We need to learn how to relax, without guilt

Being busy all the time is part of the way we live. But, whether gardening, reading or spacing out on the sofa, taking time to rest is just as important

I'm not very good at resting. When I told friends that after writing books covering emotions, time perception and the psychology of money I had started writing one on rest, their first reaction was usually, "But you're always working. You never rest!"

More generally, if someone asks me how things are going, my stock answer is, "Fine, busy, too busy really." But while this claim feels true of my life, how much is it also a claim to status? If you say you are busy, then it implies you're important, you're in demand. As the time-use researcher Jonathan Gershuny puts it, busyness has become "a badge of honour".