, I feel obligated to check my email and to touch base and check in. So you're 100% correct. You know, if you're not going to shut off, we're not going to shut off.
00:06:57
Speaker
Sure. But I mean, don't you think though, Stephen...
Navigating Work-Life Boundaries
00:07:03
Speaker
know that we can shut off as much as our employees to like, we do need some shut off, but I think, I don't know. We're, we're living in ah culture that is so immediate, right?
00:07:20
Speaker
Especially for you. I am in a charity, which is different now, but I used to own my own DJ business and we are in this culture. That's so immediate that if you don't get back to somebody, you're like within an hour, like they've moved on to the next architect.
00:07:34
Speaker
They like, they're like, well, he didn't call me back. Yeah, and it's tough, you know, because you're like you're absolutely right. You know, everything, everybody's strapped to a cell phone, you know, and now our cell phones can do everything. We can email, we can text. um I try not to give my cell phone number out to everybody i meet um because I do get those phone calls. It's like a Saturday night at like nine o'clock and I'm looking down at my phone. I'm just, you know, relaxing, watching TV. And it's like, you're calling me on a Saturday night. And There have been times I've answered that call, you know, depending upon, like, who's on the other end. But then there's other times it's like, no, you know, Monday morning. It can it can wait until then. and
00:08:15
Speaker
but And that's the fine line of, like, when you're, like, you were just saying about going away. Like, you're on vacation And yeah, you got it. You got to get away from parts of it. um But I don't think you can actually like 100% like divorce yourself from work. Sure. When you go away, it's like, it's like, oh, I got to call that guy when I get back. Oh, I got to, I got to go to this meeting.
00:08:37
Speaker
And you know, I'm guilty of it too. Yeah. I haven't had like a 100% vacation in years I try to we used to go to the Bahamas all the time because, you know, I was too cheap to pay the international fees.
00:08:51
Speaker
I mean, it's better now. So we just kind of continue that trend where there, you know, we, we try to go every other year. We're able to get there a little more now that the kids are grown up, but, um, So what I try to do now is I try to give myself a two hour block every day because then I feel better.
00:09:07
Speaker
If I've got this two hour block, I'll call them, I'll answer emails, I'll do all of that. And then I know once I leave the hotel, I don't get the international calling. So once I physically go to the water or I move away, and don't take the phone with me because then I've got all these roaming charges because I'm a cheap person. So. So I feel good.
00:09:28
Speaker
i feel like that is my boundary. And I feel like that is needed. That's needed on ah on a boss level. um And it's it's it's needed on an employee level. You need to be able to set boundaries.
Managing Expectations Post-Breaks
00:09:41
Speaker
I think I've told this story before. um I don't know if I've told it in a podcast or not, but... I actually was taught by an employee that, you know, you can't just call me at seven at night because for me, this charity is all I live, sleep, and breathe because if somebody's sick, I need to answer the phone.
00:09:59
Speaker
I need to, you know, pray. I need to talk to them. I need to bring them food. and Whatever it is I need to do, this charity, like I'm always on. And so I called to her one night.
00:10:10
Speaker
Um, i I shouldn't even say I called her one night. i i I was calling my employees all the time. Anytime something came up, I was always calling. And she said to me, listen, you have me during the day and you can absolutely call me if you need me to fix a flyer, if you need me to send out an email to somebody and you can't get by your computer.
00:10:29
Speaker
She said, but I need to separate my work from my home. And she said, you have to respect that. And I was like, oh my, I mean, it was like such an awful feeling. I was like, she's absolutely right.
00:10:41
Speaker
You know, but sometimes as bosses, we don't think about that because our brains are going 24 hours a day. and so we're just throwing it out there to employees.
00:10:53
Speaker
So I try now, like if I need you, I will call or maybe I'll text. But I'm also trying like to put chores so that it's stuff that we can wait and do in the morning because most of it can wait.
00:11:06
Speaker
Absolutely. and And I think that's also like another fine line. It's like if you completely, let's say, like walk away from everything, like you're on vacation and it's like, I'm not going to do a single thing. The fine line there is that when you get back, it's like a landslide.
00:11:23
Speaker
All this stuff is now going to hit you. So that's, that's like been like my mindset and it's that, all right, I'm going to go away, but I'm going to just take care of a couple of things just so I'm not like trying to hold back the damn once I get back. And it's like, Oh, I got to go to 16 meetings in two days.
00:11:39
Speaker
You know, got to respond to all these emails, all these phone calls, you know, just to like lessen the burden once I get back from, you know, trying
Fostering a No-Guilt Culture
00:11:48
Speaker
to relax. Yeah. Right. And I think that's good, but I think it's up to us, um you know, in the in the in the leadership role to create like a ah no guilt culture, right?
00:11:59
Speaker
Like we don't want our employees to feel guilty when they ask for time off. That's coming to them. You know, here in the charity world, we don't pay well. um But, you know, I said to Chantel is she and i were going back and forth in the interview process. I said, listen,
00:12:15
Speaker
I don't pay great, but if you are going to go and watch your child win an award, or if your child has tea at school, you don't need to clock in and out. You don't need to put it on the calendar. So I just know you're not there.
00:12:29
Speaker
I forget half the time. I'm like, see you tomorrow. She's like, ah my daughter has an award. I'm like, ah didn't look at the calendar. But I think it's up to us that we also create this no guilt culture, Because you can't expect, I feel we can't expect, as bosses, maybe we're wound a certain way, but that's not fair to expect our employees to take that over.
00:12:48
Speaker
I mean, and I know Chantel, you know, I think that was part of the reason she came into this culture is because I said to her, if there's a snow day, I'm not making you come in.
00:13:00
Speaker
You know, if if your kids have off in the summer and you want to spend Fridays with them and you don't have childcare, I spent Fridays with them. Like, I'm not looking at everything she does and coming to her at the end of the year and saying, you took 33 and hours. Yeah.
00:13:13
Speaker
and four hours No, but it takes, and I'm going to toot my own horn, it takes a certain kind of person to not take advantage of that. You know, I don't take every day that my kids have off, and I do find childcare, and I do send them to camp, because that's not fair to you either for me to take advantage of that.
00:13:33
Speaker
Absolutely. But you don't, right? You don't take advantage of it. And i think, though, it's important as bosses for us to... Give, you know, some, you you have to give some grace because it's really hard being a working parent now.
00:13:49
Speaker
There's so much going on during the workday and you don't. You're right. I mean, if you do this once a month, like that's a lot. But, you know, when when you have a dentist appointment or you have to do all these things, like I feel you've got to create a culture where your employees also don't feel um afraid to take time off within a reasonable amount of time.
00:14:10
Speaker
And Chantal does not take 33 days and four hours off at all. Yeah, it's definitely important. I mean, I think it's good to have, ah how can I explain it? It's almost like i'd write I'd like for my employees to have like that boss mindset.
00:14:28
Speaker
However, not to the extreme that I have, you know. I think it's good for them to experience that. I think, you know, like a good employee has, maybe they've had their own business. Maybe they've been at that level.
00:14:40
Speaker
Um, so they, you know, they can respect it a lot more and then they can know like what I tell like my employees, it's like, you know, like the better the firm does, the better you guys will do. Um,
00:14:51
Speaker
But there's a fine line there. It's like, I don't expect you guys to work my hours or to even like just like be so concerned about every single project that we're working on.
00:15:03
Speaker
It's like, that's my job, and I get it. um and But, it and again, it's another fine line. To have like the responsibility for what you're working on But also to know it's like, all right, I don't need you to crank out, you know, 80 hours in a week to get this all done, burn yourself out, and then you're useless when you come back on Monday.
00:15:23
Speaker
So... You know,
Wellness in Education
00:15:25
Speaker
it's interesting. I saw something and it wasn't about work. It was about schools. A college professor posted that um a student of theirs submitted an assignment at 2.48 a.m.
00:15:35
Speaker
and the professor did not open it and graded it 20 out of 20. And their response to the student was, your mental health and rest and well-being is more important than my class. That's smart, man.
00:15:48
Speaker
You know, so it's kind of the same thing, you know, like you shouldn't be cranking out work at 2.48 in the morning because you're thinking about the bottom line. And if you are cranking out work at 2.48 in the morning, maybe it's time for a conversation. Yeah, absolutely.
00:16:01
Speaker
And I've done, you know, I've done a little bit of research on this and especially in my field, it's like the product productivity goes down like almost exponentially the longer you work.
00:16:12
Speaker
Well, right. Think of your brain as as as a month as a muscle, right? Like if you sprint nonstop, your legs are going to give out. The brain, it works the same way.
Science of Rest and Creativity
00:16:23
Speaker
Studies show that during rest, your brain moves into a default mode.
00:16:28
Speaker
So that means it's able to process emotions, creativity, and constant work instead brings the brain to operate in a survival mode. And survival mode is where you you have like reduced problem solving. You know what mean? So if you're always going without that rest, your brain's not functioning the way it needs to function and your work is not at 100% anyways.
00:16:54
Speaker
And no boss wants that either. No, absolutely. And especially being the boss, you're coming in and you just have like brain fog, you know, and then all the other employees are like, well, he's all foggy.
00:17:06
Speaker
Why am I giving 100% if he's only, you know, if he's like coasting in on like 20? Right. You know, because, you know, there for a while i was just, you know, functioning, well, quote unquote, functioning. Right. I'm like four hours of sleep at night. And You know, as I'm getting older, I can't do that anymore. It's just it catches up to you. And it's like, I got to be clear. I got to be focused in what I'm doing.
00:17:30
Speaker
You know, I just I can't give an answer. and It's like, oh, that's all right. You know, I'll deal with it later. It's like, no, gave that answer. It better be correct or else it's going to come back.
00:17:41
Speaker
And if you can't do, you know, vacations, like we we, it could even be a lunch break. Like, let's talk about small breaks. we You don't, you know, have to say I'm stressed. um I'm going to the Bahamas for four days.
00:17:53
Speaker
like can we say that? We can say that. But you know, you literally can say, i am going to go for a walk, for lunch here in the Hudson Valley.
00:18:04
Speaker
It is finally hitting 50, 55 degrees and we're all ready to put on our bathing suits. We're like, this is great. But you know, it could just be that you go outdoors. It could be that you sit on a bench.
00:18:15
Speaker
It could be that you shut the office to your door for a half hour and you listen to music. It's some kind of break where your mind is not constantly working because we all know that you cannot do five and six and seven things at once and do them well, as we said when we first started the podcast.
00:18:36
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. And I started doing that too. It's just, you know, getting away. you know, every once in a while, I'll go out and I'll just sit in my truck. You know, nobody knows where I am. um You know, I do bring my cell phone with me just in case I'm going to get that call.
00:18:51
Speaker
But I'm not looking at it. I may be playing a game on it, but for about a half an hour, I just sit out there. I'm going to drive through your parking lot now. I'm going to be like, is Steven in his car? Chris is going to be knocking on your window. just realized this is
Encouraging Outdoor Breaks
00:19:06
Speaker
now on the podcast. It sure is what she means now. Everybody knows you a new hiding spot. I can't go back to the office and be like, yeah, listen to the podcast. Guess what I do almost every single day when I just disappear?
00:19:16
Speaker
Yeah. But but that's that that's that's like a great rejuvenation right there. And you know something else I was thinking about? For those of you that are listening, we have this really cool superhero challenge that is coming up, depending on when you're listening to this.
00:19:32
Speaker
It is going to start in April, and we are 2025 in case... you decide to listen to this podcast in 2027. ah We have this really cool challenge that's coming up where we ask you to commit to miles.
00:19:46
Speaker
And for me, if I commit, I'm accountable, right? So you can do like a mile a day two miles a day, four miles a day. So, you know, we have to go big here. We're like four miles, but that is going to force us out of the office into the fresh air, hopefully not talking about work the entire time and getting a break.
00:20:07
Speaker
Absolutely. You can be creative with this, but you need some kind of break in order to survive. So, you know, it's it's like this whole cultural shift and we mentioned it at the beginning and it's really important to talk about it because we look at all these people on social media and we're like, success is the hustle.
Social Media and Unrealistic Standards
00:20:28
Speaker
Right? Like you're seeing all these people hustle and their house is clean and they're hustling and their kids are happy. And, you know, because it's it's not a true authentic image. People are putting that out on Facebook.
00:20:39
Speaker
But then all of a sudden you're like, well, then I should be able to work 14 hours and make a five course meal when I get home. Or Chantel's bread, which I didn't save you any today, but sourdough bread is a big thing in the Sparrows Nest world.
00:20:52
Speaker
And I'm like, and I do immediately when I ate the bread this morning, I was like, how does she have the time to make the bread? Now i'm going to work my 14 hours, go home and try to make the bread.
00:21:04
Speaker
But that's the world we live in. It is, it is. And you know, I'm not a boss, I don't run a business, um but I run a household.
Personal Stories of Balance
00:21:11
Speaker
And very early on, I learned that I couldn't pour into the cups of my family if I was empty.
00:21:18
Speaker
You know, so I started running in 2020 during COVID when, you know, everything was together and we were all together and I was burning out fast. And that's when I started running and I was able to show my kids that mommy's taking 35, 45, hour,
00:21:33
Speaker
maybe an hour to herself. And I would, I was so mentally more available to them when I took that time. So, you know, I can see it in the same way as being a boss. Like you take that 30 minutes to play Candy Crush or whatever you're playing on your phone because you're pouring into yourself, you're refilling your cup so you can pour into your clients and your employees. And it makes you make a good point because what do our kids see? Like to me, you know, I'm like, this is fine. This is fine. Of course, I think it's fine for me.
00:22:05
Speaker
But then I think i would never want my kid to work the hours I work. You know what I mean? Like, I mean, I want them to be successful and I want, but sometimes i don't shut it off.
00:22:17
Speaker
And I think about that and I think there's so much more to life than just work. Oh, absolutely. Right. And, and, and I don't want them to see that. And, you know, they've made comments and part of me is like, Oh my gosh, you know, it's too late.
00:22:29
Speaker
But I'm like, it's really not too late. It's never too late to start, you know? And I think we beat ourselves up as, as parents, but we have to have those breaks too, because we have to pour into ourselves and,
00:22:40
Speaker
And we have to pour into them. We have to like not be, we have to give them undivided attention, which in today's world is nearly impossible with social media and these phones and candy crush.
00:22:54
Speaker
And I check in with my kids. Every once in a while. You know, it's like I want them to have my drive, but I don't necessarily want them.
Family Over Work: A Priority
00:23:02
Speaker
i i definitely don't want them in the same profession as me, but I do check in with them. I'm like, you you see it. You know, it's like a crazy time right now. know, I'm working all crazy hours, but I always tell them it's like, ah you guys are first. You guys are most important. My job can wait.
00:23:20
Speaker
Like something comes up and always like, yeah, dad, whatever. But at least I'm checking in with them. A hundred percent. And, you know, and it's, it, it, I think it's working. You know, I keep checking in with It's like, you know, everything's good. You know, you you know, you see, I'm, I'm going in 30 different places at once, but just checking in with them, just making sure, we're time just making sure everything's good. And it's like, you know, look, you got a game, you got a recital, you got whatever's going on in your life. I'm going to be there.
00:23:46
Speaker
I may be asleep, but you know i I'm going to be there. um Yeah, eyes pinned open. Eyes pinned open. Weekend at Bernie's, sunglasses on. Whatever works. We'll get you there. We will drag you there, Stephen. Don't you worry.
00:23:59
Speaker
I do that too, kind of a little different, but whenever the phone rings, I say that to them. I said that to Shanta when she first started working here a little over a year ago. I said, listen, that is the one thing that I do.
00:24:11
Speaker
And I'll even do it in meetings, but I'll say, hey guys, I'm in a meeting. I got to go. I'll call you back. Anytime the kids call me, i try to give them at least a couple minutes. And they call me quite a bit because of that. I've created this habit.
00:24:23
Speaker
And they love to FaceTime me now. Like why? if you're listening and you're like, i don't know, anywhere between 11 and 22. Why? Why can't you just call me? Why do you need to see my face? But they do that. You know, they're in college, they're away.
00:24:37
Speaker
So I try to give them that time too, because that also says to them, there's nothing too important that I can't pick up the phone and at least say to you, I'm busy and I'll call you back. I don't know.
00:24:49
Speaker
Is it working? Maybe not. Are they in therapy because of it? Probably so.
Practical Tips for Scheduling Downtime
00:24:54
Speaker
It's hard. So, all right, practical tips before we go, because we've talked about how this is this is not easy, but we have to then figure out how do we stop it, right?
00:25:06
Speaker
So, or how do we at least, you know, cut down and give ourselves some kind of break during the day? You have to schedule downtime. At least I do. have to literally put something on the calendar or else I won't take it.
00:25:20
Speaker
So like today, Fiona has an appointment and I have PT. But in between that, I'm not coming back to work. I have scheduled that I am out from 12 o'clock on.
00:25:31
Speaker
I am not coming back today. That is a tip that works for me. Otherwise, it won't do it. What do you guys think? What do you do? so i read like i can't even remember how long ago it was but it was a while ago it's two words that i'm trying to just like keep in my life it's healthy distractions and it's got to be it can't be anything related back to work um i mean you ask any one of my friends like wherever we go i'm looking around it's like oh wow look at that detail oh wow that's cool building
00:26:02
Speaker
It's very dangerous to drive with me, especially like in Manhattan, because I'm looking all around all the time. But there are other things that like I'm a big golf fan. You know, I try to play as often as I can.
00:26:16
Speaker
um i try not to let work like disrupt that schedule. it like If a bunch of the guys are like, hey, we're going out to play. I'm keeping that tee time. You know, it's like I'm not saying, oh, you know, something came up with work.
00:26:28
Speaker
And I'm in a league and it's like Monday nights, I'm playing golf and everybody in the office knows it. It's like, nope. It's like, it's four o'clock. I'm out. So it's scheduled. You also have a scheduled time that you take for yourself. And I'm focused on playing. I'm not thinking about work.
00:26:45
Speaker
You know, my phone goes off. It's a contractor. Hey, you got to come over here No, it's like, I'm not taking the call. And that, you know, two, two and a half hour break once a week is perfect for me.
00:26:56
Speaker
And it's, it's a healthy distraction. Chantel?
Screen-Free Family Time
00:27:01
Speaker
I shut off my email notifications starting at 3.30 every day so that if I get an email from work, I don't see it.
00:27:09
Speaker
I do check it periodically, especially if something's going on. um And then after like seven o'clock, I am on the couch with my kids crocheting. And that's just my built in like refresh at the end of the day. Yeah.
00:27:26
Speaker
It's important. I mean, all of this is important. It's stuff that we've got to do, but it's hard to do. And, you know, doing things as well, like just embracing, I think those tech free moments are so important on so many levels because it's also showing our kids that are so addicted to the phone as we are.
00:27:45
Speaker
that we can take that time and do something else. Crochet, games. So I instituted screen-free dinner. Now my kids don't have phones.
00:27:56
Speaker
So now it's just my husband and I. and i'm like, all right, phones are not here. And he picked up his phone the other day and my kid took his phone and hid it. And she said, no, there are no screens the Yeah, we don't do screens at the table either. Do you guys...
00:28:09
Speaker
I mean, they're there. you know, the phones are there. But but nobody's where were when we're all together having dinner, it's like, what are you doing? What are you doing? Get off your phone. So this is the way that, you know, we can live, guys.
Conclusion and Call to Action
00:28:21
Speaker
we can We can live with breaks. And I think that's really important. Again, it's not a badge of honor to be burnt out.
00:28:29
Speaker
You're not going to win. Whether you're the boss or the employee, taking a break isn't slacking off. It's an investment in yourself and it's an investment in your work. So go ahead and take a vacation or log off every once in a while. Remember that rest isn't a reward. It's a right.
00:28:47
Speaker
Thank you both Steven and Chantal for helping me refresh today. i might not come back all week. That might be a bad thing or Shota might find that a good thing.
00:28:59
Speaker
Remember, ladies and gentlemen, if you love Exhausted Sparrows Unite, check out all of our podcasts. You can go to sparrowsnesticharity.org and sign up for our superhero challenge.
00:29:11
Speaker
Find out how you can make a difference in the lives of others because sometimes that's the break we all need. Until next time, take care of yourself and each other.