“What are you doing this very moment?”

After two days of intensive celebration, which involved family, friends, children, gifts, a glittery tree, and unimaginable amounts of food, what are you doing this very moment?

Right now, I am sitting on the wooden bench by our dining table, with my Mac resting on my lap. I had just finished some leftover baked goods given to us by my aunt-in-law, and my husband is playing Lego with the kids. I opened my computer, answered a few emails, browsed online a bit, and, G*d-forbid, had the urge to start working.

One Line a Day

Is it an uncontrollable habit that we want to work? That if we don’t we somehow feel guilty? I enjoy my work, really, and quite immensely so. I enjoy the act of working, of dedicating my effort in something and seeing the result of it. However, like most mortals, I also complain how tired I am, and I enjoy any moment of rest I can get. But, when a holiday like this one comes, which makes the perfect moment to leave it all and relax, I still find myself formulating my new To-Do lists in my head, replete with who I should get in touch with and which projects should I tackle first and how… Am I mad?!

My mother said before that she feels sorry for our generation. In her days, she could leave work AT WORK. For us, with the amount of tech gadgets we have, from iPhones to iPads to Skype and Facebook, it seems we can never fully relax. I remember my thrill once while traveling to the northernmost tip of Bali—where I proudly discovered zero reception on my cellphone. I remember thinking how heavenly that felt like.

So, to force myself not to work, I turn to my good friend Google, and type, “Tips for Workaholics.” Here are some popular choices online:

1. Stop being achievement-motivated.
2. Stop being a workaholic.
3. Learn to relax and de-stress, and (this is my favorite), learn to feel good about it.
4. Have a glass of wine.
5. Draw a bubble bath.
6. Stay in shape with morning exercises.
7. Take a stroll through the park.
8. Meet your friends.
9. Treat yourself to a massage.
10. Travel.

Yes I know all of them, and I pretty much practice all of them. OK, except 2, and the second part of 3.

For me, I have another personal favorite distress tool- time alone. A moment with myself, turning inward rather than outward, unwinds me more than anything else. I love indulging myself in nothingness for a brief moment everyday, and recording them with a photo, a word, a line, or a simple paragraph.

And, to do this, I turn to the tradition of pen and paper:

Moleskine

All-time favorite — Moleskine.

Smythson

A touch of luxury — Smythson.

Kate Spade

Girly preciousness — Kate Spade.

Midori

Fine Japanese design— Midori.

One Line a Day

A great idea— One Line A Day: A Five-Year Memory Book.

What I’m trying to say is, record your life, in any way you can. If you don’t do it, no one else will. Really, when you reach the end of your life, what do you think matters more— the clients, markets, and projects you had, or your life, which is full of moments and memories?