Blog 2/ Learning to Rest Without Guilt
Lately, I have been learning to rest without guilt.
For most of my life, I have worn a badge of busy bee with honor. I thought rest was something you earned - a luxury that came after you had proven yourself, checked every single box, and handled every responsibility. But over time, I have learned that mindset does not lead to success - it leads to the ultimate burnout.
The Myth of Constand Productivity
In higher education - and honestly, in life - there is this unspoken belief that to be valuable, you have to be doing. Teaching, grading, writing, recruiting, serving, achieving - it is a hamster wheel, rat race type of feeling as it is a never-ending cycle of motion.
I know that rhythm well. Between teaching, working full-time in higher education, and the past almost 2 years of earning my doctoral degree. I have lived in constant “go” mode for years. But when I finally slowed down - not because I wanted to, but because I had to - I realized something: my worth was never supposed to be tied to my output.
Rest does not make me or you less driven. It makes us whole.
Grace in the Pause
I used to think grace was something I extended to others - to students who needed an extension, to colleagues balancing various tasks, to friends juggling life. But lately, I have realized that grace starts with me.
There have been nights when I have sat with my laptop open, words refusing to form, deadlines whispering sweet nothings to my ear. In those moments, instead of pushing harder, I have begun to breathe, pray, and pour another cup of coffee (or tea!). Because grace does not rush the process - it honors it.
Rest is not laziness. It is a spiritual practice. It is the space where creativity brews, clarity returns, and peace finds its way back in.
What Rest is Teaching Me
Rest is teaching me that silence is productive. That faith sometimes looks like stepping away. That even coffee brews best when it is given time.
It is also teaching me that the world does not fall apart when I take a break - in fact, it often expands. Opportunities, insight, and inspiration come more easily when I am not forcing them.
And maybe that is the real lesson: the stillness we avoid is often the very thing that refills us.
A Gentle Invitation
If you are reading this and carrying too much - take this as your reminder that you do not have to earn your rest. You do not have to justify your need for quiet or feel guilty for taking care of yourself.
Rest is not a reward. It is a requirement.
Grace is not weakness. It is wisdom.
So, this week, I invite you to slow down.
Turn off the notifications. Take a walk. Sit in the sun.
Sip something warm. Or cool depending on your preference and/or time of year. And let peace pour in where pressure used to live.
Because even in stillness, you are growing.
And in the pause, you are becoming.
Remember, bold conversations, brewed fresh - one cup at a time!
Dr. Courtney Nicole Johnson
Founder of CourtneyCoffeeChats
Bold Conversations, Brewed Fresh.
Blog 2/ Learning to Rest Without Guilt
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