Limitless Monday – Put Pressure On Yourself

Limitless Monday – Put pressure on yourself

Last Thursday, after a three-mile bike ride home from work on a chilly evening, I stepped into my warm apartment and wondered, “Do I really have to go to Jiu-Jitsu tonight?”

It’s a question that regularly occurs to me as the time for class approaches and a cold beer and a mindless film on Netflix seems a more captivating option.

I always answer the same way, “Yes, of course! There’s no option.”.

This Thursday however my lazy mind was more defiant. “Why are you putting pressure on yourself?”. However rather than pursue this line of questioning further I quickly realized I had stumbled across the subject for my next article.

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I am sure most of you have been told at some point in your life not to put too much pressure on yourself. I know I have.

This advice is supposed to make you feel good about coming up short. It helps relieve the guilt for not going that extra mile. This recommendation is usually uttered when the person of action is suffering in some way after “overdoing” it.

This often welcome intervention can cause you to take your foot off the gas too early. It can prevent you from achieving your goal or coming up short on a standard you have set yourself.

It’s always nice to hear someone say, “don’t work so hard”. It shows they care and that maybe you should slow down or take a break. On closer inspection the phrase is unhelpful; it doesn’t help that it is being delivered by a slacker.

The fact is while this advice may make you feel better about yourself and your efforts in the short term, following the advice will only bring pain in the medium to long term.

I believe when someone tells you, slow down, take it easy, you should take that as a signal to go even harder. Usually the unhelpful friend or relative delivering such statements is an underachiever. When you take your foot off the gas, it makes him or her feel less guilty. When the going got tough they probably packed up their books and headed off to a bar to get drunk.

There are exceptions. A concerned parent who can see you are not eating properly or not getting sufficient sleep, both of which are detrimental to achieving your goal. That advice is worth listening to.

It’s important to put pressure on yourself. Only you know how much you can handle. It’s worth noting that you can cope with more pressure than your mind is comfortable with. You must therefore develop an override switch that turbocharges you into action when your lazy mind has other ideas.

Keep applying the pressure my friends.

Happy Monday!

Banner Image: Pressure. Image Credit – Crystal Kwok

Harry Maximillian

Harry is an author, coach, entrepreneur, comedian and a convicted felon. Harry was sent to prison for a financial crime where he spent five long years. Prison allowed Harry to realize the error of his ways. He decided to use his time productively and mobilize his extraordinary determination, dedication, drive, motivation and desire to focus on writing and the art of self-improvement. Before Harry’s enforced vacation he was one of the most prolific deal makers in the City of London.