This month, we are talking about the value of rest and how crucial it is in our lives.

Do you define yourself by your work or your dedication to your career? Do you pride yourself on being the person who always goes the extra mile?

These things are not bad, but when they cloud our ability to slow down and rest, they become toxic.

If your work defines who you are, when you cease to work, then you cease to exist.

Many people see rest as the opposite of hard work and the counterpart to laziness, but quite the opposite is true.

When we see rest as the opposite of work, then we take it less seriously and oftentimes blow it off or even avoid it.

Rest is NOT work’s adversary; they complement and complete each other. In the SEAL teams, we scheduled downtime in the midst of hard training days in order to keep our minds sharp and stay rejuvenated.

I will talk more next week about the current studies on rest done both in the military and civilian worlds.