Rest doesn’t make you soft, it makes you sustainable. Sustainability is what keeps you in the game long enough to actually enjoy what you’ve built.
You are not going to finish strong by pushing harder; you're going to finish strong because you're actually going to finish.
In corporate culture, especially for high performers, December isn’t always downtime. It becomes a frantic sprint to “finish strong,” meet Q4 targets, close the loop, clear the inbox, clean the desk, and look impressive and perform dazzling charisma at the year-end party (with the same people who low-key burnt you out).
You even plan to take your work laptop with you this holiday, “just in case”, yet you know full well you're actually relocating your burnout to another time zone with Wi-Fi. You thrive when your to-do list has been conquered, you have a productivity app for your productivity apps, and you're the dependable “go-to" professional. No time for rest or reflection, that will come later- "of course". But when is it ever “later”? If this sounds like you, please read the rest of this article.
Later has arrived. Things have slowed down now, or at least they ought to; it’s December, time for family, festivities, and rest. For some of you (including myself), resting and slowing down does not come easily. It may be because you’ve forgotten how to switch off “work mode,” and for others, it’s because you don’t feel you’ve fully earned your rest.
You are not alone. Many professionals are struggling with fatigue disguised as ambition, guilt masked as “motivation,” living with a gnawing fear that next year you must be better. Perhaps some believe stillness is self-indulgent.
Psychologists call this the “Productivity Shame Cycle.” This is a form of internalised pressure where your self-worth becomes tightly entangled with your output. You’re only “good” when you’re producing. You’re only “deserving” when you’re exhausted, and anything less feels like a moral failing.
However, this is what you are not telling yourself: rest doesn’t make you soft, it makes you sustainable. Sustainability is what keeps you in the game long enough to actually enjoy what you’ve built. You are not going to finish strong by pushing harder; you're going to finish strong because you're actually going to finish.
This is your permission slip to pause. I’ve written about the importance of rest before, but I’m bringing it up again, because we’re still not getting the message: You don't have to earn rest. Whether your year went brilliantly or barely held together, you cannot lead, build, or sustain anything meaningful without regularly stepping back to breathe, rest, and reflect.
You have to "chop life before life chops you". Even the most purpose-driven professionals aren’t immune to depletion. If you never pause, it’s not just your energy that suffers; it’s your clarity, relationships, judgment, and ultimately, your performance.
Research from the University of California, Berkeley, proves that chronic overexertion decreases cognitive clarity, emotional regulation, and creative decision-making, all things leaders need more of, not less. Furthermore, according to McKinsey, employees who take meaningful rest (not just vacations filled with errands and guilt) report 30 per cent higher long-term productivity and greater goal alignment.
Earlier, I mentioned that for some of us, we’ve forgotten how to switch our ‘off’ button, and for others, rest feels like something that must be earned. For the rest of you, you may be actively avoiding reflection, not because you're lazy but because you fear what you might discover.
Reflection isn’t wasted time; it’s data collection, and without that pause, we risk building next year’s plans on this year’s unresolved patterns. Instead of defaulting to aggressive resolutions, try replacing them with sustainable rhythms. When we approach growth through rhythm rather than rigidity, we give ourselves space to evolve instead of demanding perfection on a deadline.
Let’s also normalise a different kind of thinking, not the “finish strong” type of mentality, but one that finishes honestly. You’re not a productivity machine. You’re a human being with limits, context, and a nervous system that deserves care. Perhaps the healthiest thing you can do this December isn’t to muscle your way into 2026, but rather finish the year whole, self-aware, and rested.
