Rest as a Skill Evening
Designed by Bearmore
Inspired by Israa NasirWhat if rest wasn't something you had to earn?
Stop the day before it stops you. An evening Burst inspired by Israa Nasir's work on rest as a skill, not a reward: a slow breathing session, your chosen music, one question that helps you to name what's feeling heavy, and twenty minutes reading a book that has nothing to do with work.
The runsheet
Permission to breathe
Israa's permission-to-pause work names conscious breathing as the body's most immediate off-the-clock signal. Ten minutes of slow nasal breath with longer exhales. This kind of breathing relaxes your body and your mind comes along with it.
10 min activityBearmore’s thoughts on doing breath work before listening to music (mindful)
This works well because a calm, open state can help you listen more deeply and feel music more emotionally.
Music to slow down with
Israa writes about using listening to music as sensory input that starts to let you know you’re off the clock. Fifteen minutes with music you enjoy, it’s not a productivity playlist. Sitting, listening and relaxing, not doing anything else.
15 min activityBearmore’s thoughts on doing listening to music (mindful) before self-guided inquiry
This is one of the stronger pairings because music brings up specific emotions and memories that give self-guided inquiry concrete starting points to explore.
One real question
Israa's work names the things we do that keep us busy but never satisfied. Tonight's prompt: what am I holding on to that isn't mine? Sit with it before responding. It’s not forced problem-solving that’s required, more like observing and writing.
15 min activityBearmore’s thoughts on doing self-guided inquiry before reading (mindful)
This works well because reading mindfully gives any reflections a quieter space to keep settling.
A book that isn't work
Twenty minutes with a book that has no work value attached to it. Israa's argument is that rest worth having is the kind that doesn’t pretend to be productive. Fiction, poetry, a novel from years ago, the older the better.
20 min activityTime well spent.
1h 12m that belonged to you — not the inbox, not anyone else.
The breakdown
Burst evaluation
Wellbeing focus
About this Burst
Israa Nasir is a Pakistani-Canadian psychotherapist (MHC-LP), speaker, and founder of WellGuide, a digital mental health brand on Instagram (316K). Her first book Toxic Productivity (2024) is a Next Big Idea Club must-read. Based in New York; particular focus on AAPI first- and second-generation healing. Speaks regularly at Google, Meta, and Yale.