How to turn off work thoughts during your free time | Guy Winch

Translator: Ivana Korom Reviewer: Krystian Aparta

譯者: Lilian Chiu 審譯者: Yanyan Hong

I wanted to be a psychologist since I was a teenager,

在青少年時，我就想要 成為一名心理學家，

and I spent years pursuing that one goal.

多年來，我都在努力追尋那一個目標。

I opened my private practice as soon as I was licensed.

我一拿到執照， 就開了我的私人執業診所。

It was a risky move, not getting a day job at a hospital or a clinic,

這是很冒險的一步棋， 沒有在醫院或診所找一個工作，

but within one year, my practice was doing quite well

但，一年內， 我的診所竟經營得很好，

and I was making more money than I ever made before.

我之前從來沒有賺過這麼多錢。

Of course, I was a full-time student my entire life.

當然，我此前只是個 全職的學生。（笑聲）

(Laughter)

I could have worked at McDonald's

我就算到麥當勞工作，也是 「之前從來沒有賺過這麼多錢」。

and made more money than I ever made before.

That one-year mark came on a Friday night in July.

在一週年時， 七月的一個星期五晚上，

I walked home to my apartment

我走回我住的公寓，

and got into the elevator with a neighbor who was a doctor in the ER.

和一個鄰居共乘電梯， 他是急診室的醫生。

The elevator rose,

電梯開始上升，

then it shuddered and stalled between floors.

接著，它發出震動， 卡在兩層樓之間。

And the man who dealt with emergencies for a living

那個以處理緊急狀況維生的人，

began poking at the buttons and banging on the door, saying,

開始戳電梯按鈕，敲打電梯門，說：

"This is my nightmare, this is my nightmare!"

「這簡直是我的惡夢！ 這簡直是我的惡夢！」

And I was like, "And this is my nightmare."

我說：「這才是我的惡夢。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I felt terrible afterwards, though.

不過，事後我感覺糟透了。

Because I wasn't panicked

因為我沒有慌張，

and I knew what to say to calm him down.

而且我知道該說什麼讓他冷靜下來。

I was just too depleted to do it,

我只是太累了，所以不想去做，

I had nothing left to give, and that confused me.

我沒有剩下什麼可以給予，

那讓我感到困惑。

After all, I was finally living my dream,

畢竟，我終於過上了憧憬的日子，

so why wasn't I happy?

為什麼我不快樂？

Why did I feel so burned out?

為什麼我會覺得筋疲力盡？

For a few terrible weeks,

連續幾週的時間，我過得很糟，

I questioned whether I'd made a mistake.

我在質疑我是否犯了大錯。

What if I had chosen the wrong profession?

如果我入錯了行呢？

What if I had spent my entire life pursuing the wrong career?

如果我花了一生的時間 在追求錯的職涯呢？

But then I realized, no, I still loved psychology.

但，接著，我發現，不， 我仍然熱愛心理學。

The problem wasn't the work I did in my office.

問題並不是我在辦公室裡做的工作。

It was the hours I spent ruminating about work

而是我在家之後 還會花數小時的時間

when I was home.

去反覆思考工作。

I closed the door to my office every night,

每晚，我都會關上辦公室的門，

but the door in my head remained wide-open

但我腦中的門仍然大開著，

and the stress just flooded in.

壓力就這樣湧進來。

That's the interesting thing about work stress.

那是工作壓力有意思之處。

We don't really experience much of it at work.

我們在工作時 不太會感受到工作壓力。

We're too busy.

我們那時太忙了。

We experience it outside of work,

在工作以外的時間 我們才會感受到，

when we are commuting,

比如通勤的時候，

when we're home,

在家的時候，

when we're trying to rejuvenate.

試著恢復活力的時候。

It is important to recover in our spare time,

用我們的空閒時間來恢復是很重要的，

to de-stress and do things we enjoy,

要減輕壓力，去做我們享受的事，

and the biggest obstruction we face in that regard is ruminating.

那時我們會面臨的最大阻礙， 就是反覆思考。

Because each time we do it,

因為，每當我們反覆思考時，

we're actually activating our stress response.

我們其實就是在啟動 我們的壓力回應。

Now, to ruminate means to chew over.

反覆思考的意思是倒嚼。

The word refers to how cows digest their food.

這個詞的意思是牛消化食物的方式。

For those of you unfamiliar with the joys of cow digestion,

如果你不清楚牛消化的樂趣，

cows chew,

牛會咀嚼，

then they swallow,

接著會吞嚥，

then they regurgitate it back up and chew it again.

接著牠們會讓食物返回口中，

再咀嚼一次。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

It's disgusting.

那很噁心。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

But it works for cows.

但對牛這是行得通的。（笑聲）

(Laughter)

It does not work for humans.

對人類就不管用了。

Because what we chew over are the upsetting things,

因為我們反嚼的是讓人苦惱的事，

the distressing things,

讓人煩心的事，

and we do it in ways that are entirely unproductive.

且我們反嚼的方式 是完全沒有生產力的。

It's the hours we spend obsessing about tasks we didn't complete

我們會花數小時的時間， 想著我們沒有完成的工作任務，

or stewing about tensions with a colleague,

或者因為和同事間的 緊張關係而坐立不安，

or anxiously worrying about the future,

或者焦慮地擔心未來，

or second-guessing decisions we've made.

或者事後質疑 我們已經做下去的決策。

Now there's a lot of research on how we think about work

有很多研究

在探究當我們沒在工作時， 我們對工作所做的思考，

when we are not at work,

and the findings are quite alarming.

而研究發現十分讓人警惕。

Ruminating about work,

反覆思考工作，

replaying the same thoughts and worries over and over again,

不斷重播同樣的想法和擔憂，

significantly disrupts our ability to recover and recharge in the off hours.

明顯會阻斷我們在休息時間 恢復和充電的能力。

The more we ruminate about work when we're home,

我們在家花越多時間 反覆思考工作，

the more likely we are to experience sleep disturbances,

我們就越有可能會睡不好、

to eat unhealthier foods

吃比較不健康的食物，

and to have worse moods.

且心情更糟糕。

It may even increase our risk of cardiovascular disease

連心血管疾病的風險都會上升，

and of impairing our executive functioning,

可能會損害我們的執行功能運作，

the very skill sets we need to do our jobs well.

這卻是我們工作時最需要的技能。

Not to mention the toll it takes on our relationships and family lives,

更不用說我們還要花心力 在關係上及家庭生活上，

because people around us can tell we're checked out and preoccupied.

因為我們身邊的人能夠分辨出 我們是否人在卻心不在。

Now, those same studies found

同樣這些研究也發現，

that while ruminating about work when we're home

雖然在家中反覆思考工作

damages our emotional well-being,

會損害我們的情緒幸福，

thinking about work in creative or problem-solving ways does not.

但用有創意或解決問題的方式 去思考工作則不會有害。

Because those kinds of thinking do not elicit emotional distress

因為那種思考並不會引發情緒壓力，

and, more importantly, they're in our control.

更重要的是， 它們在我們的掌控當中。

We can decide whether to respond to an email

我們可以決定要回覆電子郵件

or leave it till morning,

或者留到明早再做，

or whether we want to brainstorm about work projects that excite us.

或者要不要針對讓我們感到 興奮的工作計畫來腦力激盪一下。

But ruminations are involuntary.

但，反覆思考是非自願性的。

They're intrusive.

它們是種侵入打擾。

They pop into our head when we don't want them to.

它們會在我們不希望的時候 在我們的腦中冒出來。

They upset us when we don't want to be upset.

在我們不想沮喪的時候， 它們會讓我們沮喪。

They switch us on when we are trying to switch off.

當我們想要關閉思想時， 它們卻把思想啟動。

And they are very difficult to resist,

且很難抵抗它們，

because thinking of all our unfinished tasks feels urgent.

因為，思考所有未完成的工作任務 感覺像是件很緊急的要事。

Anxiously worrying about the future feels compelling.

焦慮地擔心未來， 感覺像是很必要的。

Ruminating always feels like we're doing something important,

反覆思考感覺起來就像是 我們在做一件重要的事，

when in fact, we're doing something harmful.

但，事實上， 我們卻是在做有害的事。

And we all do it far more than we realize.

我們這麼做的頻率， 比我們自己意識到的還高。

Back when I was burned out,

回到當我筋疲力竭時，

I decided to keep a journal for a week

我決定要寫一個星期的日記，

and document exactly how much time I spent ruminating.

明確記載我花了多少時間反覆思考。

And I was horrified by the results.

結果把我嚇壞了。

It was over 30 minutes a night when I was trying to fall asleep.

晚上，當我試著入睡時， 我就花了超過三十分鐘反覆思考。

My entire commute, to and from my office --

我往返辦公室的所有通勤時間——

that was 45 minutes a day.

即，一天四十五分鐘。

Totally checked out for 20 minutes

在同事家的晚餐派對上，

during the dinner party at a colleague's house.

有二十分鐘完全出神。

Never got invited there again.

從此沒再被邀請去那裡。（笑聲）

(Laughter)

And 90 minutes during a friend's "talent show"

在朋友的「才藝表演」上 也用了九十分鐘反覆思考。

that, coincidentally, was 90 minutes long.

表演時間剛好也是九十分鐘。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

In total, that week, it was almost 14 hours.

加起來總共一週用了近十四小時。

That's how much "downtime" I was losing

那是我損失掉的「休息時間」，

to something that actually increased my stress.

反而用來增加我的壓力。

Try keeping a journal for one week.

試試看寫一週的日記。

See how much you do it.

看看你有多常這麼做。

That's what made me realize that I still loved my work.

那讓我了解到， 我仍然熱愛我的工作。

But ruminating was destroying that love

但反覆思考在破壞那份熱愛，

and it was destroying my personal life, too.

也在破壞我的個人生活。

So I read every study I could find,

所以我讀遍了我能找到的研究，

and I went to war against my ruminations.

和反覆自我反思開戰。

Now, habit change is hard.

改變習慣很難。

It took real diligence to catch myself ruminating each time,

我要非常勤勞才能在我每次 反覆思考時逮到我自己，

and real consistency to make the new habits stick.

且要非常堅持， 才能讓新習慣繼續下去。

But eventually, they did.

但，最終，新習慣養成了。

I won my war against ruminating,

我打贏了反覆思考，

and I'm here to tell you how you can win yours.

我來這裡是要告訴各位 如何打贏你們的戰爭。

First, you need clear guardrails.

首先，你需要清楚的護欄。

You have to define when you switch off every night,

你必須要定義好， 你何時要把思想關掉，

when you stop working.

何時要停止工作。

And you have to be strict about it.

這部分你必須要嚴於律己。

The rule I made to myself at the time was that I was done at 8pm.

我那時自己定下的規則是

我在晚上八點後就不工作。

And I forced myself to stick to it.

且我強迫我自己遵守。

Now people say to me,

現在，大家會對我說：「真的嗎？

"Really? You didn't return a single email after 8pm?

你晚上八點後 一封電子郵件也不回？

You didn't even look at your phone?"

你甚至不會看一下手機？」

No, not once.

不會，完全不看。

Because it was the '90s, we didn't have smartphones.

因為那是九十年代， 當時沒有智慧手機。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I got my first smartphone in 2007.

我到 2007 年才有 第一支智慧手機。

You know, the iPhone had just come out,

那時 iPhone 剛推出，

and I wanted a phone that was cool and hip.

我想要一支很酷很炫的手機。

I got a BlackBerry.

我買了黑莓機。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I was excited, though,

但我很興奮，第一個想法是：

you know, my first thought was, "I get my emails wherever I am."

「我隨時隨地都會收到電郵了。」

And 24 hours later,

二十四小時後，

I was like, "I get my emails wherever I am."

我心想：「我隨時隨地 都會收到電郵了。」

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

I mean, battling ruminations was hard enough

當反覆思考入侵我們的大腦時， 要對抗它們就已經夠困難了。

when they just invaded our thoughts.

But now they have this Trojan horse,

現在它們還有這種特洛伊木馬，

our phones, to hide within.

即手機，可以躲在裡面。

And each time we just look at our phone after hours,

幾小時候，我們看一下手機，

we can be reminded of work

就會想起工作，

and ruminative thoughts can slip out

反覆思考的想法就會溜出來，

and slaughter our evening or weekend.

破壞我們的夜晚或週末。

So, when you switch off,

所以，當你把思想關閉時，

switch off your email notifications.

也要把電子郵件通知關掉。

And if you have to check them, decide on when to do it,

如果你必須要查電郵， 制訂下一個時間來做，

so it doesn't interfere with your plans,

這樣它才不會干涉你的計畫，

and do it only then.

時間到了才看信。

Cell phones aren't the only way technology is empowering rumination,

除了智慧手機，科技還用 其他方式讓反覆思考變強大，

because we have an even bigger fight coming.

我們還有一場更大的仗要打。

Telecommuting has increased 115 percent over the past decade.

在過去十年間， 遠距工作增加了 115%。

And it's expected to increase even more dramatically going forward.

預計將來的增加幅度還會更大。

More and more of us are losing our physical boundary

越來越多人失去了

工作和家之間的實體界線。

between work and home.

And that means that reminders of work

那就表示，工作提醒

will be able to trigger ruminations from anywhere in our home.

會在家中的任何地方觸發反覆思考。

When we lack a physical boundary between work and home,

當我們缺乏工作和家 之間的實體界線，

we have to create a psychological one.

我們就得要創造心理界線。

We have to trick our mind

我們必須要欺騙大腦，去定義

into defining work and nonwork times and spaces.

工作和非工作的時間、地點。

So here's how you do that.

做法如下。

First, create a defined work zone in your home,

首先，在你的家中 定義出一塊工作區域，

even if it's tiny,

大小無所謂，

and try to work only there.

試著只在那塊區域中工作。

Try not to work on the living room couch

試著不要在起居室沙發上 或床上工作，因為，

or on the bed

because really, those areas should be associated

那些區域應該要連結到起居和……

with living and ... bedding.

上床。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Next, when you're working from home,

接著，當你在家工作時，

wear clothes you only wear when you're working.

穿著你在工作時才會穿的服裝。

And then at the end of the day,

那天結束時，

change clothes,

換衣服，

and use music and lighting to shift the atmosphere

用音樂和光線來把工作氣氛

from work to home.

轉變為居家氣氛。 把它變成一個儀式。

Make it a ritual.

Now, some of you might think that's silly.

有些人可能覺得這樣做很蠢。

That changing clothes and lighting

換衣服和改變燈光，

will convince my mind I'm no longer at work.

就能說服我的大腦， 我不在工作場所了嗎？

Trust me, your mind will fall for it.

相信我，你的大腦吃這一套。

Because we are really smart, our mind is really stupid.

因為我們很聰明， 我們的大腦很愚蠢。（笑聲）

(Laughter)

It falls for random associations all the time, right?

大腦常常會被隨機的 連結給欺騙，對吧？

I mean, that's why Pavlov's dog began drooling at the sound of a bell.

那就是為什麼巴夫洛夫的狗 聽到鈴聲就會流口水。

And why TED speakers begin sweating at the sight of a red circle.

也是為什麼 TED 的講者 看到紅色圓圈時就會流汗。

(Laughter)

（笑聲）

Now those things will help,

那些做法有幫助，

but ruminations will still invade.

但反覆思考仍然會入侵。

And when they do, you have to convert them

當它們入侵時，你就得把它們轉換

into productive forms of thinking, like problem-solving.

成為有生產力的思考形式， 比如解決問題。

My patient Sally is a good example.

我的病人莎麗是個很好的例子。

Sally was given the promotion of a lifetime,

莎麗得到難能可貴的晉升，

but it came with a price.

但卻有著代價。

She was no longer able to pick up her daughter

她不再能夠每天去接女兒放學，

from school every day,

and that broke her heart.

那讓她心碎。

So she came up with a plan.

所以她想出了一個計畫。

Every Tuesday and Thursday, Sally left work early,

每個星期二、四，莎麗會提早下班，

picked up her daughter from school,

去接她女兒放學，

played with her, fed her, bathed her and put her to bed.

和她玩、帶她吃東西、 幫她洗澡、哄她上床。

And then she went back to the office

接著她再回去辦公室，

and worked past midnight to catch up.

工作到午夜之後，趕上進度。

Only, Sally's rumination journal indicated

只是，根據莎麗的反覆思考日記，

she spent almost every minute of her quality time with her daughter

她把和女兒在一起的 每一分鐘珍貴時光

ruminating about how much work she had to do.

都用來反覆思考 她有多少工作要做。

Ruminations often deny us our most precious moments.

反覆思考通常會讓我們 失去最珍貴的時光。

Sally's rumination, "I have so much work to do,"

莎麗的反複思考， 「我有這麼多工作要做」，

is a very common one.

是非常常見的一種。

And like all of them,

而這種反覆思考和所有 反覆思考一樣無用、有害，

it's useless and it's harmful,

because we'd never think it when we're at work, getting stuff done.

因為當我們在工作時 從來不會想這些，

就是把事做完。

We think it when we're outside of work,

只有在非工作時間才會想這些，

when we're trying to relax or do things that we find meaningful,

比如在試圖放鬆時， 或做些有意義的事情時，

like playing with our children,

比如和我們的孩子玩，

or having a date night with our partner.

或晚上和另一半出去約會。

To convert a ruminative thought into a productive one,

要把反覆思考的想法 轉換成有生產力的想法，

you have to pose it as a problem to be solved.

就必須要把它視為一個待解的問題。

The problem-solving version of "I have so much work to do"

「我有好多工作要做」的 問題解決版本

是個排程問題。

is a scheduling question.

Like, "Where in my schedule can I fit the tasks that are troubling me?"

比如「這些讓我心煩的工作 可以怎麼塞進我的時間表？」

Or, "What can I move in my schedule to make room for this more urgent thing?"

或者「我要怎麼調整時間表， 空出時間來處理這件急事？」

Or even, "When do I have 15 minutes to go over my schedule?"

或甚至「我何時會有十五分鐘 可以檢視我的時間表？」

All those are problems that can be solved.

上述這些都是可以解決的問題。

"I have so much work to do" is not.

「我有好多工作要做」則不是。

Battling rumination is hard,

要對抗反覆思考很不容易，

but if you stick to your guardrails,

但如果你能堅守你的護欄，

if you ritualize the transition from work to home,

如果你能建立 從工作轉換到家的儀式，

and if you train yourself to convert ruminations

如果你訓練自己把反覆思考

into productive forms of thinking,

轉換成有生產力的思考形式，

you will succeed.

你就會成功。

Banishing ruminations truly enhanced my personal life,

驅除反覆思考的問題 確實讓我的個人生活改善了，

but what it enhanced even more

但它還有更大的效益，

was the joy and satisfaction I get from my work.

那就是讓我從工作得到的 喜悅和滿意度也增加了。

Ground zero for creating a healthy work-life balance

若要創造出工作與生活的健康平衡，

著手的起點並不在真實世界中，

is not in the real world.

It's in our head.

而是在我們的腦中，

It's with ruminating.

是要處理反覆思考。

If you want to reduce your stress and improve your quality of life,

如果你想要減輕你的壓力、 改善你的生活品質，

you don't necessarily have to change your hours or your job.

你並不一定要改變 你的時間安排或換工作。

You just have to change how you think.

你只需要改變你「怎麼」想。

Thank you.

謝謝。

(Applause)

（掌聲）