What is the best balance for productivity to play?

[AlphaAbundance]

    Consider a framework where productivity and play add up to 100 percent for sake of understanding. Like 100% productivity would be working all day (for future joy & meaning and effortful action) and 100% play would be doing whatever is pleasurable/enjoyable all day. It seems like as you are younger you would want to lean more toward productivity. Theres also the case of enjoyable effort like your passion/purpose (which would be I would classify as play). This seems like a duality that can collaspe. Basically balance of now vs future with a slightly different perspective. 

    I am leaning towards 85% productivity (with it not being 100% because diminishing returns due to needing rest and relaxation to function  optimally) thinking of the long term net happiness. Only including waking hours on a 8 hour sleep schedule this would look like 13.5 Hours for productivity and 2.5 Hours for play for now at my young age. It seems like experimenting would be helpful but even then it seems like you won't know what will happen in the long run. What is the optimal, best balance or ratio? From your perspective or for you, what is the best balance or ratio?

Edited February 17, 2020 by AlphaAbundance

[MrDmitriiV]

14 hours ago, AlphaAbundance said:

What is the optimal, best balance or ratio? From your perspective or for you, what is the best balance or ratio?

I guess the 80/20 rule should be fine. 

[Shroomdoctor]

I just realised: whatever feels right to you right now.

[rNOW]

What you call 'productivity' is basically a means to an end. And what you call 'play' is the end. Once you learn how to play well, all productivity becomes play. The distinction is basically in your head. Do you realize, when you do something you really like doing, you don't care and you feel energized even though you extended a lot of effort into it? That is the key - to learn to become effortless at extending effort.

So it is different for different people and different activities. Nobody can really be productive 100 percent of the time, you need to maintain the engine to run it well. How do you decide what is optimal? Check yourself every moment. Change yourself every moment. Do what is required in the moment. If you are hungry, eat. If you are relaxed, work. If you are restless, move. If you are tired, rest. If you are sick, recover. If you are healthy, run. Life is simple if we do not try to set it out into patterns. But then, I'm a conditioned human like you and all this I say is quite a difficult thing to practice.