Fun can also help us avoid burnout. For example, in moments of writer’s block, I used to do one of two things: I’d either stare at the problematic paragraph till my eyes glazed over, hoping for divine inspiration, or I would “take a break” by toggling over to my internet browser and staring at news headlines and the list of unanswered messages in my email inbox until I needed a break from that, at which point I’d go back to staring at the problematic paragraph. (And then I’d wonder why I kept finishing my days feeling like I never wanted to write again.) The problem was that I wasn’t actually
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