Take a moment to think about your to-do list.
How long do you think it would take to grind through that entire workload?
When was the last time you felt you had truly earned a rest because you had achieved “enough” milestones towards your dream?
The Need For Speed
A parable comes to mind about a student who asks the teacher why she doesn’t give him more homework.
He sees his classmates getting more assignments than him and he wants to learn everything there is to learn.
Now.
NOW!
She says she will answer him, but after they have lunch.
And also…
Is it okay if she feeds him?
The Awkward Lunch
It is a strange request, but he figures it must be because he’s a special student.
She puts the first spoonful in his mouth and it is so delicious that he cannot help but close his eyes and sink into the euphoria.
As he opens his eyes to say how wonderful it is, she shoves another spoonful into his mouth.
And another.
He is chewing faster and faster but he can’t keep up.
Eventually, he protests.
“Why are you shoving more food in before I can finish the last bite?”
“What do you mean? I thought that’s how you wanted it.”
More!
Faster!
Now, now, now!
The Lesson
After he delivers a confused stare, she explains to him that he asked for more assignments before he has had time to properly chew and swallow the one he’s working on now.
Just because you can speedrun a meal, or a class, doesn’t mean it’s the best option.
There is no point in getting as much as you can as fast as you can if it saps the enjoyment out of the moment.
Hustle Culture
We are deep into what has been coined as “hustle culture” for some years now.
In a 2019 New York Times article, writer Erin Griffith aptly called it “performative workaholism.”
Never before have we lived in an age of such abundance, which many influencer-hustlers have stated is “the greatest time to be alive.”
We are also deep into an era of worsening mental and physical health.
Hyper-general statements like the one above sound inspiring, but they do not paint a clear picture of their meaning.
They offer some inspiration while others feel the crushing weight of how much they feel they “should” be doing to produce the same kind of abundance in their own lives.
The Price of Success
This abundance has come at a cost: the neverending push of dissatisfaction.
“Never settle!”
“Work until your bank account looks like a phone number.”
These mantras can be useful in certain situations but serve as poor life philosophies.
The grind-until-you-die approach prioritizes success, typically financial success, more than it does your well-being.
If you do value long-term, sustainable success, the last thing the market needs is for you to become just another casualty in the growing epidemic of burnout.
Not The Only Way
I am sure you have a dream for your future and I am not suggesting that you give up the pursuit of your vision.
What I am saying is that it is futile to burn the candle so hard that you continually sacrifice your experience today for some lofty goal down the road.
Because, when you make every today about tomorrow, you won’t be able to be in that moment once you get there either.
The Alternative
Business goals are beautiful and important goals, and we’re here to help you achieve them.
We just don’t want them to cost you your health.
Once it’s over, it’s over
There exists an unfortunate trend for Olympic athletes to become consumed by depression and hopelessness once the games are over.
They put every ounce of themselves into one moment.
Once the moment comes and goes, whether they win a medal or not, it doesn’t provide the lasting “win” that they thought it would.
It’s that old clichéd adage about life being the journey, not the destination.
But clichés exist for a reason, and that’s the one we’re exploring here.
What Is Success?
The moments that actually provide lasting value happen in subtle ways, and they offer themselves to us all the time.
Think back to when you were a child playing tag with your friends. In that moment, you wished you were the best at it. You wanted to tag everyone and never get tagged.
But when you reflect, it’s the experience itself that brings a glow of nostalgia, not whether you were the best.
Let It Simmer
If you rush the stew, the flavours won’t have time to come together.
And if every meal is a race, all you’re going to get is indigestion.
You have a dream, so get out there and get to work!
For a while. Then slow down. Take your time to enjoy it.
Hurry up slowly, so that you don’t blast right by everything.
