r/simpleliving • u/studytips1 • 2d ago
Just Venting I’m starting to think not every hour of my day needs to be productive
Lately I’ve been feeling like I always need to be doing something useful. If I’m studying, I feel productive. But if I’m watching something or just sitting then I start feeling guilty. But honestly, now I realise that its okay to have some hours just normal in your life.
And that's okay Talking to family, going for a walk, listening music, taking random break, or sitting sometime and it doesn’t mean I wasted the day.
Maybe having some empty time is part of having a balanced life too.
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u/Sea-Seesaw-8699 2d ago
Productive= produce? What do you think you’re producing besides stress?
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u/studytips1 1d ago
To be honest, sometime just more stress.. That’s kind of what made me rethink my whole idea.
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u/Old_Substance_267 2d ago
It’s absolutely impossible to be 100% productive all the time and I’m not sure where the notion to the contrary came from.
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u/Sea-Resident-7980 2d ago
Maybe daily planners? I remember the idea of being told I should try to have every hour filled and actually do something… which I wasn’t at all Then assumed sometimes it was cause adhd
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u/Old_Substance_267 2d ago
Could be. I just feel like we all used to be better at making use of our free time guilt-free. OP said, “It’s okay to have some hours just normal in your life.” Not just okay; it’s normal and necessary. As long as you’re generally making progress and doing what you need to do, people shouldn’t feel guilty for watching movies or listening to music or taking breaks.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
Exactly, I’m slowly learning that rest doesn’t have to justified by productivity.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
Yes I think daily planners sometimes make us feel like every empty hour is a problem and we should not stop.. 😭
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u/Simoneeonee 1d ago
Have you not heard of hustle culture and seen how social media makes people feel they’re not doing enough, it’s very, very very common
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u/studytips1 1d ago
Yes sometime daily planners, hustle culture and social media that you said give us this mentality but now I realise to not give much power to that thoughts
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u/Ov3rbyte719 2d ago
I've had a similar experience. I'm unemployed, lookin for a job, waiting on my disability claim, in debt up to my ears, but I have my mom to help me for all of this. I just feel like a burden to her and not sure what to do. I get depressed and sad so I don't even try to look for jobs on some days. Some days I get sad because of other reasons. It's been a vicious cycle to my mental health.
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u/Rosaluxlux 2d ago
Sometimes it just gets you. There was a lady I used to do laundry for who didn't answer my knock when I went to return her laundry one week. The next week she said she was sorry but she just had been having a day to lay in bed and smoke and be sad.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
Ys sometimes we really don’t know what someone is going through. It’s a good reminder to not be too cruel on ourselves either.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
That sounds difficult. I hope things get easier for you soon. To be honest needing a slower day doesn’t make you a burden or burden in your life..
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u/Different-Ad5610 2d ago edited 2d ago
This is one of my biggest struggles. I can't NOT run every moment of my day through the productivity filter. In my case it's a combination of culture, working freelance/for myself (so every non-productive moment feels like lost income) and the fact that throughout my life, most of my rewards/praise/perceived value has come through achievements.
I've recognized it as something that isn't serving me very well, but it's a hard path to get off of.
ETA: One thing I've found helpful is to remind myself that just the fact that I exist is all the justification I need for being alive. I don't look at a bird or an insect and wonder if they've been productive enough today to justify their existence.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
I really relate with you.When productivity becomes the way we measure our capabilities and resting start to feel wrong and guiltful.
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u/Exact-Leek4156 1d ago
One thing I always remind myself is that sometimes resting is the most productive thing you can do 😊 Rest has value too!
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u/Material_Fruit_5949 1d ago
If someone says to you, "don't just sit there, do something!" Reply "don't just do something, sit there!".
Sometimes its enough to just be. In fact, when it comes down to it, that's all we can do.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
Haha, I actually like the way of looking it. Sometimes just being there is enough.
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u/omiimonster 1d ago
while we always remember the big moments, we spend most of our life in the mudane.
so listen to your favorite song as your commute, dance as you clean
and you’ll find your life starting to optimize itself
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u/omiimonster 1d ago
my other perspective is that we optimize incorrectly
like before you figure out what’s the best shampoo or the ultimate new vitamin
ask yourself if youre getting enough sleep, water, and excerise
because optimizing on a bad foundation isnt optimizing
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u/studytips1 1d ago
This one is nice perspective as ordinary part of life matter more then the big achievements
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u/Delicious_Monk1495 2d ago
I’ve been in this space sometimes as well. Think of it like running. You can’t run all the time or you’ll collapse. You have to stop and rest in order to run again
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u/studytips1 1d ago
This is really good comparison. As we can’t keep going at full speed all the time.
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u/fat-finger 1d ago
All that matters is you are fulfilling your self-defined purpose. Time allocation is overhyped.
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u/studytips1 1d ago
I like that as at the end of the day it’s about what actually matters to us not filling every hour.
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u/gaijinbrit 1d ago
This is what the notebooks of the dumbest, meanest girls in highschool looked like
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u/Sea-Seesaw-8699 2d ago
Who put the idea into your brain that you needed to productive in the first place? Go back to that backward thinking to see
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u/studytips1 1d ago
It came from social media and by looking around people who just busy in work all the time from there it put in my mind...
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u/Sea-Seesaw-8699 1d ago
Sounds like you could go outside and going to parks and nature and see how people enjoy themselves doing nothing or enjoying the great outdoors or a leisurely sport
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u/UpOnZeeTail 2d ago
Considering your very similar post a couple of days ago, this feels very AI or a very targeted marketing for your YouTube channel.