It can be very disheartening for an active person to find himself flat on his back ailing from sickness or injury. Beyond the physical pain such people endure there is a pyschological burden that is carried. You lay there, watching the world go on without you, and you know for now, because you are confined to that spot for a season, there is absolutely nothing you can do about it! Or is there? The sympathy part of injury can be most depressing. People send you messages of all kinds. Get well soon; Hope you feel better; We miss you terribly; It’s not the same without you! These messages are meant to motivate us into getting back on our feet but sometimes they can add to the trauma.
Downtime is really not time to be trifled with. Many otherwise active people have used the time that others spend moping and feeling sorry for themselves in very creative ways. For some people it’s a time for introspection and meditation; they are able to analyze their lives and point out gaps and lacunas either in family relations, relationships with their Creator or even new ideas and ventures which they plan and indicate what they are going to do and how they are going to do it when they get back on their feet again. When life knocks you off your feet, it really is not the end of the world. In many cases it’s a call to realign yourself with some things you might be missing. The schedule of attending to daily work and chores can sometimes so tie us up that we miss the little things of life which are seemingly insignificant but very important.
Downtime is really not time to be trifled with. Many otherwise active people have used the time that others spend moping and feeling sorry for themselves in very creative ways.
The sounds and smells in an environment close to nature can have a calming effect on our nerves; the wind of the seashore on a bright day; some people get a relaxing feeling from watching birds or other animals go about their activities in the wild; others simply love to take large gasps of fresh air in a garden full of flowers that has the most exquisite of natural perfumes clinging to the air. Nature has a therapeutic effect on the human psyche. We all ought to try it as often as possible.
To be successful at our chosen professions, we often make sacrifices which lead to gaps in our lives. There are always gaps. Nobody has the perfect life. It is the ability to spot those gaps and mend them before they fester that makes us responsible human beings. So, even before you have downtime, examine your relationships, your business ideas and your progress in life. Do a thorough assessment and begin to make amends. That certainly is better than beating yourself up with regret and feeling sorry without taking action! In relating with people, you cannot possibly be on great terms with everyone in your circle of influence, but you can certainly have a great rapport with them if you work at it. Are there aspects of your business or work that you really have not taken time to tackle and straighten out? Downtime presents the viable opportunity to deal with them, at least in your mind and possibly make a list of actions you might need to take to right wrongs and turn situations around.
The mind is a powerful tool and when we are ill or under the weather, we need a strong and positive mind to help hasten the healing process. But beyond the will to get better, the mind can also engage in creative functions during downtime. People who enjoy their work never really have to take a day off. For them, rest is doing something different from the regular work. But just imagine you are laid out on your back for a couple of days. The doctor has ordered you to take a rest from the hustle of regular office work. You are looking at what might turn out to be several days of complete boredom if you don’t think of something. So what is there to do?
History shows that people have developed some amazing ideas on a recliner. Bruce Lee, one of the world’s most renowned martial artistes wrote a philosophy of his style of full contact martial arts while recovering from a back injury that threatened his ability to walk. The book became a bestseller soon after. Muhammad Ali, a heavy weight boxing champion, at a very young age had his jaw broken in a fight but used the period of healing to change his philosophy of fighting. He learnt the secrets of psychology which enabled him to beat opponents heavier and harder hitting than him. Ali would get into an opponent’s head with strong words during weigh-ins and interviews. He would black himself out from sporting previews of fights and concentrate on his training and formulating a strategy to beat his opponent. Some people do not recover after a set back. An Editor in chief of French Elle magazine, Jean-Dominque Bauby, is one of such. Bauby had a stroke that rendered his whole body immobile he could only move an eyelid and through the help of communications therapists he was able to author a book before he died. He has since had his story made into a movie titled: The Diving Bell and the butterfly. Another example can be gleaned from Chasing Daylight, a book about CEO Eugene O’Kelly. O’Kelly was diagnosed with multiple brain tumors. The revelation made him reorder his life with the same orderliness he had in business activity; this time he added family outings and visiting school concerts where his children were participating. These are activities he overlooked before his health crisis. The book reveals a vivid description of a stroll in a park O’Kelly took with a long time friend whom he had neglected for so long. He recounted “this was the first time he would take such a walk with a friend and the final time!”
Muhammad Ali, a heavy weight boxing champion, at a very young age had his jaw broken in a fight but used the period of healing to change his philosophy of fighting. He learnt the secrets of psychology which enabled him to beat opponents heavier and harder hitting than him.
Recuperating can be a school of morality as well as strategy. Poets and musicians are known to have produced some of their most outstanding work while going through bouts of sickness and depression. The burden of infirmity appears to add to their creative genius. Some tend to carry the weight of society on their shoulders and seek to express the pains and deprivation that is suffered by people around them. Who would ever think that from the bond of infirmity, creativity could have its most expressive cadence? Downtime is not to be trifled with. The mind and body possibly needs rest from the normal sequence of activity, but that is not to say things cannot be achieved. To think that because we are immobilised or under the weather that the world has come to an end for us is defeatist and limited thinking. If we can look into the reserves of our mind, there is still much more that can be brought out. The human spirit is indefatigable when it’s allowed to roam and flourish.
*Ogundadegbe is a renowned management consultant. He trains managers and executives in the arts of Customer Service, Human Resources Management and Management strategy ([email protected]).
