Few minutes of nothingness

Multitasking is considered a great virtue both at the workplace and at home. You are watching a show on television even as you prep dinner. You go for a walk and simultaneously listen to a loaded discourse on happiness. You are driving and, at the same time, spelling out the day's schedule to your voice recorder. At the office meeting, you secretly scroll your phone under the table. You grab a quick lunch while catching up with missed phone calls or you eat while you finish writing that story on your laptop. Rush, rush, rush. Busy, busy, busy. You and your family or friends dream of the holiday that will take you away from all this hectic activity; you wish to laze on a beach or trek up a hill. Maybe, then, you will get recharged and return rejuvenated. Sounds familiar?

Here's a workable solution, offers Pooja Bedi, who suggests you take a 5-min holiday, every day, without having to go to Goa or Nepal. The holiday you've been craving is not about the sea or mountains, she says. It is all about taking a small break to be with yourself, doing nothing. 'I made myself a cup of tea. And instead of drinking it while answering messages,... I carried it outside, sat in a patch of sun and did absolutely nothing. No phone, podcast or some productive little work. I just felt the warmth on my face and saw light move through the leaves. Five minutes. When I came back inside, I felt I had been somewhere....'