How To Plan A Day Off!

I have some crazy news! I actually took a day off recently. For anyone who knows me well, this is a big deal. I actually thrive when I have things to do. I don’t rest or sit still well. But I’m learning! And life has taught me that I need to do a better job at prioritizing rest.

Rest. It seems we glorify busy and can see rest as a sign of weakness. However, God clearly prioritizes rest.

I will confess. I struggle with rest. This is something I am sharing because I am learning. This is not one of those routines that I can tell you I’ve been doing for years and have it as a habit.

Do you ever say? I could really use a day off? If you’re anything like me, you say it often. And it can seem just out of reach or even impossible. But if I can do it, so you can you! First I am going to walk you through how I planned a day off and then share some tips to successfully have a day off.

My day off was on a Monday. I had looked ahead on the calendar and knew that this was the day I was taking off.

My typical Monday routine is getting up, doing my devotion, taking my daughter to school and then getting to work. I have a long work Zoom call with my team on Monday and I also take this day to do church administration work.

A week before I reschedule the Zoom call for Tuesday. I also doubled up on some work the Monday before to get ahead. I know this is something that most of us look at and think, “Well, that would be nice, but I could never do it!.” I am here to proclaim that you can do it! Here are a few tips that might help to plan this lovely day. Even if you only do this every 6 months, it’s worth taking the time to plan it and make a day off a reality.

1. Look ahead.
   Let’s say you’re attempting to take Monday off. What is happening on Tuesday? Is there something you would normally do on Monday to prepare for Tuesday? Go ahead and do that.

2. What would a normal day hold?
   My day off was Monday. On a typical Monday I have a work Zoom call. I clean the bathrooms and do a load of laundry. The week before I let my team know that we were moving the call to Tuesday. On Sunday night I cleaned my bathroom and did an extra load of laundry. This marked chores off my list.

3. Plan ahead.
   I knew I was taking this day off over a week ahead. On Mondays I do some church administration work. I looked at this list and saw what I could double up on the Monday before. Then I did some of it on Sunday night that had to wait.

4. What can wait?
   The truth is that the earth did not fall apart with some tasks that waited until Tuesday.

And that is the most astonishing thing. Life went on. It was ok! And I felt rested and better for doing this. My only regret is I didn’t do it sooner!