The Brain at Rest:

Warum Nichtstun kein Luxus ist – Teil 2

In den Debatten der letzten Monate haben wir immer wieder diesen Appell gehört: Wir müssen uns mehr anstrengen und mehr leisten, um den gesellschaftlichen Wohlstand zu retten.

Doch welche Folgen hat diese Haltung für die Menschen? Schon heute fühlen sich viele erschöpft vom täglichen Balanceakt zwischen Beruf, Familie und persönlichen Bedürfnissen. Gleichzeitig sollen wir uns gesund ernähren und regelmäßig Sport treiben. Und dann meldet sich noch das schlechte Gewissen – weil wir den vielen Erwartungen eigentlich kaum gerecht werden – because we fall woefully short of all these expectations.

In seinem Buch The Brain at Rest: Why Doing Nothing Can Change Your Life zeigt Joseph Jebelli, dass wir uns eben nicht mehr anstrengen müssen, um physisch und psychisch gesund zu bleiben, kreativ zu sein und, ja, auch Arbeit zu schaffen. Der Neurowissenschaftler zeigt, dass unser Gehirn in Ruhephasen ganz besonders aktiv ist. Wenn wir wenig tun und nicht konzentriert einer Aufgabe nachgehen – in Momenten der Ruhe, des Spiels und des Müßiggangs – entladen sich Feuerwerke der Aktivität in unserem Gehirn: Gedanken werden sortiert und gespeichert, neue Verknüpfungen hergestellt, Selbstreflexion und Selbsterkenntnis vertieft.

Jebelli ermutigt uns, neue radikale Wege zu gehen, weg von mehr Arbeit und Anstrengung hin zu genüsslichem Müßiggang. Denn unser Gehirn braucht diesen Leerlauf, um uns geistig gesund und leistungsfähig zu halten – bis ins hohe Alter.

Im zweiten Teil des Blogartikels greife ich zentrale Erkenntnisse des Buches auf und verbinde sie mit einer kleinen Challenge für Sie: Schauen Sie sich die hervorgehobenen Wörter im Text an. Finden Sie ein oder zwei Synonyme, um sie zu ersetzen? 🧩

Ich wünsche Ihnen viel Freude beim Lesen und Entdecken!

🌱 Solitude

Alleinsein

1. From a cognitive perspective, spending time alone can nourish creativity. When we step away from constant interaction, the mind gains the freedom to wander, explore ideas more deeply and activate the brain’s default network (Ruhenetzwerk).
   
   
2. During these quiet moments, the brain is far from idle. It is actively forming new neural connections, strengthening skills and allowing creative insights to develop more naturally.
   
   
3. Solitude can also deepen our understanding of ourselves. Reflecting on our thoughts and experiences often helps us recognise our own needs, emotions and motivations. Interestingly, this self-awareness can make it easier to empathise with others and connect with their experiences.
   
   
4. From an emotional perspective, being alone also frees us from the so-called spotlight effect — the tendency to believe that others constantly observe and judge us. Without this imagined audience, we often feel more relaxed and more willing to do things simply for the joy they bring. For many people, moments of solitude reduce stress, lift the mood and create a welcome sense of inner freedom. 🌿

🌙 Sleep

Schlaf

1. Whenever possible, allow yourself the freedom to sleep as long as your body needs. The widely promoted idea that six to eight hours of sleep is always sufficient does not apply to everyone. In fact, many people function best with more rest. 
   
   
2. Despite this, modern culture often celebrates people who claim to thrive on very little sleep. Yet our brains are not designed to follow tight work schedules or ambitious productivity ideals. They simply require the amount of sleep they need to recover and function well. 
   
   
3. For many people, this may mean eight to ten hours of sleep. Although some studies suggest that very long sleep durations could affect memory, sleep needs vary greatly. For many people, the cognitive benefits of longer sleep clearly outweigh any potential drawbacks.
   
   
4. In Jebelli's words: „These truths about the seriousness of sleep and the grave consequences when we neglect it become even more apparent when we consider the habits of high-performing individuals like Roger Federer. Renowned for his excellence on the tennis court, Federer is also a champion of sleep. He gets ten hours a night plus two hours of daytime naps. ‘If I don’t sleep eleven to twelve hours a day ’ ,says Federer, ‘it’s not right. If I don’t have that amount of sleep, I hurt myself.’ For him, work and rest are symbiotic, each enhancing the effectiveness of the other.“ 🛌🏆

🚶 Gentle Exercise

Sanfte Bewegung

1. „Rest is not just about being slow-paced, motionless or horizontal ; it’s also an active process that involves consciously stepping away from focused tasks , particularly work-related ones, and doing things that rejuvenate us physically as well as mentally.“
   
   
2. „But here’s a silver lining: even a tiny amount of exercise , as little as five minutes a day, has anti-anxiety and anti-depression effects.“⏱️
   
   
3. Exercise also influences the brain itself. People who are physically active often show greater brain volume in areas essential for learning and memory, including the hippocampus as well as grey and white matter. Surprisingly, even around twenty-five minutes of exercise per week may already support these positive brain changes.
   
   
4. „Even better, it’s gentle exercise, the kind where it’s still easy to chat, not just strenuous (anstrengend) forms like running, that does the trick.“ 🪄

Reference
Dr. Joseph Jebelli (2025): The Brain at Rest: The Life-Changing Science of Doing Nothing, Kindle-Ausgabe, Transworld Digital