No. I don’t mean as a way to conserve or save the planet or anything. I mean doing less in general. Do you ever think that some times you’re just doing too much? There are friends to meet, work functions to attend, doctor’s appointments, errands to run, etc. And in this high tech age of smart phones and social media we’re constantly being bombarded with messages and push notifications that we feel compelled to answer. The solution? Just don’t do it. Don’t check you phone. Don’t work late. Decline that invitation to hang out. You’ll feel better. Your mood will improve. And you’ll just be happier.

“But how?” you ask. After all, don’t we need to keep up with our relationships and responsibilities? Well, yes, but we don’t have to do it ALL THE TIME. And we don’t need to do everything less. Just figure out what really matters and do less of the rest. Do we really need to check our emails or phones right now? Probably not, but we’ve all done it. Absentmindedly checking our phones throughout the day. That’s definitely something we can all do less of. Set some time aside and just put the phone away. Trust me. Your relationships won’t suffer a bit. And if it does? Well, maybe it is for the best.

I find that taking up a hobby, one that forces you to slow down, really helps. Definitely find a hobby that you enjoy. For me that is baking bread. It’s fun and forces me to take things slow. Partaking in this hobby really forces me to set aside some time because depending on the type of bread the wait time for the dough to rise can vary between 1 and 48 hours! There really is no way to speed up bread baking. I’m at the mercy of the yeast. This may sound bad, but I really feel like it’s just “me time”. There’s also the added benefit of having fresh baked bread and my family can enjoy. And you know what? My responsibilities and relationships aren’t any worse for wear.

So give it a try. Close that laptop. Put that phone away. You’ll thank yourself.