The Importance of Slowing Everything Down
At the time of writing, I have 63 items on my to-do list. That’s down from a peak of 76, but still a little above the 59 that has been the lowest since I started tracking at the start of May.
Some of those jobs are 10-minute tasks, while others will take weeks. Some are quick and easy, and others will break out into a dozen smaller jobs once I start tackling them. Some things on the list, once ticked off, are done and off my plate forever. Others are recurring tasks that once I complete them, get added back in with a new due date.
It’s tempting to schedule most of them for next week, in an attempt to rush through them all trying to do everything at once. But one thing I’ve learned is that it only results in me rescheduling them again for the following week. Like an ultramarathon, my to-do list is not a sprint.
One of these tasks is to write this blog post. Once I tick it off, a new task will appear for next Wednesday reminding me to publish another blog post. And that’s where I’m having to prevent myself from turning into a hamster on a wheel.
There are so many things I would like to do with ultramarathon.life, but by trying to do them all, I end up not getting any of them done well. I had toyed with the idea of adding a reviews section to this site and then procrastinated about getting anything reviewed. I wanted to write two blog posts every week, post Instagram stories and YouTube shorts, start a podcast, build a community… so many things that I just don’t have time for.
This is where I have to simplify what I’m trying to do. Over the next few months I’m going to try to commit to the following publishing schedule:
- Monday – YouTube Video
- Wednesday – Blog Post
- Thursday – Instagram Reel
- Sunday – Newsletter
The big two for me are the YouTube video and the Newsletter. After that comes keeping up with this blog and adding to the site. Finally, I want to keep Instagram ticking over with the aim of building an audience there. I don’t have such a good handle on how to tell the story of my training for Japan on Instagram. I guess that will come with time.
By the end of July, if my to-do list has been mostly cleared, I will start trying to publish more. Even then, that will only be the case if I’ve got a good routine for balancing around the rest of my life, and in particular, my training. Here’s the ideal schedule that’s in my head at the moment:
- Monday – YouTube Video
- Tuesday – Instagram Photo
- Wednesday – Blog Post
- Thursday – Instagram Reel
- Friday – Blog Post
- Saturday – Podcast Episode
- Sunday – Newsletter
It’s very easy for excitement to take over and want to do everything now. But we can’t always do that. Sometimes we have to slow down. It’s a lesson I should have learnt from running. I’ve run 100 kilometres this week, but I’ve done that by slowing myself down. At the moment, if I tried running 14 or 15 kilometres, 7 days in a row, I’d risk injury. By sticking to mostly running at an easy, enjoyable pace, I’ve managed to go further. I’m also in good shape to run those distances again next week. If I had tried to go faster or increase the distance quicker, I’d be in a worse place than I am now.
So here I am, applying the same lesson to everything around ultramarathon.life. I’m getting into a routine for blog posts and newsletters. YouTube videos take a long time, but hopefully, my regular editor will be back, which makes those and the Instagram bits achievable. Once that stuff starts feeling easy, then it will be time to think about what next.
By slowing down, I’m hoping to find a sustainable rhythm. I’m not racing to finish tasks, but to make steady progress. As I build this routine, I hope to be more productive, have more time, and do more of what I want to be doing. So, while it might seem counterintuitive, slowing down is probably the fastest way for me to get things done well. It’s working for my running and now I’m applying it to my life. Slow, steady consistency for the win.
