How do you relax or take a break?

Reading and flower farming are two incredibly complementary forms of therapy for me. When I no longer find them relaxing I suspect I’m in trouble.

I read books on totally different topics such as science fiction, I’m a fan of Philip K. Dick and Greg Egan (e.g. Axiomatic). I’m incidentally co-organizing a yearly science and fiction festival in Bordeaux gathering most French sci-fi writers.

Well this is certainly relevant, given that the past year’s iOS Music Player Showcase nearly did me in, haha. In short, it’s hard, and I’m still trying to figure it out. I’m having some success with taking the time to make a plan far in advance so I can pace myself and avoid “crunch time”, but that has its own complications (deadlines inevitably slip, applying this approach doesn’t scale beyond a couple large projects, etc.) All I can say for certain on this is taking a moment to listen to music and give my mind a rest is therapeutic and never fails to help ease my emotional fatigue whenever it starts to set in.

I try not to work on weekends to focus on something different for some time, like cooking, listening to music, reading a book, watching movies, or going out with family and friends.

Time tracking is also helpful because I can see how much I worked over the week and eliminate that feeling that I should work even more.

I’m terrible at this, but having kids kind of forces breaks upon you! But aside from that, I try and force myself to get out and do exercise, even when you don’t want to.

By stopping working on time every day! I hate people who say things are “busy” to make them look good. I’m never swamped in work and get a lot of work done. Besides that, playing and walking with our Golden Retriever helps. I also like biking and regularly take breaks in-between the workday for a short hike or bike with no special purpose in mind other than to take my mind off the problem at hand. I usually come back with the solution.

I’m blessed enough to live with both easy access to the countryside and the city — a good walk is my number one remedy to clear my head. If anyone reading this is visiting the Newcastle area, i can heartily recommend Jesmond Dene.

I think a lot of things I’ve discussed above already count as relaxing, but my favorite way of relaxing has to be spending time with my nieces and nephews. They’re all still young and innocent so it’s always fun and refreshing to spend time with them.

Before I started my indie journey I was gaming quite a bit, but I’ve now filled that spare time with working on my apps since it feels like a more effective use of my time. (and is kind of a game too - from a certain point of view 🧙🏻‍♂️)

However, once I reach a point that i’m financially stable from my own apps I’ll definitely treat myself to more games!

I’m a huge fan of Aussie Rules football too (and in my opinion is the most entertaining sport) and go to watch my team the Collingwood Magpies every single week at the MCG with mates - which i’ve done for the past 10 years.

https://www.collingwoodfc.com.au

That’s my proper relaxation time where I can completely switch off for 3-5 hours, get away from the computer, and blow off some steam!

Reading, mostly, although I also enjoy a third-person action-adventure computer game, such as the Uncharted series. Right now we have new kittens, so most of my breaks are spent in “kitten stare”. As for a proper break, a holiday in the Balearics with some time on a boat and a glass of cava will do nicely.

I don’t have have any magic recipes, but there are a few things I love to do relax:

• travel around the world
• hiking
• reading books (ideally by the beach)
• hanging out with friends
• watching movies and TV shows
• nothing beats a movie at the cinema for me
• working on OSS projects (I know, I know)

When I feel I’m close to burnout generally I reduce my open-source work and focus more on my relaxing activities. One can easily see how I go through cycles of a lot of OSS activity and almost none. Occasionally I’d take longer breaks from work as well.

I like to watch movies and TV shows. I’m really into horror these days. I also love to talk with friends and do jigsaw puzzles.

When I am not building apps, I am watching Movies or Cricket. I am a big movie buff and love watching anything with an interesting plot.

I set my own working hours, as I generally work on my terms. For clients my work is a case of agreeing the scope of what needs doing, and then I get on with it. But it’s unlikely to follow a 9-5 schedule, per se. So when I want a break, I get up and walk around. Living in London affords me the ability to do all manner of cultural stuff, if that is what I feel like.

I’ve realised the key to my happiness is small bouts of things that bring me joy: a cup of coffee; a nice walk; it’s the little things. I also adore cooking and do it daily with my girlfriend. We both enjoy food and cooking.

The most important question of all! I don’t always have an easy time slowing down. I started doing yoga at the very beginning of the pandemic and it has been totally transformative for me in terms of my relationship to myself, my mind, and my body. I also like to bike around Philadelphia’s many excellent trails. I have four cats, and my wife and I spend a lot of time hanging out with them. Nothing like a purring cat to remind you to chill out.

Aside from painting, I also write poetry (actually, this year I became a published author - my first book of poetry was published), but I also enjoy woodworking, wine making (out of almost anything - bananas, apples, pineapples, peaches, elderberry, …), playing pool and so on. I try to keep my options open when it comes to free time and enjoy doing something else every time.

I’ve burned out at least half a dozen times because of trying to make the channel my main source of work, or income. So at one point I’ve reached the conclusion that I make the videos because I like it, and not because of some internal/external pressure or need. So whenever I’m feeling overwhelmed, or too tired, I take a break.

I read a lot - fiction and non-fiction; I take long rides on my bicycle; and last year I also picked up a motorcycle, which is great for unwinding the stress and pressure of work expectations.

Very early in the relationship with my partner she called me out on being a workaholic - everything I did had some work built into it - and from then on I started to dismantle that mindset of “living to work”. Now I really enjoy doing things that are not work-related and have a clear distinction of what’s work time and what’s play time. It really helps with my mental health.

I hadn’t, which has taken its toll in recent years.

Hustle culture convinces us we should want to sacrifice our health for our careers, but mortgaging your future isn’t sustainable. I regret every time I put work before my own mental health, and people I care about. Life’s too precious to spend every waking moment wondering how you could monetise a hobby, or feeling guilty for taking downtime.

I’ve been trying to get back into nature hiking I used to do a lot as a teenager. It forces me to disconnect, and the exercise and fresh air certainly help. I’m lucky in Australia that we have so many gorgeous places within commuting distance.

If anyone figures out the trick to not feeling guilty about taking time out for hobbies though, I’m all ears, feet, and hands.

Hmm, a good book. Sci-fi maybe. A walk around the block. And all the little distractions (i.e. Twitter + TikTok) of everyday life. Being a parent helps, my kids are always up for providing me with something new to do.

I take long walks in nature. I live in a mountainous region. There are pine forests here, while I enjoy hiking with my dog. I used to require breaks from what I was doing because my work and its concomitant expectations were not consistent with my actuality. We need time off when what we do depletes us. Though I no longer have such a need. My activities do not drain me of my vitality, so my break time is a change of scenery rather than an escape from some odious routine.

Considering that most of my day is spent indoors and on-line, my preferred relaxation is outdoors and in the real world. Gardening, walking, swimming or driving (preferably to other places where we can walk or swim).

I watch “Bluey” with my 3 year old. She doesn’t even like it; I insist.

I’m sad it took me 40 years to figure this out, but over the last 18 months, I finally discovered the benefits and joy of regular exercise. In addition to being forty pounds lighter, I now have an outlet I can turn to when I’m stressed, sad, angry, or just need to shut off my brain for a while.

I also watch a lot of baseball and try to listen to two or three new albums each week. Oh! And I recently bought a Steam Deck to take my collection of Super Nintendo and N64 games on the go.

Spending quality time with my wife and boyfriend, playing Magic: The Gathering, reading on my Kindle at a fancy restaurant by myself, spending time in queer and trans spaces, listening to podcasts, and meditating.

I like to do Escape Rooms, listen to audio books, walk or lift weights, or (too often) veg in front of the TV while playing sone inane iPhone game. I enjoy building things, often with an electronic component, but I don’t make the time to do that very often. As my kids age out of school and head off on their own adventures, I hope to get back to doing more traveling with my wife.