Whether in business or in sports, proper pacing creates better results. This was driven home to me today as I completed The Bell Ringer 25K trail run for the 5th time. Similar to my Ironman in September, I did this run only focused on my heart rate and enjoying it, not speed or time. I stuck to my targeted HR and with my friends and had an easy, fun run with plenty of energy left at the end to even pick it up a little. In racing, we always get the best results with a negative split, going faster in the second half than the first. This is proper pacing. With a lower HR target this year, I fully expected to be slower today, but to have a great time and connect with friends.

To my surprise, I was actually faster than last year and my HR was lower by 15 bpm! And I felt strong the whole time, had much more fun than last year, and faster race. Even if it had been slower, it would have been a better result, but very interesting to see that it was faster too.

It’s the same in business. If we go out too hard, and don’t have proper pacing, rest, breaks, changes of scenery, we will burn out, which is the worst result. But, even before that we will miss creative solutions, suffer unnecessarily, make obvious mistakes, and alienate teammates. Pushing hard without proper pacing creates worse results in the mid and long term and RARELY justifies the perceived benefit to the very short term. So if you are running a race, preparing for Christmas, or working on an important project, have proper pacing with frequent breaks, good rest and have as much fun and connection as you can in the process.

Have a great weekend,

Art