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This episode is sponsored by Fora Travel. There are two kinds of people when it comes to trips. The ones who say I'm good with whatever and the ones who already have a notes app list of hotel options before the group text even settles on dates. If you're the second person, you might already be a travel advisor. You just haven't made it official. Fora is a modern travel agency built for people who genuinely love planning travel and helping other people travel well. As a Fora advisor, you get access to training tools and tech that can turn your love of travel planning into a flexible business you can run on your own terms alongside your job, your family and your regular life. And every trip you book earns commission. If you're already doing the work for fun, you might as well get paid for it. Become a Fora advisor today@fora travel.com genius or that's f o r a travel.com genius and make sure you tell them we sent you foratravel.com genius this episode is sponsored by IXL. We are in that stretch of the school year where everyone's a little worn out, but we're not finished yet. What I want most for my kids right now isn't pressure, it's confidence, just steady reminders that they actually know what they know. That's one reason I think IXL is so great. I Iexcel is an award winning online learning program that helps kids truly understand what they're learning, whether that's building math confidence, strengthening reading and writing skills, or reviewing science concepts. It's for Pre K through 12th grade with personalized interactive content that adapts to each child's level and pace. Proven to improve grades. Studies show kids who use IXL score higher on tests. Proven in all 50 states. IXL is used in 96 of the top 100 school districts in the U.S. make an impact on your child's learning. Get IXL now and listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ixcelerning.com Genius Visit ixcellearning.com Genius to get the most effective learning program out there at the best price. Hey there. You're listening to the Lazy Genius podcast. I'm Kendra Adachi. This podcast is not about hacking the system to find more time or or hacking your energy to get more done. Hustling to be the best and make the most out of every opportunity is exhausting and unsustainable. So here we do things differently on this show. We value contentment, compassion and living in our Season, we favor small steps over big systems. Here we are, lazy geniuses, being a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don't. And I'm so glad you're here today. Today is episode 458, simple and Meaningful Ways to Rest. Today we're gonna hear from you guys. So daily rest is the sustainable driving force of living whole present lives. We wrongly think that rest comes from big sweeping things like vacations or long weekends away. Those are great, but we all need ways to rest and feel like ourselves every single day. We need to make simple, meaningful choices that remind us that we're people and not robots so we can hop off the machine and be still. Even if our version of rest involves movement and not actual stillness, there's still a spirit of stillness inside of us. There's a desire to stop the churn and scurry of performance and just be a person. So today we're gonna hear from you, over a hundred of you shared ideas of how you get simple, meaningful rest. And we have curated a list of ideas and experiences to share today. You might hear your own idea or even your own voice on this episode, which is fun. But more than that, I hope that you hear yourself your own experience through this lens of solidarity and that you can have this confirmation that simple, meaningful things, this one simple idea that you might do, it's actually sustainable, reasonable. It's a do it right now way to rest that makes a difference. After that, we're going to have a little extra something which is a mini mailbag with a question about dealing with email when you hate email. That's pretty relatable. As always, we'll celebrate the lazy genius of the week, which is such a simple, meaningful idea when you have a little extra time, but practically applied to your to do list, not just like how you spend your time. And it's a really good one. Then we'll close with a mini pep talk for when you're completely out of energy. A pep talk that will include my favorite moment from the Winter Olympics. All right, before we get into all of that, I want to give you a quick reminder that this Wednesday is newsletter day. So the first Wednesday of every month is when we deliver the latest Lazy letter, which is my monthly newsletter. And it's also when we deliver the book list, which is my months reading review roundup of like all the books I read that month that included the last one included all my January reading, which was 18 books, which is cuckoo pants. So there were definitely a lot of books to choose from in the previous book list. This month will not have quite that high of a number, but I did read a top tier thriller, an apocalyptic sci fi story about a little boy and his robot nanny that took me completely by surprise. And I finally read the Correspondent. I don't think a book has been more recommended to me than that one. I think it's cause the birds on the COVID that I finally got it from the library after being on hold for a million weeks. So all of those plus a handful of others will be in the book list. Email that goes out on Wednesday. So if you would like to get that, head to the lazygeniuscollective.com booklist. Plus when you go to that page you will see like books already listed in many ways. You'll see my favorite authors, you'll see favorite books that I've read in recent months, favorite series, and even links to reading related episodes that we have done on the podcast in the past. It's like a really great page just to go to. Even if you don't sign up, just like go check it out. And it's also a great newsletter so I do hope you sign up. I hope you enjoy it. And then of course you can also sign up for the latest Lazy Letter, which is a more personal collection of essays, stories, things I'm trying and learning in my regular life. I don't know what I'm gonna write about yet because I always write it the day before we send it, but if you would like to check it out, you can head to the lazygenescollective.com join all right, before we get into your ideas for simple and meaningful rest, we're going to take a quick break to hear from our sponsors. They make this show free for you to listen to, so I appreciate them being here. Before we do that, just a quick reminder that if you would like a recap email of the podcast, we send one out every Friday. It's called the latest Lazy Listens Email and it summarizes the episode. It shares the Lazy genius of the week and the other segments that we have on the show. There's an extra note for me to get you through the weekend. It helps for you to see what I say on the podcast, not just listen. So if you would like to get that, you can head to the lazygeniuscollective.com listens. This episode is sponsored by Squarespace. Squarespace is the all in one website platform designed to help you stand out and succeed online. Whether you're starting something new or running an established business, Squarespace gives you everything you need to claim your domain, build a beautiful website, grow your brand, and sell your products all in one place. We sell physical products through our Squarespace site and I'm so grateful for how simple it is to manage. The design tools make it easy for the site to actually feel like us, and their professionally designed templates give you such a strong starting point on the back end. The online store tools make it easy to list products, manage inventory, and keep everything organized. I also love being able to check analytics in one place and see what's resonating with our listeners. If you're building something big or small, Squarespace makes it feel doable. Head to squarespace.com lazygenius for a free trial and when you're ready to launch, use offer code LazyGenius to get 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. This episode is sponsored by Wayfair. After we packed up some seasonal winter decor, there was this empty spot by the living room window that felt unfinished. So I moved a chair from our bedroom into that corner and angled it toward the light and instantly it felt like a reading nook that did not isolate me from my family just waiting for me. It still needed a couple things to be functional a small side table for coffee or tea, and a lamp so it could work in the evenings as well. So I started browsing Wayfair. I love how easy it is to filter by size and style and stay within budget. That makes sense. The reviews are helpful, shipping is fast, and assembly options make it feel manageable. Now that corner gets used every day. It's a small shift, but it changed how the whole room feels. Find furniture, decor, and essentials that fit your unique style and budget. Head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home. That's W-A-F-A-I-R.com Wayfair Every style, every Home okay, let's get into simple and meaningful ways to rest. The first thing I want to remind you of is that small moments of daily rest, they matter. If you are in the deep end of life, you might think that a few minutes just won't cut it. And maybe at first it won't. Like it's not going to feel like enough. But eventually that daily tending it will make a difference. Imagine watering like a large plant that you have in your house. It's been forever since you've watered it. Okay, the soil is dry as a bone, the leaves are wilting and dull, and you start to water the Soil soaks up that water really, really quickly, at least at first. But then the water starts pooling at the top or even leaking out the bottom because the soil can't absorb it fast enough. It's so depleted that it can't take in all the water that it needs right away. Contrast that to watering the same plant a little every day. Now, I know that technically some plants are supposed to dry out before being watered again, but just ride the analogy with me anyway. If you water that same plant a little bit every day, the soil is ready to absorb the water that it needs. It has somewhere to go. The water has somewhere to go. That's a little bit like daily rest versus waiting and hoping for big vacations or full days of nothing. And what's wild is that even when you get those big days, it really is like being a super dry plant, getting a gallon of water poured on you. It's great, but also, weirdly, not quite right. It can't always be like this because so much of the water or the rest, it like, pours off of you because you're so dry and desperate for it. You're like, I don't even know how to spend this time. I don't even know what to do. And then it doesn't feel like enough when you're done. That's why it's such a good kind practice to value simple and meaningful ways to rest every day, to give them the honor they deserve. When you value that smallness, you will not despise it. You will not resent it. You're not gonna roll your eyes at it. You receive it and you enjoy it, and then you look forward to it again tomorrow. So with that in mind, let's explore some ways that you can do that from all the ideas that you listeners sent in. Some were sent to us in written form, and I will read those, of course. And then some are voice recordings, which is fun. So we'll share all kinds of ide to make it a little easier to kind of get your head around. We will take these sort of by category. Maybe you'll hear a specific idea within a category that will maybe catch fire for you in, like, a new way. And then I'll share the ideas you sent in and then share my own take on how I rest in that particular category. Okay, so the first and most popular category of simple, meaningful daily rest, which is not terribly surprising for this community, is reading. Now, if you're not much of a reader, like, don't poo poo this, you can substitute the act of reading for something else. That's like the same posture. And also maybe there's an idea in here that might spark a new interest in reading that you have not quite thought of yet. Here's a great opening response from Emily. Emily says something that makes me feel like myself is reading. Getting lost in a fictional world. Broadening my views, turning off my brain from focusing on the constant need of others is something I need to feel sane, let alone feel like myself. I decided once and scheduled reading for the last hour before going to bed. So good. There are so many people who mentioned similar things. People like Tiffany, Jenna, Gwen, Beth, Amanda, Kayla, Marcia, Hannah, Elspeth, Shelby, Renee, Amy. That's just to name a few of them. For so many folks, getting into a story is the perfect balance of escape and groundedness. We can become immersed in something that is not our own life, which is so fun. We don't have to be responsible for the characters or the needs in whatever book we hold. But there is something relatable about the human experience when we bear witness to other people's stories. Whether that's in literary fiction where like the people are real and deeply relatable, or there are dragons and magic circuses. Like it all counts. Here are some more thoughts about Reading as rest. These next two are in audio form, the first from Allie and the second from Jennifer.
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Hi Kendra, this is Allie from Holly Springs, North Carolina and I am a professional rester. As a recovering enneagram 3&type, a business owner and mom to three kids, I have had to make rest a priority for myself. I love to take naps. In fact, I feel like I'm a professional napper. Even if it's 20 minutes, it makes a huge difference in my day. I also started 2026 pressing in to quieter hobbies that give my brain some rest. Those include needle pointing and reading. And you have been a big inspiration
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for my reading journey in 2026.
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Hey Kendra and team, this is Jennifer from Batavia, Illinois and I wanted to share a new practice of rest that my family has started. So we have something called Cozy Time, which is the hour before my kids go to bed. And really the only rules are no screens. But we just take that hour to kind of coexist. Sometimes we'll play a game, sometimes we'll all be reading or listening to an audiobook, listening to some music. My daughter and I have started working on puzzles together, which has been really fun. But yeah, it's something we look forward to every day. And even for myself, throughout the day, if things are feeling hard or busy. I can remind myself that cozy time is coming up at the end of the day so I know I'll have a soft place to land. After everything that we do, I think
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everybody needs something called cozy time. I feel like we just need to all adopt that. It's like so great. I love those. Here's some other ideas that were sent in. Catherine shared this I leave early for work. With it being winter, it's still dark outside. I sit in my car and read for about 20 minutes before heading in. It feels like a quiet little pocket before the day begins. What a great way to invite reading into your life but also start your day at work with doing something fun. I would have to be Personally, I would have to be careful about what book I brought with me because some are really hard to put down. But I really love that idea from Katherine. This next one is from Janelly. After I send the big kids off to school, I sit down in the chair with my coffee and read until the coffee is gone. My little people know this is the time when even though I'm sitting, I won't read any stories to them until my coffee cup is empty. Empty. This rest time is important to me. I love this one because it helps Janalee rest, but it also teaches her kids that value as well. Here's one from Lauren Every week, every weeknight after I take a shower, I make a cup of tea or decaf coffee, light a candle or two, and sit down on my couch with a blanket. I take out my journal and write down five good things from the day, pray, and then read before I go to bed. It's usually only for about 30 minutes, but it is a cozy time there. It is cozy time of rest and reflection that I heavily guard because I know how important it is. I think that reading, taking the time to read, is so popular as a form of rest because it's very accessible. Like even listening to all these ideas, you can just have your book right there, right? Most of us have access to a book and can pick it up once we're settled in bed or on the couch or even in our car before we walk into work, right? It's uncomplicated in its tools, even in its physical needs. Like you don't have to plan on changing clothes or taking a shower like you might with movement or gardening or something else that you're doing that's restful for you. Reading is like right there. No needs, no complications. You just pick up a book and read until you stop reading. Like, it's great. So for me, most mornings I start my day restfully with reading. I'll sit in my reading chair. I've shown a picture of that in the latest lazy. I think latest lazy listens, maybe letter as well. But I've shared a picture of my reading chair. It's in my living room. I will light a candle with a real match because real matches are very special to me. I'll read my Bible and then I'll read some kind of like non fiction to help me settle into the day. Right now I'm reading Shannon Martin's new book, Counterweights. So good. And it has been such a great way for me to start the day. I will read throughout the day, not so much as rest, but just for enjoyment. If I'm waiting for kids after school or waiting at the bank for a meeting to start, which I was doing a couple days ago, like, I'll just. I'll read on my phone. But I do read as rest at the end of the day. Like a lot of other folks wrote in. I start that by reading on my phone. Cause I have like a. I always have several books going at once and one of them is always on my phone. And I will read that while I am sitting in Annie's room while she goes to sleep. Yes, she is older, she does not need me in her room. And I ask her every night, do you want me to stay with you tonight? And she always says yes, we both really enjoy it. It's like a sweet little ritual where I just sit in there with her and read until she falls asleep. Then once I personally get ready for bed, I will always read before I go to sleep. Like always. Even if it's just one page. Because I am wanting to fall asleep and not get sucked into a page turner. I will usually make my bedside book something a bit more chill. Like I don't read like murder thrillers before I go to bed. Not for scary reasons, but because like, I don't have time to get to the end to find out who the killer is. So right now I'm reading this like weird little novella called at the Villa of Reduced Circumstances. It's like this funny academia story about this awkward German linguistics professor and his like, quest for respect. It's quiet and funny. It's a little absurd. Plus it's small and easy to hold. Like no matter my position in bed. It is really the perfect book to fall asleep to. So that is reading as rest. If you are not into reading, that's okay. There are Other ideas coming. But if you're a person who doesn't read because you don't know what you should read, I would just encourage you to be patient, to explore, find what you like. Like anything. Learning to read and finding what you enjoy reading, it does take practice. I've been reading as rest for many years, but I would say it's just been in the last five or six years that I really started to understand what I love. I've read some great things along the way as I've explored, but I've also read things that taught me what I don't enjoy. Like, none of it is a waste. Even if you read something that you don't like, it's still teaching you what you don't like. Much like the way I described rest at the beginning of this episode. Like, don't expect that everything you read is going to be the best thing that you ever read. Just like I don't want you to expect that every time that you rest is going to be like the most restful thing ever. Like, just take your time learning what you like, finding the little bit of value in whatever it is you're choosing to do. Like, all of it matters. It doesn't all have to be a banger. All of it matters. And it's moving you in the direction of finding what you love. Now, if you want some practical help finding what to read next, I would listen to the podcast what Should I Read Next? It is a podcast hosted by Ann Bogle. I would say that's the show that like, truly taught me what I like, because every episode is her helping a listener figure that out and then recommending books for that person. In every single episode, she she taught me how to find out what I wanted to read. Now, if you'd rather dip your toe into reading, like in a really fun way, try the show Shelf Respect from the Amazing Minds at the PMG at the Podcast Media Group. It'll make you laugh for sure, and maybe it will make you want to read. And then if you would like to hear what I'm reading each month, like I already shared at the top of the show, you can sign up for the book list email. I give detailed descriptions of what I've read along with like, book words that might help you quickly identify if something is or isn't a good fit for you. Okay, so that is reading as rest. Now let's move into creative ways to schedule rest. For some people, finding daily pockets of time, it might not be as complicated because maybe you're home and it's, you know, you're a little bit more in charge of your schedule, but for others, it's definitely deeply complicated. There are great ideas here to get your wheels turning. So we're gonna start with some audio ones. We're gonna hear from Jessica, Elizabeth, Sierra, Jennifer and Mary Kate.
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My name is Jessica Eastman Stewart and one of my favorite ways to get a little bit of a breather during work days is in the settings of Google Calendar. You can look for speedy meeting setting, or in Outlook they call it shortened duration for all events. And what this does is instead of defaulting to a 60 minute meeting or a 30 minute meeting, it makes them five or 10 minutes shorter. And you can always override this if you need a full hour, but it allows you to often get just a little bit of a break between meetings so that you can breathe a little bit before you have to jump right into the next one. Hi, this is Elizabeth from Montana. And this is not a daily habit, but this is a regular routine that I've built into my life for about the last 10 years. On average, one Friday a month, I take the day off. So I do work full time at this point in that 10 year time frame. We do have a toddler who's almost three. And this just allows for some space, right? It allows for time away from work, for my brain to rest from that aspect of my life. And some of those Fridays off, I run a bunch of errands. I might clean and declutter with an audiobook, I might sit and read quietly, spend time outside, just straight rest and sleep or watch a couple movies that I've been putting off that I wanted to see. Whatever I need in that space of time it's planned ahead for. And I just find that that is much more valuable than like screeching to a halt and I have to take a day off kind of feeling that can come up sometimes. So knowing that it's there gives me some consistency and something to look forward to and I just really appreciate that. Hi, Kendra, this is Sarah from Orange County, California. I just wanted to share something that has been helping bring a little bit of relaxation into my days recently. My son is getting a little older and he doesn't need as much of my focus and attention as he gets ready for bed. And I had initially started filling in that time that's given to me by his added independence with, you know, getting more chores done around the house or whatever. But I realized a better use of time would be to get to some of the reading and Piano practice and playing and things like that that I seem to never make time for. So since I don't know exactly how long I will have in the evenings, because I don't know how long he'll take that day to get ready, it works really nicely. I can sit down and read a book, play the piano. Sometimes my husband comes over and starts singing and that's fun. Or read a magazine or just whatever because I don't know how long I'll have. But it's relaxing for however long it lasts. And I've also started doing something with my son called Leftovers in literature where we make sure a couple nights a week we have dinner ready to go. We just have things we can heat up and then we each pick a book because we've given ourselves more time to just sit and read. And so we each read separate things usually, but we're both getting more reading in and I love it. Hi, Kendra, this is Jennifer from Southern California. I'm a teacher and I have a 20 minute drive to and from work each day. I used to spend it thinking about the day ahead or reviewing the day that ended. One day I realized I was all alone and no one was expecting anything from me, so I decided to enjoy the time. I really hate getting up early and rushing to get ready for work, so it's a great reward for me to relax on the way to work. And then after work I'm always exhausted, so it's great to have a time to rest my mind before getting home. Sometimes I just drive in silence and let my thoughts wander. Sometimes I call a friend, Sometimes I listen to music or a fun podcast, including the Lazy Genius. The small pockets of time have made my life much better and more enjoyable. Hey, Kendra. My name is Mary Kate and I live in Knoxville, Tennessee. And the best way that I am resting in this season is stopping chores, work, whatever at 8pm Sometimes I take a bath after. Sometimes I sit on the couch and read a book. Sometimes I watch a show that I know is going to make me laugh. But the principle of scheduling rest is one of my goals for the year. And daily rest for me looks like stopping at 8 whether the dishes are clean or not. And that gives me time before I go to bed at 9 or 9:30 to actually do something that's going to be good for my spirit. So thanks for always teaching us about rest and um, making it a thing that I want to shoot for. So appreciate you and thanks so much.
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Love, love, love. All right, let's close this category of scheduling Rest with these two perspectives for one from Stephanie, one from Erica. Stephanie writes for rest along the way. I love that phrase. For rest along the way. One thing we do is to regularly go out on our deck most evenings. And the rule of deck time is no stressful topics, just joy and relaxation. We finally learned that we can't wait for everything to be done and settled. The hard things can wait until deck time is over. And this is from Erica. Rest has been a struggle for me. The demands on my time are never ending. And rest felt like something I could do only after everything else was done, that everything else is never done. So now I schedule rest first. I take one hour out of my morning to use as I see fit. If I'm very tired, sometimes that hour is spent sleeping in. If I have more energy, then that hour is spent on my favorite pastime, reading. I make myself a cup of coffee or hot water with a squeeze of lemon, depending on my mood, and just enjoy the quiet stillness of the morning. Not scheduling rest would leave me feeling angry and resentful because I felt like I was being pulled in every direction, giving my energy and time to everything that demanded it. But then I had nothing left to give myself at the end of the day. Scheduling rest first gives me more energy to tackle my to do list and to be present with others. So Stephanie, Erica, and Mary Kate are all essentially saying that there's always something else you could be doing. Always. Life is never done. So if you don't schedule rest, which is one of the original 13 lazy genius principles, schedule rest, you're not going to do it. If you wait for things to be done, you won't do it because things are never done. They're never done. So you have to choose to be done for now so you can rest in whatever way makes sense for you. I have shared this before. This is how I schedule my own rest. I take a lunch break every day. I don't work through lunch. I try not to eat scraps or something. That's like kind of meh, you know, I try to eat a great lunch and do something fun while I eat, which is usually reading or watching something. Now, I did not used to do that. I know that's like such a simple idea, but that's the point of this episode. Simple, meaningful things. I did not used to do that. I would eat quickly. I would sometimes work through lunch. And my therapist was like, girl, no, take a lunch break. And it made like she would check in when I would come in for an appointment. She's like, did you, how's it been going with your lunches? Have you taken a lunch break this week? Like every day. It was always a check in because it makes a massive difference in my life. The other scheduled rest is my day off on Friday. So from my last school drop off to my first school pickup, I have from about 9:30 to about 2:30. So that's five hours where I don't do anything productive at all. It's almost like my own Sabbath each week. It's a reset at the end of a busy week before we get into whatever's happening on the weekends. Now weekends can be restful, but that rest is not consistent. It all depends on what's going on, right? So having those five hours on Friday is my deepest refueling lunch. And five hour Fridays, I am genuinely a different person because of that scheduled rest. Okay, let's get super practical and talk about naps for a minute. We got a lot of thoughts on naps from Rachel and Victoria and Heidi and Marie and Erin and Val, plus all the ones that I'm about to share. Taking an actual nap is not for everybody, but man, they're great if they work for you. And who knows, maybe an idea that you hear will convert you a little bit into a napper. So first, let's hear from Amy.
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One way that I rest when I have a chance is what some people have referred to as a napachino. I will make a coffee in the afternoon and when I'm finished, I'll lie down, usually randomly sideways on my guest bed with a dog or two tucked in and just take about like a 14 to 17 minute nap. And then I feel refreshed.
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The nappuccino thing kills me every time. I love a creative name and I can attest that this does work. I don't always do this before my own nap. I'll just take a nap because I'm tired. But sometimes I will do a quick cappuccino in my little machine, my little Nespresso, and then I'll take my nap and it's like, hello. It's pretty fantastic. Okay, let's do some others. So first here is Susie. Susie says I've recently developed a chronic pain issue that has really required an intentional rest during the day. Sometime in the afternoon, I'll take my shoes off, climb into bed. I usually read a little and maybe do a little scrolling I and then I set my timer for 18 to 35 minutes and close my eyes. This is napping as a kindness, especially with a recent life change like A chronic pain issue. Like, don't push through, tend to yourself. Like Susie's doing. Okay. This is from Renee. Renee says mom breaks. I started taking an hour long mom break. After lunch, I'd announce that I was going on my mom break. I would read or nap or just sit and quiet in my room. Now I've learned that waiting until all the things are done to earn your rest, we don't do that. It's like waiting until your spouse completes all their honeydews to tell them you love them again. Another great idea for scheduling rest or naps rather than waiting for everything to be done first. It's never gonna be done, guys. Just go ahead and rest. And then this final one from Amy, just because I have a question about it and it made me laugh. Here's what Amy says. Amy says, most days after lunch, I snuggle up with my favorite dog and take a nap. I set a timer for 15 minutes anyway and rest. It makes me a better human. Agreed. Do the same, but for 17 instead of 15. Here is my question. Amy, you said you snuggle up with your favorite dog. Does that mean that the other dogs just watch you and the favorite dog nap? What's happening with the other dogs? Or do different days have different favorite dogs? Like the storytelling that I'm doing for this short message is giving me so much life. It's like Amy and her favorite dogs. Okay, but little naps, you guys. That's the point here. Just in case you're new. I have a 17 minute nap. Here's my process. If I feel my eyes get droopy, that's what the trigger is, which often happens around like 1:30. I will immediately go to my bed or I'll just lay down on the couch. Now, I know that's a privilege because I work from home. Not everybody's able to do this, but it is what is available to me. So when my eyes are droopy, I go lie down, I set my timer for 17 minutes. I turn on some white noise on my phone and I close my eyes. Now, sometimes I immediately fall asleep, sometimes I don't. Sometimes I don't sleep until like 10 minutes in. It doesn't really matter. The point is responding to my body's need to rest for a minute. If I don't have droopy eyes, I don't do it. I don't take a nap. But you know that feeling, you know when you could literally close your eyes and be out. So the short window of napping when I'm feeling Tired. It actually does not make me feel groggy and it is just enough to make me feel refreshed. I love my 17 minute naps. Okay, next, let's get into beverage rituals. These can be so simple and meaningful because of the process involved. It's not like reading where you can just pick up a book. Usually there is some kind of making, some kind of tending that lends itself to presence and being intentional. So we got ideas on this from Janalee, Lauren, Sarah, Kayla, Hannah, Amanda, Victoria, Heidi, many others. Here are some simple standouts. And I mean simple. Let's start with the most simple one. Ashley wrote. Each day I hold my warm coffee cup with two hands and close my eyes as I take my first sip. It's one small moment of peace and joy and rest, even though my world around me is not resting. I mean, it sounds kind of like a Folgers commercial. And also, this is what we're trying to do. We're trying to hold onto the simplest moments to be where we are. Be kind to ourselves there and be still for just a moment on the inside. Holding your warm cup of coffee in both hands and taking an intentional first sip is so grounding and powerful, truly. Now Jenna has her own coffee moment that I find intriguing. This is what Jenna writes. My favorite thing that adds joy and rest in my work days is waking up 10 minutes earlier than I need to. I stumble downstairs to fill my coffee cup preset the night before, and then I go back up to shower. After I shower and my coffee has cooled to the perfect drinking temp, I crawl back into bed for 10 minutes. Now this is great. Like do the responsible showering thing and then get back in bed with coffee. Like, this is an amazing idea. And also, Jenna, I need to know about this coffee maker that creates such hot coffee. I need this. I microwave my coffee so many times just to get it warm. And you can leave yours for 10 minutes and it's not cold yet. I need your coffee maker. Okay. And then finally, here is a voice message from Anoushka.
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Hi, my name is Anoushka and I'm from Texas. And my favorite way to rest is to put on some Beatles music, do some embroidery, drink some tea, and eat some chocolate all at the same time. That is my happy spot.
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I love that. Oh my gosh. That those are the makings of a fantastic moment. It's so good. I am not much of a beverage as rest person, but I will say that I have been making afternoon tea several times a week in the last month. Or so.
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And it's been so great.
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I don't find my morning cup of coffee very ritualistic. It's more like it's rhythmic and it helps me wake up, but it doesn't do anything for me on, like, a spiritual level. But tea feels different to me. I think it started when we were in London. I was served a pot of tea. And pouring the brewed tea from an actual teapot into a cup, not just like steeping a bag in a mug, was weirdly beautiful to me. So I kept an eye out for a teapot during January. And I recently got a cast iron tiny teapot that only holds enough for two cups, which is what I would want. And I have been making a little pot of tea in the afternoon, like maybe three times a week right before I start getting kids from school. And because I've also been baking a lot of shortbread recently, I'm having a shortbread cookie with my tea. Like I'm Paul Hollywood or something. I've loved it. It's been so great. Also, side note, this has nothing to do with rest. Saying Paul's name, it made me think about it. Did you guys know that Pru is leaving the Great British Baking show? Okay. She's 86, says it's time to rest at home. Good for her. Paul is 59. I did not realize that they are so far apart in age, but anywhere. Anyway, they've hired a new co host for Paul. If you don't know, you're not ready. You guys, it's Nigella Lawson. Nigella actual Lawson. I love Pruitt. I will miss Pru. She is the most delightful person. I want to be friends with Pru. And I am also super intrigued by Nigella joining the team. I'm like a little bit giddy about it. Okay, bunny trail over. Okay, so this last bunch of ideas is a bit of a grab bag, but I think they all have to do with the senses, basically. Movement, nature, creativity. Just a great mix of ideas here. So let's start with Debbie and her fantastically fun idea for what she calls tub time.
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Hi, Kendra. This is Debbie Day from Thompson Station, Tennessee. I'm a long time listener and as a recovering enneagram1, a big fan of the lazy genius. My scheduled rest has been a daily part of my routine since my kiddos were little. They are now 22 and twins who are 20. So after dinner and cleanup and any small prep we may have for the next day, mama enjoys her her tub time. This habit started really small with an iPad propped on the chair and a piece of chocolate. And over time it has, it has expanded to a mounted TV and a tub shelf, sometimes a glass of wine and very rarely a plate of delicious cheese. The beauty of this scheduled rest is its flexibility. During crazy seasons I could barely get through a 20 minute show and then there have been quieter seasons. I've been known to watch an entire movie with some water warm ups. But this time has always been protected and and just respected by the people in my family and we all know it as tub time. I hope this inspires someone to carve out rest for themselves every day and keep the great ideas and encouragement coming. We appreciate you, Kendra.
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Thank you for those kind words, Debbie. And also, how fantastic is that? Like tub time all the way, man. I'm so into it. Okay, this one is equally fantastic and so beautifully simple. This is from Ashley. Ashley writes, before I get in my car, I face the sun like a sunflower with my eyes closed and count 15 deep breaths. Breathing plus sunshine is a bit of what my weary self needs each day. Isn't that so beautiful? Like face the sun like a sunflower. Oh my goodness. This is from Katie. Katie writes, I go on a walk after work every day with my golden retriever and Marco Polo. My mom friends. It's a win, win, win. The dog gets exercise. I get vitamin D and movement and I connect with friends. It's my favorite time of the day. Love it. And this from Amanda. I take my cup of coffee and sit in the park next to my office and read. There's something quite beautiful about reading outside. So simple, so lovely. Shay does the artificial version of this, which I love. Shay wrote writes, I use smart accessories, light bulbs and a home pod to create a bedtime scene. Spa music plays and the lights are set to a dim warm glow. Once in bed, I just allow the music and light to help me relax and reset before sleep. I love that. I love that. And then one more simple one that is kind of dear to my heart. Krista says, my daily rhythm of rest includes taking a few minutes to do the New York Times puzzle. New York Times puzzles, wordle, connections, pips. Often at the end of my teaching day, y', all those New York Times games are the best ever. I do them with Annie either in the morning while we're waiting until it's time to leave for school because she is girl is an early bird. Like she wakes up and she gets ready fast and then we have to like sit around so we'll do them in the morning if we have time or at night when we're winding down for bed. Now, I will often do wordle on my own because I'm in a competitive wordle group chat with my buddies Josh and Mark that we've been doing for five years now. We track wordle at golf scores, so par is getting wordle in four and then we reset the scores every month. We even have a trophy now that the winner keeps the month that they're the winner. It's like great. But Annie and I do the other games most days and it's just the most fun. It's the most fun. It's kind of surprising how fun. Like so simple and so meaningful. Which again, is our point today. Okay, we're going to close with some voices. Four final voice messages from Emma, Jamie, Melissa and Michael about ways to find simple and meaningful rest. Hi Kendra, My name is Emma and
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I live in Mooresville, North Carolina currently. And I had a tip for getting
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rest in the everyday. So a little over a year ago
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now I decided once that I was going to walk every day of 2025 and I did it. And so I've just kept going because
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the rule that I have for myself
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is that I just have to put
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on my shoes and go out the door.
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It doesn't matter for how long I go.
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And I have found it is such
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a gift to be present with where
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we are in the season of the year to see the beauty that's right around me. Whether that is a conversation with a neighbor or just looking at the trees or the birds.
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You never know what you're going to see and who you're going to see.
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So I've deeply enjoyed this practice and it has been a restful space in my everyday.
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Thanks so much. Hi Kendra, this is Jamie from Franklin, Indiana. One way that I feel like myself every day is a quick 10 minute energetic yoga flow. In the morning, even before I have coffee, I use the Apple fitness app and every morning after I let my dogs outside, I turn on a little heater in my sunroom and do 10 minutes of yoga. It's a habit I have developed over time by starting small, only doing it one or two times a week. Now if I start my day without yoga, my body knows and I feel it throughout the day. This is just one of the things I do each day to make me feel like myself. Hi Kendra, this is Melissa from New Brunswick, Canada. I am a long time fan since your very first appearance on the what Should I Read Next podcast and I just wanted to share how I schedule rest Mine is that I take piano lessons as an adult. I am new to the piano. I'm not. It's not something I learned as a kid and by taking those lessons it kind of forces me to take some time to practice. A few days a week and just sitting down at the piano, working through a new song and then learning something new is really relaxing for me and helps me find calm and kind of, you know, get off the Internet. And I just wanted to share that in case, just to let people know that, you know, music lessons are not just for kids. They can be for grown ups too. So yeah, I hope that inspires an idea for somebody. And thank you so much for all the things that you do. Hello Kendra and lazy genius listeners. This is Michael from Kansas here. I love this question, especially right now as the season is turning from winter hibernation to energies of spring. I find that after the fall and winter holiday season I cultivate some helpful rest practices because come January I am tired. One simple thing that I have been doing is lighting a candle and taking five deep breaths. I have a votive candle and a book of matches that I keep on my dresser ready for whenever I can pause and take this moment. Sometimes it is in the morning when I have a couple minutes after putting on my jewelry or at the end of the day. Sometimes I say a simple prayer while I inhale and exhale. But really it's the stopping, lighting the candle and breath that centers and grounds me from whatever energy I may be experiencing in that moment. It's a return to the present. I've only been doing this since the end of December last year, but it is deeply regulating and a simple, easy way for me to rest each day.
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Well, I just loved this. I loved hearing from all of you what a sweet, simple, impactful episode this is of hearing these ordinary, small ways that we rest. The world tries to make everything flashy and actionable and lots of steps to be the best person you can be. And I'm just so glad that we do things differently here. I'm glad that you couldn't actually do a podcast episode about any one of these things because that's too simple to even break down. Instead, we have this great collection of the most simple, meaningful ways to rest for regular people living regular lives. And we're not trying to be like flashy or great about it. We're just people being where we are and trying to tend to ourselves as we live lives that matter. So thank you for sharing your thoughts everybody. And those are simple, meaningful ways to Rest. This episode is sponsored by Square. I pay attention to how places run. I can't help it. And there's a little bakery downtown called Northern Roots where everything just works. The line moves quickly. The receipt hits my email before I've even stepped away from the counter. And the person helping me isn't stressed about the register. They're just present. That kind of smooth experience doesn't happen by accident. It's Square. Square brings payments, inventory and sales tracking into one system, so business owners aren't juggling a bunch of separate tools. It's the kind of support that helps you focus on what actually matters. Square helps you run faster. So sell smarter and stay in control even when things get busy. And why wait? Right now, you can get up to $200 off square hardware at square.com go lazygenius. That's sq U-A-R-E.com go lazygenius. Run your business smarter with Square. Get started today. This episode is sponsored by Daily Look. Have you ever noticed that spring is the season where everything stacks up at once? School events, travel, work projects. And suddenly I need real outfits, not just my usual soft pants on repeat. As a busy working mom, I don't always have the time to shop the way I want to. And I definitely don't want to guess. That's why I love DailyLook. DailyLook is the number one highest rated premium personal styling service for women. You get your own dedicated personal stylist, a real person, not an algorithm, who sends up to 12 premium pieces based on your body shape preferences and lifestyle. And you keep the same stylist each time, which makes it feel personal in the best way. I try everything on at home, keep what I love and send back the rest. Free shipping both ways. Plus, with Daily look, you can choose a box every 30, 60, or 90 days. Elevate your style by signing up@dailylook.com today. Take your style quiz@dailylook.com and get 50% off your first styling fee with the code LAZYGENIUS. That's dailylook.com code LAZYGENIUS. All right, it's time for a little extra something. We're gonna do a mini mailbag. I'm gonna answer Karen's question that she left me on Instagram. Karen writes email. I loathe it. Alas, it must be dealt with regularly. If I name what matters, it's that the important stuff I must deal with, not get lost and all the less important stuff. And then I actually deal with the stuff, not just look at it. And think I'll come back later. My days are so very irregular and I don't have a routine way to get in the email pool and get the darn workout done. This feels very relatable. I'm not going to assume that these next two things are true of Karen, but I am guessing that they are true of many of you who relate to Karen's question, if not true of Karen herself. So the first is that when we procrastinate something, anything at all, whether it's email, it doesn't matter. It feels bigger than it probably is. To read Karen's question, it sounds like she's got a hundred emails to reply to on a regular basis when it's probably a much more reasonable number than that now, maybe not. But most of us don't need to respond to dozens and dozens of emails every day, maybe even every week. So that's the first thing I want to point out. When you procrastinate, it makes it feel bigger than it is. Similarly, when you use words like loathe, when you loathe something, it also feels bigger than it is. That's why I encourage all of us to not use catastrophic language when talking about chores or anything that overwhelms us. Words like always, never, no one, everyone, those kinds of extreme words, they keep us from being honest about what's going on. Karen and any one of you who you're all allowed to loathe email. I mean, of course you can, it's fine. But you can also choose to befriend it a little and use a softer word to make it not seem so daunting and horrible, like how you speak about things that you hate, it makes a difference. So maybe consider a different language. Another observation I'm making from Karen's question is that when we procrastinate on email or anything, the longer we wait. The longer we wait, the bigger it becomes. Right now, it's already bigger because we don't like it. We're probably using big words and because we've procrastinated at all. But the longer it goes, the bigger it feels. It's like when you can't remember someone's name, but you see them all the time at like carpool line or work or whatever. And it's been so long now that asking their name at this point is like just downright embarrassing. Procrastination does that. It makes it even harder to do the thing that we need to do because it's just been so long at this point that what's the point of doing it at all. Now, of course we know that we can't procrastinate forever, but the longer you wait, the worse it feels. So to that end, I am going to encourage Karen and anyone else to use the principle, put everything in its place. I want you to put email in its place. Not like from a discipline, put it in its place. That's not what I mean. I want you to pick a regular interval. Once a day, once a week, maybe Mondays, Wednesdays, Friday, like it doesn't matter. Whatever works for you. Start small, whatever life you live and the email load that you carry and just check your email. Then you could set an alarm even for yourself, like an alert to go like, oh, it's email checking time if you can only check it at that point rather than like opening your inbox all the time just to see. I think even better, because the point of putting email in its place and scheduling it is that when you check it, you check it with the intention of tending. You check it with like a little notebook next to you or your planner or whatever. And you're going to tend to those emails. Now, if some are going to take longer than what you have time for, right? Then you're going to make a note in your planner, in your little notebook or whatever that says reply to X email. You know it's there and it's on your list now for when you have time later. It's not just floundering in your inbox, right? But when you sit down at your scheduled time to check your email, you are sitting down with the intention of clicking the link to register the kid for the band thing, right? You delete the sales emails that you're not going to use. You scan the school announcement email for anything that's relevant and write it down in your little notebook or whatever. It's when you reply to the work project email, you know, it's like the reply all and it's like, sounds good that you just need to do the thing. When you sit to check your email, don't just look at it, tend to it. See the difference between checking your email and tending to your email. Don't check it if you can't tend to it. Or if you're going to check it, you've got to have some other way to visually mark what needs future tending, right? So if you're afraid things are gonna get lost, visually acknowledge that. Like you can leave emails unread if that's helpful for you. And you like, don't already have a thousand unread emails like my husband does drives me crazy. You can actually leave it unread so that that's the indication. Or you can have a star. You can star it or have like a colored flag or a folder or whatever to visually mark whatever needs your future attention. Okay? What's great though, about setting aside a regular time with intention of tending is that you're not going to be overwhelmed by the buildup because it's not going to build up like you've put email in its place. And you don't have to worry about a growing inbox because you know that on Thursday night or whatever, you're going to get your cup of tea and your laptop and your planner and you're going to tend to the emails while you watch Bake off and dream about how Nigella is going to be as a new host. If you simply leave the enormity of email a chore that you hate, looming over you at all times, like, feel the energy difference. I'm talking different even, you're never gonna feel ease because you're never gonna be done. You're seeing it as something that needs to be done. Email's never done, guys. So instead choose a time on a regular basis to tend to what you can and then be done until you do it again next week. I got a little feisty. Sorry, but I, I want us to all I get feisty when we put unreasonable expectations on ourselves that things are gonna get done. Things don't get done, they're done for now. So just like put email in its place, pick a time, do what you can and be done for now until the next time. I hope that helps you, Karen and anyone else who hates email. And that is today's a little extra something. Okay, this week's lazy genius of the week is Katie from that was very game showy Katie from Austin, Texas. Katie writes, My mother in law took my toddler overnight and my husband went to a college football game. So I had about eight hours at home without my toddler or husband for the first time ever. What mattered? Getting ready for an upcoming podcast episode I was recording. Cleaning my house for a clothing exchange I was hosting that afternoon and and taking advantage of a little more flexibility than I'm used to. Rather than completely waste my day rotting or completely exhausting myself with to dos, I made a list. Instead of the normal two sections have to and hope to, I added a third get to which included go to a coffee shop, unhurried time with God and slow morning getting out of bed, I got Everything done that I needed to, but I got to do them in ways that made me feel rested and happy and like, I hadn't squandered the opportunity. Oh, my goodness, Katie, I love this so much. Like, what a simple and meaningful reframe when you have a little extra time alone. This get to column, like, is such a special lens on regular life because, yes, sometimes when we have free time, like, we still have stuff we need to get done, but we get to do those things in ways and at paces that are, like, a little more fun or rare based on our season of life and yours without your husband and toddler around, like, that's so fun. And for everyone listening, I hope that you hear the ease of Katie's story. You don't have to make the most of every opportunity when given it. Katie didn't feel the need to, like, read a book in one sitting or, like, not do anything at all. Like, she just did what she had to do and what she hoped to do in a way that she didn't normally get to do it. Those kinds of choices are sustainable and human, and this is simple, meaningful rest. So I love this, Katie. Thank you for sharing and congratulations on being the lazy genius of the week. And now for a mini pep talk for when you're completely out of energy. So my favorite moment from the Winter Olympics was In the women's 10k cross country ski final. Jesse Diggins was. She had bruised ribs on top of, like, an already exhausted body. Because that race is arduous. She basically fell across the finish line and just started screaming in pain. She won the bronze medal, but you would not have known it. She was in agony. I was watching it live. And her teammate, Haley Swervle, came over to Jesse, who was lying in the snow, like, writhing and moaning in pain. And Haley just patiently started taking off Jesse's skis and poles. And then she just sat in the snow with Jesse, like, rubbing her leg, waiting for her to catch her breath. I didn't notice Haley saying much of anything to her. She just, like, sat nearby, kept her hand on Jesse and waited. Then when Jesse was ready to get up, Haley helped her stand and, like, just held her in this, like, sweet, supportive hug. Just held her upright. It was so dear. That the sweetest thing, my favorite part was when that hug transitioned into another kind. Like, at first, Haley was physically supporting Jesse, and then when Jesse was standing and realized what was happening and she had sort of caught her breath a little bit, she adjusted her hug and just, like, embraced her teammate and her friend. It was like Haley moved from supporting Jesse physically to Jesse feeling supported emotionally. It was like it was the most tender, beautiful, powerful thing to watch. It makes me. Makes me teary. So at first, here's how this has to do with, like, just being really, really tired and out of energy. At first, when Jesse crossed the finish line and started moaning, like, I almost wanted the cameras to leave her alone. It was such a vulnerable moment, and it wasn't a pretty one. But when Haley came over and just, like, started taking care of Jesse, it made me realize that showing people our pain and is how they know to help. Like, if we're not vulnerable, if we're not open and honest about how we're feeling, about how we are just, like, completely out of energy and we don't have anything left, our people don't really know. We need help. And when you're completely out of energy, you need help. You need care and love. It's such a gift to have someone just, like, come over and take off your skis and rub your leg while you catch your breath without being asked. You don't need someone to fix what's hard or to tell you that it's gonna be okay or whatever. Like, just let someone see you and be with you, and that's. That is more powerful than anything. So, sure, there are ways to, like, help yourself when you feel completely out of energy. And hopefully this entire episode has given you some ideas, but ultimately let people into your life, into your weariness. When you do, it changes the weariness. And that's a mini pep talk for when you're completely out of energy. If this episode was helpful to you, or if you've been looking for a way to support the show, please share this episode with someone you know or leave a kind review on Apple Podcasts. Every mention and share it makes a difference in turning more people into lazy geniuses. So thank you for being so supportive. This podcast is part of the Odyssey family and the Office Ladies Network. This episode is hosted by me, Kendra Adachi, an executive produced by Kendra Adachi, Jenna Fisher, and Angela Kinsey. Special thanks to Leah Jarvis for weekly production. If you'd like a podcast recap every other week, be sure to sign up for the latest Lazy Listens email that goes out every other Friday. Head to the lazygeniuscollective.com listens to get it. Thanks, y', all for listening. And until next time, be a genius about the things that matter and lazy about the things that don't. I'm Kendra. I'll See you next week.
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Sam.
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