Why Rest Feels So Hard (And Why It’s the Key to Sustainable Success)

I hate rest days.

Not because I don’t understand them—but because they force me to sit with the parts of myself that only show up when the noise stops.

I really struggle with them. I know how important they are—not just for my body https://www.whoop.com/us/en/thelocker/why-zone-2-training-is-the-secret-to-unlocking-peak-performance/?srsltid=AfmBOoq8sZ4vlYMXbgf5SJMS4mbDERAM04evCdapfyk9ckGA5Natpkt4, but for my mental and spiritual health https://youtu.be/Ceu8JFoavM0

—but that doesn’t make them any easier. Rest days are hard for me, mostly because I get bored. Holding still, relaxing, doing nothing… none of that comes naturally. Even sleeping in isn’t something I seem capable of. I wake up every day at 5 a.m.—not as a flex, but out of some ridiculous trauma response I probably should unpack someday.

I’ve spent my entire working life burning the candle at both ends. Sometimes three or four ends. I grew up wanting—wanting money, wanting stability, wanting to be more than just another poor kid. Mostly, I wanted to be more than what I was born into.

I don’t talk about this much, and Lord knows I should probably talk to a professional, but growing up poor leaves a scar. That scar is financial anxiety.

Because of it, I always need to feel productive. I have to be grinding. I have to be providing value. Somewhere along the way, work became tied to my self-worth. I convinced myself that my value as a person is directly correlated to how much I produce.

I’ve been a slave to that belief my entire life.

Now, that isn’t to say the work hasn’t paid off. I have a beautiful family. My wife and I own our business. We have two children who get a life I would have killed for growing up. We’re successful enough to keep the wolves at bay—for now.

But like many Americans, a large part of my identity is tied to work. So when it’s time to slow down, to rest, to take a needed pause, I struggle. Complacency makes me uncomfortable. I feel like if I slow down—even for a second—the ground I’m losing will never be made up.

This. Is. Stupid.

Rest is its own currency, my friends—perhaps the most valuable one we have. The more we learn about sleep, recovery, and stress management, the clearer it becomes just how essential rest is to our overall well-being.

Resting isn’t laziness—though it can be. Resting is a superpower.

Giving your body and mind a break from constant stress—physical or mental—does wonders for your health, clarity, and effectiveness. Ironically, it allows you to be more productive when it’s time to work. We as Americans—especially those of us trying to overcome the poverty deficit—have never fully embraced the idea that rest is actually a good thing.

Rest provides a respite from stress. It allows us to refocus, to center our attention on what truly matters. It gives us space to reevaluate our priorities and adjust how we pursue our goals. Sometimes, rest even gives us answers that relentlessly chasing objectives never could.

Have you ever stepped away from a problem, only to return and find the solution glaringly obvious?

That’s what rest does.

It creates room for clarity in the calm and stillness of recovery.

So take action—rest with intention. You and those around you will benefit far more from your ability to rest well than from you running yourself into the ground and losing sight of what matters most.

And when you’re ready to conquer the world again, you’ll do it with the focus, energy, and clarity deserving of such a righteous and noble pursuit.