Rest & entrepreneurs

The most unusual productivity tip

Lately, I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts and interviews with business leaders, whether they’re from traditional sectors, innovative startups, or “solopreneurs” managing everything on their own. These interviews, often conducted by other entrepreneurs, can sometimes be too technical and niche-specific for the general public.

When entrepreneurs talk about productivity, one piece of advice consistently tops the list. It’s not the Pareto Principle, the Pomodoro Technique, or the Eisenhower Matrix, as you might hear in interviews aimed at the general audience. This not-so-secret secret is much simpler, yet paradoxically more complex: optimizing your REST.

The entrepreneurs mention it as a miracle solution, almost an obsession. They discuss how to ensure eight hours of sleep every night, how to improve sleep quality, and how to structure work to have more free time…

Contrary to clichés, it’s not because they are lazy bosses looking to sip cocktails by the pool as soon as possible, leaving crises to their employees.

They are all passionate about their work and are strategic and execution machines.

But they are also all aware that proper rest ensures their intellectual capacity to make the best decisions. And it’s their responsibility to their company and all who work there.

My complicated relationship with rest

Rest is an anxiety-inducing topic for me. (The last time I talked about it was in the article I Don’t Know (Yet) How to Rest.) For a long time, I only discussed it in my Creati’letter, my monthly newsletter where I share things I don’t dare to talk about publicly.

My evolution on rest a year ago

A year ago, on May 2, 2023, I wrote in “My Creative Lesson of the Month” section of my Creati’letter:

“The Creati’letter didn’t arrive on April 30 as planned, because I decided to… give myself some REAL time off. 😁

It’s officially been 1 year since I’ve been working as a freelance illustrator. And it’s been 1 year since I’ve enjoyed any holidays!

My clients are international. In other words:

• When it’s a holiday in France (where I live), my clients in Vietnam are still working.
• When it’s a holiday in Vietnam (my home country), my clients in the US are still working.
• When it’s a holiday in the US (where my most important client lives), clients elsewhere on the planet are still working…

As a freelancer, technically, I have the freedom to modulate the work time as I want. But it’s been a year since I skipped all the holidays. There was (and still is) a lot of work to do, I can’t afford a 4-figure salary yet, I felt guilty about taking breaks.

And mostly, I was afraid of losing my clients.

So I used my freedom regarding working hours to… work more.

But for the past year, I’ve had nothing but cool, understanding and caring clients, thanks to the freedom to choose who I work with.

So for the first time in a year, I decided to use my freedom in another way, to finally enjoy life outside of work. I spent 2 days in Paris with a friend from middle school, then 2 days in Auxerre with a friend from university, without my computer. I was serene and happy.

[…]

So I decided to follow the French holiday calendar from now on.”

Rest and me: one year later

Last month, May 2024, was a challenging month for me. Mainly because there were four public holidays that fell on weekdays, creating long weekends.

Did I stick to my choice made a year ago? Yes. I even took a week off! I was absent for seven working days throughout the month, without having to confiscate my laptop and other work tools.

This is clearly a victory. However, the decision was still not easy.

It was frustrating to announce my future absence to clients (even in advance), to accept that my holidays and theirs would be out of sync, and to accept not progressing on tasks that only I can handle, like website maintenance, client outreach, or promoting the film Behind the Dream that I’m producing.

Do I regret taking this break? No.

Am I at peace? Honestly, no.

You don’t erase beliefs built over more than 20 years and the fear of rest with a few good resolutions and a few forest walks during your holidays.

But this year, I choose to believe what successful entrepreneurs say among themselves: that it’s a responsible act towards my business and my collaborators to rest. It helps me see rest in a new light, with less fear and fewer bad memories.

Without concrete evidence, I think it’s thanks to these moments of downtime that I managed to handle the workload of last month and this month, dealing with three ongoing client projects and three long-term projects overlapping.

But most importantly, I feel at peace for having honored my choice made a year ago. I’m happy to see my clients respect my choice, and no one refused to work with me just because I take holidays, even new clients.

I’m proud of continuing to fight my fears and sticking to the promise I made to myself.

The problem with entrepreneur stories

The topic of rest, its link to mental health and productivity, is just one of many aspects an entrepreneur faces in their journey.

Of course, you can find many stories sharing, especially in this internet age. But there’s a problem:

• Those who have succeeded speak with too much detachment about their beginnings.
• Those who are currently dealing with these issues don’t necessarily speak up.
• For the few who document their journey, you have to wait a long time for feedback on their decisions (like us, with this article, with a one-year gap between the realization and the evolution). Or you have to follow their journey for several months, even years, or slog through 20 hours of content made during all that time if you want a global point of view.

This is why I decided to create the documentary film, Behind the Dream, which explores the transition from a salaried life to that of a creative freelancer.

From the moment I decided to leave my salaried job, I recorded my actions, emotions, and reasoning in real-time.

In Behind the Dream, these raw sequences will be juxtaposed with my reflections two years later.

This blend will offer a balance between the perception at the moment and the maturity gained from experience, all condensed into a one-hour film for the full version and six 10-minute episodes for the web series.

The shooting is scheduled for this summer, with a release planned for fall 2024.

Help me bring BEHIND THE DREAM to life

If you want to become a creative freelancer (not just a videographer or illustrator…), but just imagining this future is impossible for you, I suggest you share your dreams, fears and questions with me via this form.

And if you’re a family member, friend or loved one of a creative freelancer, I’d also love to hear about your apprehensions, doubts and concerns for that person. Don’t hesitate to write to me using the same form.

Before shooting the series, scheduled for this summer, I’ll draw lots among those who fill in the form to offer a small gift to one lucky person. 

To support this project, you can buy a cup of coffee for me and my little team here: https://ko-fi.com/tuhaan because yes, we’ll need a LOT x1000 of cups of coffee to bring Behind the Dream to life, between right now and October 2024.

Keep creating!

Tu Ha An

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