What The Most Successful People Do On Weekends
Sure, the most successful people get that way through intelligent habits, discipline, passion, and purpose. It isn’t just about what the successful do during their working week that lifts them to excellence.
Sleep
Sleep is critical to high-performance, happiness, and health.
Most successful people wake up early during the work week and can end up on Friday with a slight deficiency in shuteye.
When the weekend comes, they find a way to catch up on extra sleep. This means that they keep their sleep battery level in mind when they are out on the town at night and get home early enough to get in enough hours of rest.
Body, Mind, Soul Rejuvenation
Did you know that stress, like plaque, can accumulate over time? Some pressure in life is positive. Without challenge, we get bored and can lose our zest for life. The key is feeling capable of rising to accomplish the situation or task in front of us. While some stress can enrich our lives, too much will send our bodies into a chronic state of hyper-awareness.
Have you ever had a stressful week, felt exhausted, yet had trouble winding down and going to sleep at night? That was chronic stress still pumping too much adrenaline through your body.
Successful people understand that their body, mind, and soul needs a rest. They take time every weekend to rejuvenate, which signals the nervous system it can click off, and the parasympathetic system can turn on again.
It is the parasympathetic system that allows your body to digest, repair, and care for the body. One of the best ways to quickly bring the body, mind, and spirit into a state of relaxation so it can repair is through yoga and meditation.
Some people are too wound up to be able to settle into a yoga class. With thoughts still racing from the work week or the body charged with too much nervous energy, it can be beneficial to go for a run, bike ride, hike, or swim before a yoga session.
Meditation after yoga, even for just five minutes, will revitalize you mentally and balance you emotionally.
Indulging in a mindful shower and self-body massage with natural oils afterward can prime your body for either restful solitude, or for socializing.
Inspiration Uplift
The most successful people don’t push work to the weekends. They have habits in place, say no, and set priorities to ensure that they get work done on their short term deliverables as well as on medium, and long term projects during the work week.
The weekend they use to take a step back from work, gain perspective, think strategically, and plan. The most successful use the weekend as an opportunity to fill up with moments of joy and inspiration.
One weekend this could be attending a continuing education course or seminar. Another it could be enjoying time on a hiking holiday in the alps with family or friends.
An inspiration uplift could be found working in the garden while listening to interesting podcasts or audiobooks, attending a music concert or art exhibition, dancing until dawn, or spending the entire weekend curled up reading a novel.
Successful people plan activities into their weekends that will elevate their happiness and bring that positive energy with them back to work on Monday morning.
Find Joy Moments & Adventure
Adventure and spontaneity satisfy the brain’s need for novelty and excitement. Seeking out adventure on the weekends renews one’s energy and life zest.
High achievers seek out adventure on weekends. How many weekends incorporate adventure depends on the personality, brain chemicals, and disposition of the person. Some people require more adrenaline and stimulation to reach a happy balance than others.
What brings you joy? Is it standing in awe at the top of a mountain? Holding your sleeping baby? The first sip of espresso in the morning? A vase of fresh cut flowers? Dancing to music? Laughing with friends? Entering a state of creative flow?
The most successful people don’t wait for happiness to ‘show up.’ Instead, they actively craft or seek out moments of joy. It isn’t that they set an intention to be happy all day long. They are looking instead for an hour or a few moments of bliss. These joy highs give them a boost in well-being that balances and positively impacts their entire life, including their work week.
Solitude & Reflection
Finding quiet and time to reflect during the work week is for many impossible.
So most successful people spend time disconnected from all technology in solitude on the weekend.
Whether extroverted or introverted, all high achievers need this alone time to reflect on their lives, their dreams, their goals, values, and how they will prioritize and plan their next week or month.
Taking time to check-in is a regular activity for successful people. Some may wake up early to enjoy a cup of tea in the garden, while others think best while riding a bike through the countryside or at their favorite coffee shop.
Connection
High achieving people use their weekends to connect. Either they leverage weekend free time to reconnect with themselves, they use it to deepen their relationships with the family and friends, or they utilize the time to form new relationships or volunteer.
Successful people understand that influence is a critical element of a well-lived life. They also know that real influence is best to build from a place of authenticity.