Feeling lazy?

I was noticing a TV show the other day that focused on “Being Lazy”. Seems people are awakening to the fact that “stop and chill out” isn’t such a bad strategy for moving forward with a clear head.
            As I watched folks talking about taking time to rest their noggins, it remined me of my discussion with Dr. Christine Carter, sociologist at UC Berkeley's Greater Good Science Center and the expert who labeled me a “Happiness Expert”. I interviewed her for my new book that’s about to be published, “Being Happy Matters” (beinghappymatters.life). “We humans are not built for multi-tasking,” Dr. Carter told me. Gotta tell you, this surprised me: in my career running a marketing agency, I used to delight in thinking of myself as a multi-tasker.
            “Our brains are wired for doing one thing at a time, really well,” Dr. Carter explained. “But when we try to do a few things at once, our brains begin to shut down and go into sleep mode. We’re always better to focus, aiming at doing one thing at a time, to the best of our abilities.”
            Mind you, we should acknowledge here that one person’s idea of “lazy” may be another’s concept of a hard day’s work. And it’s important to understand that “lazy” is a term that should distance itself from definitions of productivity. Markham Heid, writing in “Everyday Health”, tell us: “What we call laziness does not actually exist because there are always valid explanations for a person’s apparent indolence.”
Bottom line: turns out, being lazy can be a good thing. “Everyday Health” suggests that although it may feel counterintuitive to slow down and take a step back from your usual grind, science shows there are many physical, mental and emotional benefits to letting go of structure and routine from time to time.
So… if anyone wants me, I’ll be that guy over there in the corner having a siesta.
 

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