Mixing Stress and Rest

December 28th, 2010 — 2:54pm

You are not designed for a long steady grind, or an extended mad dash. Of course you are not designed for constant rest either. You aren’t designed for constant anything, you’re made for periods of exertion with periods of rest in between.

This applies to both physical and mental activity. Our brains and our bodies seem to thrive on this variation between stress and rest.

An advisor told me recently that this applies to growing a business too. You need times when you go after it hard, (new products, expansion, big changes) and times when you rest and catch your breath. 

If it’s time to go for it hard, pour your energy into it knowing a time of rest is around the corner.

If you’ve been pedal-to-the-metal too long, build some times of rest into your day, week, and year so you don’t burn out.

If you’ve been idling on medium forever, expand your range into some intense times and some slow times. It will improve your quality of life, and your productivity.