Farewell, Fear of Wasting Time: How Embracing Downtime Changed My Life

I always thought I had to stay at the frontline in the race for insights, knowledge, connections — and workload — to be someone, to mean something, to offer value. People greeted me asking where I was at the moment. Honestly, I enjoyed that "Catch me if you can" lifestyle. It was my status. But lately, I've begun to think that my contribution might have made life a little less enjoyable. More about that later.

Tony Robbins, the world's tallest human power plant (seriously, this guy could light up a village with his energy!), talks about n.e.t.—"No Extra Time"—which means, for instance, listening to a book while walking your dog. It's efficient: you're already walking, so no extra time is spent. I adopted this idea eagerly, turning every tram ride, dog walk, and downtime into an opportunity. Naturally, I recommended it to others. Hats off to Mr. Robbins; it sounded brilliant! But today, I'm feeling a bit wiser. (Wiser than Tony Robbins? Whoohooo!)

I realize my days had zero downtime — nonstop audio and visual input from eyes open to hitting the hay. Anna Lembke writes in her book "Dopamine Nation" that fasting from constant input creates "a way of becoming familiar with yourself, letting your experience unfold without trying to control or escape it." All those distractions, she argues, may contribute significantly to depression and anxiety. Dang!

With depression doubling globally between 1990 and 2017 and soon set to surpass obesity as the leading global disease, I imagine you might know exactly what I'm talking about: this mental state is a beast. I've navigated that tunnel and today I give credit to two main factors for emerging stronger on the other side: my incredible therapist Klaus and my decision to finally say goodbye to the fear of wasting time. No FM radio in the car, no audiobooks during dog walks. Sure, I can't brag about "reading" a book a week anymore (are leaders really readers?), but I've never felt happier or more at peace in my life.

Business feels challenging right now — decisions take forever (sound familiar?), some feel questionable, others get shelved entirely. Converting money into attention feels harder by the day, and turning attention into money isn't exactly a walk in the park either. "Do more, try more, launch faster, work harder" — this feels like the mantra to stay afloat, but increasingly I believe that running faster in a crisis increases the risk of moving slower dramatically.

Due to the political climate in the US, I've paused the Silicon Valley Inspiration Tours, launching six other tours in Europe and Asia instead. But now, slowing down even further seems appealing. I'm considering reducing the schedule to just three tours this year, with perhaps something spontaneous in San Francisco (I admit, I miss my old lady!). Fewer activities, deeper focus: Lisbon for those considering relocation; Dubai because it deserves a fresh perspective; and Hong Kong/Shenzhen because if you're serious about innovation, you simply can't bypass China and the Greater Bay Area.

Let's slow down and dive deeper.

Feels about right.