The idea of “working hard” is thrown around a lot, what does it mean to “work hard”?
Is working hard solely a matter of how many hours you put in?
Is the person working 80 hour weeks working harder than the person putting in 40?
What if the person working 40 is thoughtful about their time and gets twice as much done?
Who is working harder?
What about the investment banker on wall street working 112 hours a week vs. the guys who do 112 hours a week on drilling rigs? Are hours in front of a computer worth the same as carrying around heavy shit offshore?
You can go down many rabbit holes here but in the end, how hard you work is a matter of perspective. Elite performers work long hours but it doesn’t feel like work to them… it feels like flow.
Authentically working towards a purpose, your dreams, part of a greater good, something you care about, will put you in a state of flow… it won’t feel like work. If it starts to feel like work, re-connect to that higher purpose and start again.
Reflect often on the work you are doing, if you think responding to fires, emails, and texts all day is “hard work” you are wrong, that's playing defense. Hard work is planning, its strategy, its deep and thought provoking reflection, it’s problem solving.
Being the first person at the office every day matters little if you spend your life on defense.
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