work hard or rest hard. nothing in between.
I like to think of work vs. rest as a 10-point scale.
1 = extreme rest
10 = extreme work
What’s the “unconscious middle”? We’ll get there…
But first…
When it comes to work vs. rest, “balance” is a word we hear a lot.
“Balance is everything,” they say…
And it’s true, balance is absolutely crucial.
But most people don’t truly understand the word “balance.”
Balance is most commonly understood as the middle.
But in work vs. rest: it’s the opposite.
If you want to actually get anywhere in life, you need bounce between working really hard and resting really hard. Either end of the scale.
The more time you spend in the middle, the further you will find yourself from achieving your goals.
Most people fall into the middle and never get out. They never hit either end of the spectrum. Never working that hard. Never resting fully.
They spend their whole lives in a comfortable state, and merely go through the motions of life. The dreams they once had wallow away with them in the middle.
It can feel like bliss, but deep down you know that you are meant for more.
And when you’re stuck in the middle, it can actually feel like you’re making real progress, however, as much as you turn your wheels, you can’t actually get out of the mud, and you get nowhere real quick.
The truth is, it’s easy to get stuck in there.
The “unconscious middle”
Why “unconscious”?
Because when you’re in this middle area, neither working really hard towards your goals but also not really resting to recover from the periods of work, you get into a state where you’re sort of just floating through life, living at a fraction of what you’re truly capable of.
Just coasting along…
You’re not fully committed to your goals, but you still hope that they’ll some day magically happen. That you’ll finally get the motivation to do them.
The good news is, if you want it bad enough, the day will come when you say “enough is enough.” But even when that day does come, it can be difficult to hone in on achieving your goals.
Even if you’re aware you’re in the middle, and even if you have a clear vision for what you want your life to look like, it can be hard to escape.
So many people fall victim to the middle. It feels like you’re in the “Get Out” tea cup.
My advice to get out of the middle is: work really hard, and rest really hard.
Fully commit (🤝) to each.
Most people try to both work and rest at the same time, yet do neither fully.
When this happens, it forces work and rest to be at odds with each other.
Each detracting from the other. A push and pull.
Kind of like a game of tug of war.
You’re not fully committed to working nor resting. You’re stuck between the two.
And when this happens, it leads to all sorts of issues: mental health problems, burn out, anxiousness, loss of motivation, second-guessing yourself…
Imagine trying to work and rest at the same time. We’ve all been there before.
Examples can vary. But some scenarios of this look like:
sending emails while you’re on the couch watching TV
taking calls for work while you’re on vacation
distracting yourself with video games while ruminating on the work you know you should be doing
being on your phone when you’re having a meal with someone
Most people fluctuate between 4-7 on the work vs. rest scale.
They never fully reach either a 1 or a 10.
People stuck in the middle fall into two categories:
Some people find themselves in the unconscious middle and choose to wake up.
Some never will.
If you’re like me, and you’re reading this right now, chances are you’ve woken up. You’ve found yourself in the middle, and you’re aware that you are there.
You’re tired of spinning your wheels going nowhere. You feel like you work hard and rest hard yet your goals still seem so far away…almost unattainable.
If this is you, ask yourself, “am I actually working as hard as I can?”
And then, “am I actually resting as fully as I can?”
When you’re “working hard” are you checking your phone every 5-10 minutes?
When you’re “resting hard” are you thinking about work or the project you’re working on? Or what you have to do later today, or that meeting you have tomorrow?
Most people could probably press the needle a little bit further towards full work or full rest, or both. Whichever end of the spectrum you’re in, the more committed (🤝) you are to it, the more progress you will make towards your goals.
If you’re gonna rest, rest. If you’re gonna work, work.
Don’t overcomplicate it by mixing them together.
Extreme work and extreme rest
Each person’s work and rest activities look a bit a different.
They’ll depend on your priorities.
Here are some examples or each…
Extreme Work:
waking up early/staying up late
fully committed to a project or your job
going to the gym every day
eating on a diet
Extreme Rest:
going on a vacation
reading by the pool/beach
getting out into nature
going out and partying
sleeping in
loafing on the couch
Think about what your 1 and 10 are. Write it down.
Regardless of what each end looks like for you, the more time you spend at both a 1 and a 10, the more progress you will make towards achieving your goals.
The middle is where dreams go to die.
If extreme results are what you want you want, you will never get them by living in the middle.
Work really hard. Rest really hard.
That is the key.
That is what balance truly is.
macro work vs. rest
I've found that when I have some time on the calendar when I know I'm going to rest really hard, I get so much more work done in the period of work prior.
My rest weekends consist of: going to visit friends, going out to the bars, or just dedicated time to chill at the pool/beach.
Scheduling these every month is something I historically haven’t done a good job at, but I’m trying to actively do more of because I’ve seen it’s benefits play out. Imagine you had a fun trip at the end of every month, it would make that month’s work so much more enticing.
For me personally, I’ve been in the middle, and it sucks. It feels good for a bit, but if you have that fire in you, you crave the 10 and love going from 10 to 1.
It feels like you earned the 1. And when results finally show up, 10 becomes addicting.
So now that I’m aware…
I try to either be at a 1 or a 10.
Nothing in between.
Fully committed (🤝) to either working or resting.
If you struggle with “burning out” every few weeks/months, you need to schedule in a periods of rest.
And I mean true, full rest. A 1 on the scale.
A time when you can check out completely from your job or whatever you’re working on.
Whether that's just chilling out and loafing for a day or two, or going to visit friends and going on a mini bender, it’s absolutely essential.
It has helped me so much in making the extreme work phase much more enjoyable and productive. I get stuff done so much faster and more efficiently.
Why?
Because I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
That light will guide you through the tough times in your work, which will inevitably happen.
Whenever I’ve fallen into the monotony of the unconscious middle, I’ve felt low energy, depressed, and anxious. And it makes sense as to why. Because I wasn’t fully doing either, knowing that it was preventing me from achieving my goals.
I’ve realized that I'm way more efficient and present when I'm fully locked in on either end.
At a macro-level, these phases of extreme work/extreme rest have proven to be my preferred schedule.
So that’s the macro…
Micro work vs. rest
Then there’s the day-to-day, micro-level work vs. rest as well.
At a micro level, it’s important to balance work/rest throughout each day.
write for a bit --> go for a walk --> edit a video --> workout
The same concept applies here: don’t get stuck in the middle.
Either work. Or rest.
Be intentional.
If you’re going to work on something, put your phone on DND and put it out of reach, either on the other side of the room or in another room entirely.
Get done what you have to get done.
Then when you’ve hit the point of diminishing returns, and you feel like your quality has dropped off, rest.
Consider this…
Option A: 1 hour of work at a 10 knowing I’m hitting a 1 going on a walk right after I’m done.
vs.
Option B: 3 hours of work at a 7 then sitting on the couch kind of doing some work on my phone while watching a show at let’s say a 4 “resting.”
I’m taking Option A every day of the week.
Sure, it’s more intense work, but it’s often shorter and way way way more efficient.
Full focus is something most people have trouble tapping into. But once you learn how to harness it, you become a machine at whatever it is you’re doing.
what’s your 1 and 10?
What do you need to do to get into a flow state for you work?
How can you rest so that when you get back to your work, you are ready to attack it?
Think about each question for a few minutes. Again, write it down.
Try different things. Figure out what works best for you.
Too many days living in the middle turns into weeks, months, and even years there.
Be proactive in scheduling in rest amidst your work.
Be fully present for each side of the scale.
If you want to reach your goals, you need have systems in place to get your there. “Systems > Goals” they say…
Well, this is a system you need to work out for yourself, but it once you figure it out, it makes being disciplined so much easier, and it propels you towards your goals.
In a given moment, you know what you have to do. Either: work or rest.
Whichever it is, do it. And I mean FULLY do it.
And then when you’re done, you go back to the other one.
1 + 10 + 1 + 10 + … = results
nothing in between.
If you’re stuck in the unconscious middle…
at a certain point, you’ll be reminded of the BIG goals you had for your life (the ones you probably haven’t told anyone about) and when that happens, you’ll have a decision to make.
Stay comfortable, or get to work.
Once you realize this, it may feel like your current life is too solidified to break out of.
That your big goals are impossible to achieve.
When that happens, figure out what you need to do to get to where you want to be.
Then, focus on going from 10 - work hard to 1 - rest hard.
The more time you spend anywhere else on the spectrum, you’re working against yourself.
If you’re going to do something, give it 100% effort.
If it’s rest, rest.
If it’s work, work.
Don’t try to do both at once or you’ll end up doing neither.
Work Hard —> Rest Hard
Rest Hard —> Work Hard
Do this….
and watch the results pile up.
-Ryan Ward
