Expert Feature: How Rest Can Help You Win In A Non-Stop World
There is a classic story I heard about a wood chopping contest that reveals a valuable lesson.
It’s an especially valuable lesson for those of us trying to succeed in a busy world.
It goes like this…
The Lesson From The Surprise Winner Of A Wood Chopping Contest
One day a man challenged another man to an all-day wood chopping contest.
The challenger worked as hard as he could and only stopped to for a very short lunch break.
The other guy had a different tactic. He leisurely took a lunch break. He also took several other breaks during the day.
At the end of the day, the challenger was surprised, and pretty annoyed, to find out he lost.
The other guy who casually ate lunch and took several breaks was the one who actually won the contest.
The challenger was totally confused about the results.
He finally had to confront the winner. In his disbelief, he said, “I don’t get it. Every time I looked over, you were taking a rest, but somehow you chopped more wood than I did!?!“
The winning woodsman calmly replied, “But there’s something you didn’t notice. Whenever I sat down to rest I sharpened my ax.“
The Power Of Rest In A Non-Stop World
We live in a culture where working non-stop is a virtue.
Being busy is something we like to brag about.
If you ask someone, “How are things going?”, you’re most likely to get the reply, “I’m busy!”
“Busy” is our American badge of honor.
Don’t confuse “busy” with “productive”. Those are NOT synonyms.
And don’t confuse “rest” with “rejuvenation“. Those aren’t the same thing either.
But you must learn to rest in the truest sense.
If you are going to survive physically, emotionally, and even mentally as a small business owner, then you must rest.
You can’t go non-stop and think you’ll win this game.
You’ll “chop a lot of wood”, but you’ll somehow discover that you’re still behind.
3 Ways To Rest This Summer
It’s great that you took time to read this post, but what are you going to DO about it?
Let me suggest 3 ways to apply this “lesson of the woodcutter”:
1. This summer make it your goal to regularly take a break from your business
(at least once a week).
2. Make sure you take a small vacation this summer – even in it’s just for a few days.
3. Don’t forget to “sharpen your ax” regularly. Take a rest from working in your business to work on your business at least once a day.
You can do this by taking a break to read a chapter in a book or even just a blog post. Read something that can help you run your business better. Or if you don’t like to read, then you can take a few minutes to listen to a podcast or watch a video.
And don’t just focus on becoming a better business owner. Read, listen or watch something that can help you become a better person.
Photo by Oliver Kendal
Related article
- Story: The Businessman & The Fisherman – When Is Enough, Enough? (baybusinesshelp.com)
