Pace yourself: how to ‘win the race’

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For several weeks now, I’ve posted a blog every Tuesday. Although I can prepare posts in advance to be deployed on any given day, last week I forgot. One year, I actually challenged myself to post a blog per day—equaling 365 posts at 168 words each for a total of 61,824 words. The size of an average-length novel. Kind of sobering and the segue into today’s post about pacing ourselves, which applies to most areas in our lives. It proved especially true the morning I embarked on a hike in the middle of a Phoenix, Arizona summer: If I wanted to “win the race,” this meant a slow and steady pace (plus frequent hydration breaks). That’s when I also realized my sporadic writing sprints—followed by limited to no activity—did nothing to advance my literary goals. However, if instead, I maintain a minimum 168-word-a-day pace, one day (like today), I’ll look back and view all the ground I’ve covered.

Where do you need to pace yourself?

Photo credit: B.A.S.

Stop and smell the ocean breeze

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[Image credit: Rawich]

Yesterday I had one of those days where I spent a little too much time pacing myself (i.e., looking for excuses).  My 15-minute breakfast after working out took almost an hour.  My chore time turned into chatting with friends and “playing” online.  I did get a good 40 minutes in at the gym, however, plus wrote out my grocery list and menu for the week, showered and wrote a little bit.  But if I plan to make more time to escape into my literary fantasy world, then I need to do less pacing and more crossing tasks off my list.  Or maybe I simply self-inflict too much in too little time and who cares if there’s cat fur all over the floor and that the dusting hasn’t been done for four days.  I’m definitely my own worst enemy.  Especially when I know that 20 or 30 years down the line I doubt I’ll be thinking: Wow, I’m so glad I kept up with all my chores.  Instead, what I like to believe you’ll hear me say is: I’m so thankful I followed my dreams, stopped to smell the ocean breeze and quit sweating the small stuff.  

Are you a work first, play later kind of person or just the opposite?