Working effectively does not entail clock-crunching and being worn out at the office; quite the opposite, as you will see in this article.
I was recently watching an episode of the Tim Ferriss Show. LeBron James and his trainer were interviewed for this episode.
LeBron James is a basketball genius if you don't already know who he is. He is regarded as the greatest winger in history and is one of the select few athletes to have scored more than 30,000 points in a single season. He has won numerous awards, including best scorer, best passer, and best interceptor.
After spending a little more than an hour listening to the interview and carefully examining his workouts, I discovered 2 things LeBron does to get ready for a game.
First off, he works out a lot—as one might anticipate from an athlete of his calibre.
He only considers basketball while playing and gives it his all. He practises his moves and shots countless times while maintaining total concentration.
The second, and perhaps more unexpected, is that he values rest and breaks highly. You might believe that in order to reach his level, you must train extremely hard until you are physically worn out. This is what films like Rocky like to depict for us. LeBron, however, shows the opposite. He works hard and trains very hard, but he also makes an effort to get as much sleep as he can. Ideally, between 8 and 10 in the morning. For him, getting a good night's sleep is the key to recharging the batteries, preventing injuries, and performing at his peak on the pitch.
We observe that elite athletes like LeBron, as well as the majority of successful people in general, work in sprints. In other words, they give their all for a certain amount of time before taking genuine breaks during which they unwind and recuperate. They distinguish between working and resting hours very clearly. They don't start working or resting halfway. They use a technique known as clean focus and clean cut.
Whether it's a project, a task, or a workout, it can be difficult to concentrate when there are a lot of distractions around.
Perhaps one particular thought is keeping you off task. While trying to concentrate on your shots and making the baskets, you find yourself distracted by a recent argument you had with a friend.
Perhaps someone is calling out to you. Your coworkers keep interrupting you as you work to complete a task for today in order to solicit your assistance.
Or perhaps it's the calls, emails, messages, and notifications that keep you from finishing a task.
The issue is that you will never be able to do your job effectively if you allow these "pollutions" to divert your attention every five minutes. Even so, it will take longer for you to get what you want.
Imagine if Arnold Schwarzenegger or LeBron checked his emails every five minutes while they were practising. Without a doubt, they wouldn't be in the current situation.
They are completely concentrated and only think about practise when they are in the gym or on the court. They are not easily distracted.
Clean focus is what it is. When we attempt to focus, we are distracted by all the pollution.