Spotlight: Time Off by John Fitch & Max Frenzel
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What do Aristotle, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Lebron James all have in common? Time off in the most creative and nourishing way!
Amidst a culture that worships “busyness”, millennials John Fitch and Max Frenzel want us to unlearn workaholism by learning “noble leisure” of the past and developing a quality #RestEthic. The AI researcher (Max) and entrepreneur (John) have collaborated to share the history of how we value time and work, show us that a little time off will go a lot further than we may think, and that it doesn’t have to be a vacation or even a full day.
Science supports that time off (whether that be walking on your lunch break or saying no to drinks with friends to work on a passion project) is a critical factor for anyone who wants to achieve a fulfifilling life, both personally and professionally. Time Off is intended for knowledge workers, creatives, entrepreneurs and business leaders who feel overwhelmed, giving them the knowledge and tools to hone the essential skill of taking time off work before it’s too late.
Excerpt
Rest Ethic
Take in a deep breath and hold it.
Keep holding.
How long can you hold your inhale until it gets uncomfortable?
Thirty seconds? A few minutes? It doesn’t take long until we all, eventually, need to exhale.
Think of your work ethic as the inhale. (It is, in a way, as essential to your career as air is to your body.) With a good work ethic we make, execute, coordinate, manage, fulfill, and get things done. Task list—inhale. Project execution—inhale. Making our ideas come to life—inhale.
But we can’t keep inhaling forever. Eventually we have to exhale. This exhale is your rest ethic, and it is just as essential.
A solid rest ethic gifts us inspiration, ideas, and recovery. It allows us to build up our enthusiasm and sustain our passion. Gaining a fresh perspective—exhale. Project ideation and “aha” moments—exhale. Letting big ideas incubate in your mind—exhale. And just as a deep exhale prepares you for a better inhale, your rest ethic enables you to have a better work ethic.
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Excessive hours don’t guarantee quality work. And quality work, not quantity or busywork, is what a good work ethic is all about. Now, there are plenty of fantastic books out there about improving and refining your work ethic. Titles like 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Relentless, Mastery, and Turning Pro have got you covered. Our focus here will be on your rest ethic, leisure, and the wellspring of creativity and impactful ideas your time off can produce.
So, what might a well-designed rest ethic look like?
This book will teach you that it involves much more than taking a vacation or a day off. A great rest ethic is not just about working less. It’s about becoming conscious of how you spend your time, recognizing that busyness is often the opposite of productivity, admitting and respecting your need for downtime and detachment, establishing clear boundaries and saying no more often, giving your ideas time and space to incubate, evaluating what success means to you, and ultimately finding and unlocking your deepest creative and human potential.
A rest ethic and a work ethic—we need both. They are two sides of the same coin. But today, it seems like too many of us are running around holding our breath for way too long. How effective is our work ethic without enthusiasm and creativity? How can we be effective leaders and come up with the big, innovative, impactful ideas our world needs if we’re stressed and burned out?
The team behind this book experienced the need to exhale firsthand. John reached a breaking point in his life and discovered a novel concept of time while on a life-changing sabbatical. Max was drowning in busyness without feeling productive, and during some quiet days in the mountains started thinking back to his leisurely but highly productive Ph.D. days. Our illustrator Mariya was falling out of love with drawing because she had taken on too many projects and had to relearn to emphasize quality of work—and enjoyment—over quantity of projects. All three of us had a bumpy and winding road discovering the importance of having a rest ethic. We wrote this book to make your road a bit easier.
About the Authors
Max Frenzel (Tokyo) and John Fitch (Austin) have both spent time working in software startups where many are worshiping the mantras that are so pervasive in our current working culture. Max got his Ph.D. in Quantum Physics and has been an AI researcher. John is an entrepreneur and business coach.
At breaking points in both of their work experiences, they realized that many of the commonly held beliefs aren't useful, but destructive. As a result, they decided to be more intentional and deliberate with their approaches to work and time off. Their quality of work and life have improved ever since, and they now want to share that transformation with others.
Connect: https://www.timeoffbook.com/
