You sometimes hear motivational phrases like “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.” They’re referring to things like a diet, or parenthood, or your career, or some other large aspect of your life. The well-meaning advice is that you can’t try to do it all at once; you need to pace yourself.
Sure. But sometimes, it’s a sprint!
Some things you really do need to do in short bursts, and some things you need to do in longer campaigns, and sometimes you’ll need to do the same thing in different modes at different times. So it’s important to know how to do both!
Take work, for example. There will be times when you need to approach a project as a marathon – pacing yourself to avoid burnout, keeping yourself focused and productive over long periods, and maintaining integrity over the scope and focus of the project. And there will also be times when you need to get a lot of stuff done in a short window, and those are different skills and mindsets.
Most people’s struggle comes from determining which is which, and in switching between “modes” when they need to. If you pace yourself for a marathon you’ll lose a sprint, and vice versa.
Sprints are goal-oriented. You’re starting with the end in mind and doing what it takes to get there. Process improvements can be made later; right now, you get across the finish line however you have to. Marathons are process-oriented. Small improvements can have big impacts, so you should make those adjustments as you go and care deeply about how you’re working.
My biggest piece of advice is simply don’t mix and match. If you have a sprint task in front of you, then don’t work on your marathon tasks until the sprint is over. Whatever modes work for you will rarely work together.
The Opportunity Machine 