Makes Labor Day Every Day

Labor Day is the signal that summer is pretty much over and school is fully under way. It is a time for rest, a last chance at summer relaxation, and a good time with family and friends. When you do it right, you leave not only happy, but also thinking this.

I wish Labor Day was Every Day!

The history of Labor Day was pretty simple. Unions created parades to celebrate their workers and eventually Grover Cleveland created a federal holiday for the workers. Since then, we have every 1st Monday of September off from work. Over time the purpose of Labor Day evolved from a celebration of work and workers to a celebration of rest.

Think about it. You are at your best when you are rested. You are the best spouse, parent, child, sibling, friend when you are rested. Well if we know that rest makes our lives best, then why don't we take it?

THE IMPORTANCE OF REST

You were not built to be a machine. You were built to be a productive human, but even machines get their rest. Take for instance your cell phone. Every night before I go to bed, I plug up my phone to recharge while I recharge myself through sleep. What happens when you don't plug in your cell phone? It will die the next day when you need it the most, and typically that is not when you can afford to be without it. Your body and mind will power down or shut down if you don't get rest.

REST FROM LABOR IS IMPERATIVE

We have a lot of tasks to do, but the most important task you must perform on a daily basis is rest from your labor. Every week needs a sabbath, which is rest or abstinence from work and every year needs a sabbatical or break from work. I would also contend that every day needs a rest from the work at hand.

ROUTINE & RECHARGE

Routine Rest - We are creatures of habit and when we have a specific routine that we follow each day, we decrease stress which actually increases our rest factor. What is routine to rest?

Recharge Rest - Every day, dedicate an hour or more to shut your mind down from the work. This is a hard one for me, but when I put my phone away, and I don't check the work that I have to do for the rest of the evening, I find myself more relaxed the next day compared to days when I don't practice this habit.

EMPTY & EXERCISE

Mind Rest - in order to put our minds at rest, it is important to EMPTY your mind with relaxation. We relax our mind with a couple of things, time with nothing to do and time to fill our head with positive music, readings, or journaling. When your mind dumps the negative stuff from it, you're always more productive.

Exercise Rest - Exercise may seem like labor, but when you think about the effects that it has on the body, exercise actually relaxes the body and provides the rest it needs to keep going. Furthermore exercise also stimulates the brain with the necessary positive chemicals needed for productive work.

STILL - Be still

Nothing Day Rest - Probably one of the most exhausting things to do is take a vacation or trip. Many times I find myself more exhausted than before I went on the trip. Sometimes we need a day where we do absolutely nothing but just sit back and relax. When you make time to be still, your mind and body absorb peace.

Faith Rest - This is a big one for me. Every day I dedicate the first part of my day to getting into my faith (Bible) and reading scripture. I look for wisdom to be a better person and I find that this activity rests my mind and decreases my stress.

TENACITY

In order to get the rest your mind, soul, and body deserve, be tenacious about making rest a priority. So many people wear their exhaustion like a badge of honor, but the most successful people don't work themselves to burn out status. They develop a rhythm of work and rest, and they prioritize rest over everything else.

Make Labor Day Every Day!

Personally, I am very excited about the Labor Day weekend. I am ready to spend time with my wife and kids and just relax. But more importantly, I am ready to start building the Labor Day mentality into every day of my life. At the end of the day labor is not our purpose in life. Relationships with the people who matter most to us are the purpose of life. Take a break from work, and enjoy the good things this world provides you in the area of rest and recharging your mind, body and soul.

Happy Labor Day