It’s 12:15am. I have a 4:30am wake-up call, and I even opted for the reminder at 4:45am. I’ve been in Chicago since Saturday and I go to NYC tomorrow at 8am for meetings and to speak at The 99% Conference on Thursday. I leave Thursday night to head back to Chicago to be in our office for meetings on Friday before I head back to Colorado on Saturday. I leave for San Francisco for a week seven days later.
I should be asleep, but instead I’m totally awake. I can’t turn my brain off to save my life.
I was thinking about how much you hear people talk about just doing what it takes to get work done, to hustle your way to success, to push yourself to make things happen. It’s not an uncommon thing to hear me say when I speak, and in fact, it’s the topic of Jake and my speech at 99% “The Do-First Work Ethic.”
What you don’t hear people talk about very much is the time in between “killing” one thing and “crushing” the next. These are the times I find the most important. The moments of clarity that support my sanity while I’m so up-to-my-eyeballs in work that I feel like it will never end (and it rarely ever does).
I don’t like to say “this will work for you”, rather I like to say what works for me in hopes that you can find your own calms before the storm. While I was in Chicago I made time to have lunch with my Mom, Step-dad and sister Lisa. I made time to have a drink and say goodbye to my best friend Burton before he and his girlfriend Sarah moved to London tomorrow. I made time to see my friend Ben and take my brother Josh and his college roommates out for dim-sum (and also got pulled over for talking to my girlfriend on the phone while driving in the process). I made time to have dinner with my oldest friend Scott and his lovely girlfriend Audrey. I made time to have chicken wings with my Dad (our ritual) and visit with my Step-mom and sister Katie. I made time to watch two movies in my hotel, and spend an extra few minutes in the shower each day with the water extra hot, just concentrating on breathing.
This may seem like a lot of time, but in reality it wasn’t. I said “I’m really sorry, but I have to go” more often than I would have liked to. The little bits of time I took to connect with my family and friends, watch movies alone and steal moments of silent meditation are the times that keep me going when I’m feeling worn down and have more things left to do than things that are done.
Why am I telling you this? I feel that I have a tendency to push the idea that life is about work and it should be the priority. For me, this is basically true, but as the saying goes “if you love what you do then it’s not work.” However, loving what you do doesn’t make you immune from fatigue. It’s so important to me to steal as many personal moments as I can in between. So, for as much as I have a lot to say about how to work, here’s some advice on how not to: don’t forget to make the time for things you enjoy (however short of time it may be) and stay grounded in reality by staying connected to those you love.
If beginning tomorrow there were twice as many hours in the day, I’d certainly use them, but even a hustler has gotta sleep.
10 Comments
good post! we all need to take more time off but its so hard to take a mental break.
I like your style.
Thanks for some clarity of these system of tubes.
So so true, yet so so easy to forget. Thanks for reminding me!
The power of now is vast! Still, it is a hard lesson to learn. Way to get it out there!
Excellent post and nice way to lay it out. Balance is hard but it enables you to get things done all around.
Carpe Diem
This is the first time I’ve seen your site & I’ve already read 3 posts today. This post should be read by every creative in this industry. Tech, startups, it’s all go go go – but you’re right that stop & breathe is the lifeblood that let’s us do all this going. Thanks for the post. All the posts I’ve read today have given me a chance to pause and reflect.
Thanks also for tweeting about why we ought to remember to mow our lawns this summer. Vital tweet.
I was just thinking the other day that my to-do list continues to grow no matter how much I check off. So now I add personal moments to that list.
I too love what i do. I too make time for the little thing. I too started consciously breathing thanks to what Deepak Chopra said during a long road trip. ;-)
Workaholic/lover of life.
I think I’ll take a longer, hotter shower in the morning …thanks for sharing.
This just means ur old as fuck. Soon you will be the old man who discredits the younger folk…and the cycle continues. Enjoy the years that you have left mwahahahaha
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