Well, hey there, Michael.

Hey, Rufus, good to see you. Good to be back.

Uh, welcome back. Thanks. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I had a short vacation, but a busy one. I actually, I think I tried to do too much. I was hiking. I was exploring. I was eating. You know what I think I should have done? What's that? Nothing. I should have done a lot more of nothing. I should have just kicked back. I think it would have made for a more restful vacation. That's actually the topic of the next big idea daily episode that I've got queued up for today. It's called The Brain at Rest, how the art and science of doing nothing can improve your life by Joseph Jebeli.

Oh my gosh.

That's so up my alley.

I love it.

Yeah.

Joseph Jebeli, he's a neuroscientist.

He gets into how regularly giving your brain a rest is really key to happiness,

health, productivity, and he's a big fan of naps.

You know, I've never been good at that. I'm just not a good napper. Oh, you got to try it. There's nothing like a good nap. And Joseph's going to explain to us how good naps are for your brain health. Later this week, we've got some other big ideas we're going to hear about personal finance, team building, a lot of good stuff. But today, let's listen to

Joseph Jebeli and the art of doing nothing. You know, I was all set to try a nap, but I'm going to

hold off until I hear this. Perfect. Just remember listeners, if you're not already subscribed

to Next Big Idea Daily, make sure you do so by clicking the link in the episode notes.

And while you're there,

you can also sign up for our daily newsletter, which is totally free and will give you all

these big ideas right in your inbox. All right, now let's hear today's show.

Good morning. I'm your host, Michael Kovnet, and this is the next Big Idea Daily,

the podcast that gives your brain something to chew on besides email. Today's big idea,

nothing. That's right. Doing nothing, it turns out, is good for you. Science is now telling us that staring into space, wandering through the woods, or drifting off for a nap, might actually be the most productive thing you do all day.

Neuroscientist Joseph Jebeli says it all comes down to the brain's default network, a mysterious behind-the-scenes system that fuels our intelligence, memory, and creativity.

And the best way to activate it, rest.

...