Reframing Life: From Hustle to Embracing the Pause

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Instead of  'do your best,' how about 'do nothing and just be?'

Yes, you heard it right.

As I reflected recently, I realized that I appreciate the power of contentment and simplicity.

This mindset shift started when my husband and I were having an amazing dinner at a cozy restaurant in Amsterdam. 

It had six tables, maybe fewer. When we asked the owner why he didn’t expand and make it bigger, he surprised us. 

This wasn’t a new startup; it had been around for ten years! 

He simply said, “No need, we enjoy it small. Sometimes we add a few tables when we feel like it”.

This got me thinking.

In times when we push ourselves and others to always strive, be the best, be unstoppable, active all the time, planning, creating, and exploring (which is technically still work), I started to appreciate the times when we just sit and do nothing.

Get bored.

Draw to enjoy, not to master it.

Write to express, not to become a writer.

Study to learn, not to get a certification.

This is a whole mindset shift.

I'm not saying we shouldn't have dreams or aspirations. If you know me, you know I wake up every day with a new plan and idea. I read three books at the same time. I always drive in the fast lane.

This can work, sure, but it doesn't have to be the only way of being.

So, I invite you today, if you want, to join me in exploring this new way of reframing our lives. Give yourself some time to just sit and do nothing. For only 5 or 10 minutes as a start.

And by nothing, I also mean do not reflect, meditate, do yoga, or anything.

(There is an emerging field in neuroscience showing a specific neural pathway called the 'default mode' that gets active only when we are not engaged in a specific mental task but just resting quietly).

Take home message:

Do you find it hard to pause and rest? Don’t worry, you are not alone.

The first step is always considering another way of being, reminding yourself that it's okay to take a break and not achieve. 

🙌You are more than your to-do list, your title at work, or what you accomplished for the day.


Yours truly,

Dana Berri

Kindness is not just a virtue, it's a way of life. 



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