TLDRs:

•Stress + rest = growth •The power of developing optimal routines and designing your day •Purpose

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Stress Yourself Seek out “just-manageable challenges” in areas of your life in which you want grow • Just-manageable challenges are those that barely exceed your current abilities. • If you feel fully in control, make the next challenge a bit harder. • If you feel anxious or so aroused that you can’t focus, dial things down a notch. Cultivate deep focus and perfect practice • Define a purpose and concrete objectives each time you set out to do meaningful work. • Focus and concentrate deeply, even if doing so isn’t always enjoyable. • Remove distractors such as smartphones; remember that out of sight is truly out of mind. • Do only one thing at a time. Next time you feel like multitasking, remind yourself that research shows it’s not effective. • Remember that quality trumps quantity.

Work in discrete blocks • Divide your work into blocks of 50 to 90 minutes (this may vary by task). Start even smaller if you find yourself struggling to maintain attention. • If deep-focus work is new to you, start with blocks as short as 10 to 15 minutes. As you cultivate a deep-focus practice, gradually increase the duration you go deep. • For almost all activities, 2 hours should be the uppermost limit for a working block.

Nurture a growth or challenge mindset •Keep in mind that how you view something fundamentally changes how your body responds to it. •In situations when you feel the sensation of stress, remind yourself that this is your body’s natural way of preparing for a challenge. Take a deep breath and channel the heightened arousal and sharper perception into the task at hand. •Push yourself to view stress productively, and even to welcome it. You’ll not only perform better but also improve your health.

Have the Courage to Rest Grow your mindful muscle with meditation so that you can more easily choose rest • Find a time when other distractions are minimized, such as first thing in the morning, after brushing your teeth, or before going to bed. • Sit in a comfortable position and, ideally, in a quiet space. • Set a timer so you aren’t distracted by thoughts about the passage of time. • Begin breathing deeply, in and out through your nose. • Focus on nothing but your breath; when thoughts arise, notice them, but then let them go. Direct your focus back to the sensation of the breath. • Start with just 1 minute and gradually increase duration, adding 30 to 45 seconds every few days. • Frequency trumps duration. It’s best to meditate daily, even if that means keeping individual sessions short. Apply your growing mindful muscle in everyday life • Have “calm conversations” during stressful periods; remember that you are separate from the emotions and sensations that you are experiencing. • Realize when you want to “turn it off” and then choose to leave stress behind. Taking a few deep breaths helps because it activates the prefrontal cortex, your brain’s command-and-control center.

Take smart breaks and let your subconscious go to work • When you are working on a strenuous task and hit an impasse, have the courage to step away.

• Step away from whatever it is you were doing for at least 5 minutes.
• The more stressful the task, the longer your break should be.
• For really draining tasks, consider stepping away until the next morning. • During your breaks, perform activities that demand little to no focus.

Prioritize sleep • Reframe sleep as something that is productive. • Aim for at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep per night. For those doing intense physical activity, 10 hours is not too much. • The best way to figure out the right amount of sleep for you is to spend 10 to 14 days going to sleep when you are tired and waking up without an alarm clock. Take the average sleep time. That’s what you need. • For a better night’s sleep, follow these tips:

• Ensure you expose yourself to natural (i.e., non-electric) light throughout the day. This will help you maintain a healthy circadian rhythm.
• Exercise. Vigorous physical activity makes us tired. When we are tired, we sleep. But don’t exercise too close to bedtime.
• Limit caffeine intake, and phase it out completely 5 to 6 hours prior to your bedtime.
• Only use your bed for sleep and sex. Not for eating, watching television, working on your laptop, or anything else. The one exception is reading a paper book prior to bed.
• Don’t drink alcohol close to bedtime. Although alcohol can hasten the onset of sleep, it often disrupts the later and more important stages.
• Limit blue light exposure in the evening.
• Don’t start working on hard, stressful activities—be they mental or physical—after dinner.
• If you struggle with a racing mind, try inserting a brief mindfulness meditation session prior to bed.
• When you feel yourself getting drowsy, don’t fight it. Whatever you are doing can wait until the morning.
• Keep your room as dark as possible. If feasible, consider black-out blinds.
• Keep your smartphone OUT of the bedroom entirely. Not on silent. Out. •Try taking a nap of 10 to 30 minutes to help restore energy and focus if you hit a mid-afternoon lull. Take extended time off •Regardless of the work you do, take at least one off-day every week. •To the extent that you can, time your off-days and vacations strategically to follow periods of accumulated stress. •The more you stress, the more you should rest. •On both single off-days and extended vacations, truly disconnect from work. Unplug both physically and mentally and engage in activities that you find relaxing and restorative.

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Foreword

• The Example of Steve Magness - racing in the Pre Classic with a 4.01 mile time, but he never ever got faster
• The Example of a 24 year-old who never got further than where he was (Brad)

Is healthy, sustainable peak performance possible

<aside> 💡 Nurturing my nature so that I can maximise my potential in a healthy and sustainable way.

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Introduction

Competing Against Each Other

• how competition against peers have gotten much more competitive (Hicham El Guerrouj vs Roger Bannister)

Competing Against the Machines

• How the rise of automation and tech have driven the need for more intense competition