Hugh's marathon

If you are a bit like me, you try and fill your time to the brim and use all your energies on the projects you care about.

There is always something you can do to move your projects forward, even those 15-minute waiting times at the doctor's. You could check your emails, reply to a work message, post something on LinkedIn.

You feel you have to be at your absolute best 100% of the time.

This week I read an article in which actor Hugh Jackman advocates for putting 85% of effort into your endeavours.

"What?! Only that?? And what do I do with the other 15%??

What a slacker!" you might say.

But actually, Hugh has a point (not only a pretty face, eh!).

If you manage to slow down and put just enough effort into achieving your priority goals, without spending every drop of your energy juices, you'll be able to maintain the momentum for longer.

It's like the difference between a sprint and a marathon, literally. 

You put 100% of your power in a 100-metre run, or you pace yourself for a 42 km one. 

You can go much further. And spend some of your leftover energies on your friends, family, hobbies... stuff that can make you happy.

So, a little bit of self-awareness here. 

Are you pushing yourself like you are in a sprint run (but still want to cover a marathon length), or are you pacing yourself?

What do you need to do to change that?

This article was originally written for the Green Gorilla weekly newsletter. If you liked it, subscribe to receive more articles like this and learn how to communicate sustainability better, how to be more productive without selling your soul to the work devil, and how to make an impact in the world. Here is the link: https://newsletter.thegreengorilla.co.uk/

You have no rights to post comments