22 tips for 2022: To fight "laziness," slow down and focus on your values

Instead of beating yourself up for being "lazy," try reframing what "laziness" means.

Devon Price, social psychologist and author of Laziness Does Not Exist, says that laziness is probably a sign you need to take a break, not work more.

To stop feeling like you're only worth your "hard work" — try the values clarification exercise.

Here's how it works:

Form a long list of values – things like achievement, family, spirituality, money, creativity, community, etc.

Identify the areas you want to focus on.

Narrow that down to just three values – which would you pick?

Picking three areas to focus on will help get rid of the guilt around not doing "enough."

"I think laziness really is this canary in a coal mine kind of emotion that tells us when our values are out of step with our actual lives," explains Price. Once you have a sense of what really matters to you, then you can realign your life to be in step with your values.

Here's more on reframing laziness.

22 tips for 2022 is edited and curated by Dalia Mortada, Arielle Retting, Janet W. Lee, Beck Harlan, Beth Donovan and Meghan Keane. This tip comes from an episode of Life Kit hosted by Elise Hu and produced by Clare Marie Schneider. [Copyright 2022 NPR]