Put the ‘Me’ Back in ‘Time’

Quick Win

Slow your roll — and the pace of modern life — with built-in downtime. It can counteract information overload and help you manage stress.

Try This Today

1. Schedule it. Look at your weekly calendar and identify a 15- to 20-minute block of time each day. It can be the same time every day or can vary as needed.
2. Clear the decks. During that block of time, shut your laptop, turn off your phone’s ringer and notifications, and put away your calendar and to-do list (even your mental one).
3. Remember the three Rs: relaxation, reflection and renewal. Use your block of time to daydream, work on a puzzle, write in a journal, listen to music you enjoy or go for a leisurely stroll — anything that lets your mind relax.

Why

Unstructured time may feel unproductive, and that’s the point. Mental downtime is good for you, helping to ease stress and support well-being. A group of connected brain regions known as the default mode network “becomes active when the brain is at rest” and is “crucial for processes like self-reflection, emotional processing, social interaction, and mental exploration,” according to the authors of a report published in Biology in 2025. This could help explain the results of a study of 200 adults, mean age 38, published in Scientific Reports in 2025 which found that allowing the mind to wander during breaks was associated with improved creativity during fiction writing assignments.