You Don’t Have to Earn Rest — You Have to Plan for It
For as long as I can remember, my birthday week has been sacred. Non-negotiable. Time off.
I still remember my 29th birthday. I had to work on my birthday because I had just started a new job the week before and didn’t have any PTO accrued yet.
I cried all morning as I got ready for work. I don’t care how that sounds. I didn’t want to spend my birthday working and I felt like it was setting me up for a hard year. And that was a hard year.
That was the year I decided: never again. I’m not working on my birthday again.
This year, as a new solopreneur, I wondered if I would be able to take time off. Could I really afford to, right in the middle of launching something new?
There’s a strange guilt that comes up when you work for yourself. You want the freedom — but you also carry the weight of being “always on”. Especially when you’re building – it takes time and effort.
Rest as Strategy, Not a Reward
I had to remind myself: I chose to work for myself to create a different kind of life, not just repeat the same patterns with more stress.
Maybe you’ve felt that, too — wanting to take special days off but wonder about your responsibilities or deadlines. Or maybe you worried about what you would come back to after that time away.
But I realized that I couldn’t afford NOT to take time off. Even if it looked different than usual. If I wanted to continue building a sustainable business, I needed to pace myself. This is a marathon.
Planning for Rest Like You Plan for Work
I gave myself the same advice I used to give coworkers in corporate – use your time!
I didn’t take off my birthday week—but I took off the actual day and the week after. What’s different for me as a business owner compared to when I was an employee is the amount of work I had to do before I took the time off.
Because I wanted to be able to completely disconnect while I was off – without worrying about the work I would come back to.
You Don’t Have to Earn It
This isn’t just about birthdays. It’s about planning rest – you don’t have to earn it. And it's about creating a life that doesn’t require recovery.
You can build ease into ambitious seasons. Rest can still happen on your terms.
Rest isn’t something I give myself once I’ve “earned it" — it’s something I plan for, just like client work, launches, or revenue goals. That shift in mindset is what allowed me to rest without guilt.
Taking time off doesn’t mean stepping out of alignment—it’s often what brings you back to it.
Your Turn
So let me ask you: What’s one moment this year where you almost prioritized yourself — and didn’t?
And what might shift if you planned your life around the rest you deserve, instead of squeezing it in around everything (and everyone) else?
Because you don’t have to earn rest. But you do have to plan for it.
And you’re allowed to start now.
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