Every semester break I set myself long bucket lists and crazy complex goals to achieve in the short three weeks. And every year I achieve almost none of it. Its always too much to do and I am usually a bit burnt out from the semester.
ONE goal
This year I am taking a different approach. I am setting myself ONE goal. And I am going to be focusing more on rest and relaxation rather than doing masses of exciting activities. One goal that is easy to achieve and doesn’t put much pressure on me during the break.
Embrace Seasonality
I’ve just finished reading a chapter in Slow Productivity by Cal Newport on embracing seasonality. He discusses how up until recently society was based on the seasonality of agricultural work. To keep working the entire year without slower times or breaks was very unusual. This chapter has inspired me to have a go trying this. The next three weeks is going to be my slow period of break. I will take on no extra commitments, keep a low profile and focus on rest and enjoying the break.
Of course I will still need work through this period. Uni breaks are usually the time where I work non stop to make money to save for the semester. This way I don’t have to work too often during the semester. So I will still be working. Though I think this semester I will take on less shifts and maybe shorter shifts too. A bonus is that I can work on my winter break goal during work breaks.
And so after that slightly lengthy intro my one goal for the next three weeks is
Read books, take action
Pretty simple, it's only 4 words. But this goal is very intricate. and I am so excited to achieve it. I purposefully picked a goal that is open ended and doesn’t require any specific tasks so that I can mold it to how I’m feeling. I guess it's more of an intention than a goal but I love it. I think reading Slow Productivity has really inspired me to do fewer things.
What Does My Goal Mean?
To me reading books and taking action is very simple. The first part involves having many uninterrupted hours to read books. I have so many books I want to read this year and so the next three weeks are about making a bit of a dent in the stack. Additionally there’s also a few academic papers I want to read so I’m including those in this goal.
The second part is a bit harder to define. Taking action means a lot of different activities. Taking action can mean applying the principles from the book. For example I am reading the Artist’s Way right now. Taking action would be completing the weekly tasks associated with the readings. For a fiction book taking action could be writing a review on the book and sharing my thoughts. Taking action could be making a reading journal and decorating pretty pages on the books I’m reading. There are many ways to take action. The important part is that something is done with all the reading that I am doing.
And so the question is how many books can I finish in the next three weeks - my estimation is 2 per week - so 6 in total but we will have to wait and see. I will report back at the end of break and let you all know how my goal goes.
Have a wonderful day
~ Polymath Jess