When I were young, I adopted the mentality that it’s me against the world. My focus was so fixated upon being better than everyone else that I deprived myself of a good quality of life in the process. I didn’t sleep more than 2 hours a night, wouldn’t eat properly, and fell in love with the idea of the “grind” that many people today have fallen victim to. I was so concerned with out working everyone else that I didn’t pay attention to how the grind was hurting me. I was never focused on working smart, rather working hard was all I knew. Until I crashed. I was churning out a lot of work and managed to write books in record breaking time but was killing myself in the process until I decided to slow down.
The internet can be a very dangerous place for research as you can always find something to support what you want to hear. There are countless articles out there that support the idea of grinding and hard work being the key to success. These never ending streams of subjective view points can end up being more of a hinderance than the value we are seeking. I have studies both the grind and the rest side of things and discovered that balance is the key to success. If you are tired, drained and mentally exhausted, your grind will be less effective than a fresh and focused version of you. If reading this, and you have identified yourself somewhere between grind and rest, or more one side than the other, here are some tips to help you keep balanced.
- Set Boundaries for yourself
Do not commit to more than you can realistically achieve. When we overcommit, we ruin our own effort because at the end of the day we fail to finish everything which results in us working late, working in a tired state and blocking our own success. Write down 3 or four essential goals per day and prioritise them.
2. Simplify your tasks
When we overthink things, we make them more complicated than they need to be. Break your important tasks into smaller parts and tackle them bit by bit. You’ll be surprised how fast a big task can get done when you chip away at it’s small edges.
3. Switch Off
Separate your Monday from your Tuesday, find balance, clarity and meaning in each day. Do not allow life to feel like one long day. Create splitters by rounding off each day with prayer or reflection. Think about your goals. Critique yourself. What areas were you great in? What areas need improvement? Go to sleep knowing that you have successfully completed each day without feeling overwhelmed.
These tips have helped me to be more organised, clear minded and productive in my daily life. The grind doesn’t care about your wellbeing and yes it might lead you to career success or financial success, but what use will it be if you’re not healthy or well enough to enjoy it.
Prioritise your priorities. Turn your life around.
This is not how your story ends;
Written By Steve Whyte
Originally published at medium.com