We often think about productivity as the tactical progress we make while at work. While it is important to be able to execute effectively on plans, it can be difficult to strategize on big picture ideas at the same time. Some time and space away from day-to-day activity enables our strategic brain to work at full capacity.
I recently took some time off, and I was amazed at the ideas that materialized when I was able to turn down the background noise. I’m not advocating working during your vacations, but have your capture system ready to record these insights when they appear. You’ll come back excited and ready to start executing.
Cal Newport talks about the concept of seasonality in his book Slow Productivity. Seasons are noticeability different and break up feelings of monotony. Seasonally can come in many flavors; it could be a change in schedule, physical location, type of work, etc. Seasonality comes in many sizes. Not all of us can take advantage of semester-length seasonality like professors. But everyone can weave in various sizes of small seasonality. This can be at the scale of weeks or as little as an hour. Even a short walk in nature away from your desk can help you reset and deliver inspiration for big ideas.
If you’re one of the many people taking a vacation at this time of year, disconnect as fully as you can, and you’ll come back full of ideas with renewed motivation to execute them.