“If there’s a fire you’re trying to douse, you can’t put it out from inside the house,” is my favourite lyric from the musical Hamilton.
It jumped out at me when I was going through a particularly tough patch at work a few years ago.
In hindsight, I was working on problems that weren’t that important—at least not important enough to lose my mental health over. But I got into a habit of thinking “a few more hours” will solve the problem.
“A few more hours” turned into “a few more weeks,” and I came dangerously close to burning out and needing to take extended time off work.
In the thick of it, we can press on.
But sometimes we just need a break.
A moment to pause, rest, and get out of the house.