When you’re overworking yourself, it’s easy to tell yourself that you’re doing the right thing.
Because we want to be good. It’s easy to tell yourself that you need to work harder. Or do one more project to catch up.
But the only difference that way of thinking has from telling yourself you’ll have just one more drink, or one more chocolate bar is that you get to feel righteous doing it. It’s still an addictive way of thinking.
If you’re exhausted from working the world will praise you for trying harder and you won’t have to face the fear that you’re a failure.
If you stop you have to face the emotions that come with silence. The voices that say that you’re not enough.
You have to discipline yourself in your panicked boredom not to dive into the next project but actually sit long enough to rest and maybe get to know yourself and what you really want to do.
You have to have the strength of a parent to teach yourself that stopping to rest isn’t failure, but an act of maturity.
To keep trying is a wonderful and noble trait. But sometimes stepping away from the work is the strongest thing you can do.
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