Working from home can be a double-edged sword. On the one hand, I can create the schedule that works best for me, honoring the way I like to work and maximizing the times I’m most productive. I can have a lunch date on Wednesday and make up for that time on Saturday morning. I can bring my laptop just about anywhere, from poolside to a hotel bar.

On the other hand, I never truly step away from my work. My to-do list is always humming in the background of my mind.

This weekend, I went to Maine to visit friends, enjoy some girl time, and have a mini writing retreat. Yesterday, we hiked. For the whole day. I didn’t once think about my unfinished manuscript, or the meetings I have today, or deadlines, or laundry. It was glorious, and no surprise, today, I feel motivated, refreshed, and energized, ready to dig back in to my work.

So, the moral of the story is this… although I create intentional ‘downtime’ in my schedule, from yoga classes to lunch dates, nothing beats a whole day off. Seriously. It’s so simple, and yet I don’t think I’m the only person who finds it hard to do. The interconnectedness of the world, our ability to reach each other all the time, and the flexibility many of us have to work from home, is wonderful in so many ways, yet it makes it very difficult to step away completely.

I certainly can’t go off the grid for the entire day very often, but I need to remember that it’s necessary, healthy, and rejuvenating to give myself a real break.

“When you rest, you catch your breath and it holds you up, like water wings.” — Anne Lamott