How To Succeed Without Sacrifice
Is the hustle burning you out?
Are you sacrificing your wellbeing in your pursuit of success?
There is a general understanding in our society that to be a successful, high performer you must sacrifice your physical and mental wellbeing.
After all, if you want to achieve something extraordinary, then you need to work harder than everyone else.
In a survey by Time magazine, 256 CEOs reported working an average of 58.15 hours per week - which works out to around 10–11 hours per day plus nearly six extra hours on the weekend.
Elon Musk, probably the highest achiever in modern history, runs multiple companies and boasts about pulling off 100 hour work weeks and sleeping on the factory floor.
Unsurprisingly, there is a real cost to such an intensive schedule. A study by the World Health Organisation found that long working hours are killing hundreds of thousands of people a year.
In a global first, the study showed 745,000 people died in 2016 from stroke and heart disease due to working long hours.
The research found that working 55 hours or more a week was associated with a 35% higher risk of stroke and a 17% higher risk of dying from heart disease, compared with a working week of 35 to 40 hours.
But that’s just what it takes to achieve high levels of success . Right?
Wrong.
There is a growing movement of what I like to coin “Mindful High Performers” (MHPs) that are challenging this convention and actually proving it to be a complete myth.
This new wave of elite performers put a strong emphasis on their physical and mental wellbeing and consider it a contributing factor to their success rather than a hindrance.
Doesn’t this sound like a fairytale? Work less & achieve more might sound a little too good to be true.
But it’s not.here is some common sense and solid science behind it.
After all, our time is a limited resource, unlike money, and is the one currency in life that you cannot recover and so need to spend very wisely.
If you are in physical ill-health, suffering from emotional burnout or are facing an existential crisis, then you’re not going to be firing on all cylinders and crushing your goals.
MHPs understand that maintaining a high level of physical and mental health allows them to be present, focused and mindful in their activities which in turn leads to more productivity - with the same amount of time and effort.
The opposite is also true, they can achieve similar results with less time and effort. One of their simple philosophies is “work smarter, not harder” But how exactly are they doing it?
After spending time with a lot of individuals like this, I’ve noticed four similarities that they all have and I want to share them with you along with actionable steps that you too can take if you want to achieve peak performance, without compromising your health
Morning Routines
Sounds too simple to be true, right?
Well, The Sleep Judge surveyed over 1000 people and found that on average, respondents with a consistent set of morning habits earned roughly $12,500 more per year than those without them.
So what could be the reason behind this? I think there are three main reasons.
- It starts your day off on the right foot with calm and focus
- You’ll have more energy throughout the day
- It will help you form good habits that will spill into other areas
What should your morning routine include? Well, the research showed that the following five activities had the biggest impact on your income.
- Working out
- Taking a cold shower
- Meditation
- Writing a journal
- Making lunch
While some people may consider this a waste of time, this group believes that the hour or so lost due to a morning routine, is more than made up for during the rest of the day by the increased motivation, focus and clarity.
Prioritisation
MHPs have a strong focus on what’s important and what’s not. They prioritise the most important and impactful activities and don’t waste their time on anything else.
They understand the psychology of productivity and use several tactics to add structure to their day and increase their output efficiently.
One group of strategies you can employ yourself is time blocking, task batching and day theming. In simple terms these are:
- Dividing your day into blocks of time
- Diving your week into days of themes
- Grouping tasks together to complete them all at once
The mantra they subscribe to is,”If you don’t control your day, it will control you”.
Analytical Mindset
The ability to review yourself honestly and without bias is another key trait that I’ve identified amongst this group.
They consistently take time out to reflect on their activities, adjust based on the results and plan for the future. Nothing is left to chance or gut feel.
One good example of this is linked to the productivity methods mentioned above. It takes time to reflect on the previous week, plan ahead and organise your upcoming week. Once again it’s believed that this preparation time is more than made up for by what you gain in efficiency during the actual work.
Another thing you can do is to set very specific goals that you can measure and use it as a tool to focus and prioritize. The most popular technique is to set SMART goals. These are goals that are
- Specific (simple, sensible, significant).
- Measurable (meaningful, motivating).
- Achievable (agreed, attainable).
- Relevant (reasonable, realistic and resourced, results-based).
- Time bound (time-based, time limited, time/cost limited, timely, time-sensitive).
As Peter Druker said, “What gets measured gets managed”.
Prioritising Physical & Mental Health
We know from the study mentioned above that a workout in the morning has the biggest positive impact on your income and productivity.
But it goes way beyond that, these new breed of high performers are very knowledgeable and intentional about how they work out, their sleep patterns,what they put in their body and many more topics related to health.
If you want to become a MHP then you must become a student of nutrition and fitness and apply the latest research to your life in a way that works for you and of course, be analytical about it and optimize it over time.
As the head nutritionist here at VidaCap, a leader in US mushroom supplements, this is the area that I’m most passionate about and help people with the most.
After years of research and study, I’ve concluded that the most natural and efficient way to achieve peak performance without compromising your health is through mushrooms. I highly recommend you take the time to read more about the benefits of these amazing fungi on our website and consider trying them yourself.
There are five core mushrooms that have unique properties that you can experiment with and find out which ones help you stay at peak performance.
- Lion’s Mane – Supports mental clarity, memory, focus & alertness*
- Turkey Tail -Supports gut health with their immunity activators and Beta Glucans*
- Reishi – Supports physical and mental stress as well as sleep.*
- Cordyceps – Supports athletic performance, endurance and cardiovascular health*
- Chaga– Supports metabolic health and youthfulness with it’s natural antioxidants
Summary
Hopefully I’ve helped dispel the myth that high performance must come with a severe cost and given you at least one new idea that can help you become the best version of yourself.
It may sound like a lot of work at first, but in reality, it opens up more space, clarity and freedom in your life. In fact, one entrepreneur I know of manages to run five separate million dollar businesses at once and regularly tests his cortisol levels (an example of the analytical mindset right there) and experiences almost no stress.
In summary, here are the important things to take away:
- Spending time on things that might not seem productive (morning health routines, reflecting, scheduling) can actually make you more effective while maintaining your health and mental well being.
- You should be prioritizing activities that are important, and being strict on not spending time on things that are not.
- You need to measure all aspects of your life and be analytical and scientific in your approach to everything.
- You need to put your mental and physical health first, as it will enhance your days and add to your longevity by avoiding ill-health, stress, burnout and crises. (Our awesome mushroom capsules can help with that too)
Of course, it’s impossible to do all of these things at once. The real secret is to become a master student, and to pursue knowledge on each of these topics enthusiastically and without prejudice as you experiment with them and find what works best for you.
I will leave you with one final quote, “Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in ten years.” Start yourself on the right trajectory now, and you too can live a life of high achievement - without compromising on your health.
