If I could gift myself anything this holiday season, it would be time.
I’ve tried everything to make more of it: time-blocking, bullet journaling, the Pomodoro method, the Eisenhower Matrix (which sounds more like an airport spy novel than a time hack). I’ve had focus blocks, deep work sessions, and 90-minute productivity sprints. I’ve even created an elaborate filtering system to block distracting websites—though that doesn’t help much when you work at UltraSignup and are the distraction.
None of it worked. My desk is littered with abandoned journals, post-it notes that look like ransom letters from my to-do list and a vague sense of existential dread.
The only “hack” that’s ever helped me get more done? Doing less.
If you need a little pep talk in the art of slacking off, let me introduce you to one of my favorite recent reads: 4,000 Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. It’s part anti-productivity manifesto, part reality check, and 100% what every overwhelmed runner/human needs to hear this time of year. It’s methadone for the productivity-addicted amongst us.
Here’s Burkeman’s blunt take:
Productivity is a trap. Becoming more efficient just makes you more rushed… Nobody in the history of humanity has ever achieved ‘work-life balance,’ whatever that might be, and you certainly won’t get there by copying the ‘six things successful people do before 7:00 a.m.’
The to-do list will never end. The emails will never stop. You will never magically “get it all under control.” And that, Burkeman insists, is actually great news.
As much as I’d love to unwrap an extra 10 hours a week and tie it up with a giant red bow, I’m learning to accept the next best gift for my running and beyond: the power of saying no.
It’s not easy for a recovering workaholic people pleaser, but some texts will stay unanswered. A few emails will go unread. My laundry might live in the dryer long enough to claim squatter’s rights. But the upside? For every “no,” I get closer to a “hell yes.”
If you, like me, are prone to making impossible New Year’s resolutions that depend on cramming an already packed schedule with more miles, more gym time, more cooking, PT, cross-training, more PT, a meditation routine, getting more sleep, journaling, reading, and more PT, the best thing you can do is take things away.
Edit your schedule and routines ruthlessly. Acknowledge that your time is limited, and make hard decisions accordingly. Admit that you can’t do it all and that maybe you didn’t actually want to in the first place.
And that’s worth more than all the time hacks in the world.
Read More of The Aid Station By Zoë Rom
- An Immaterial Gift Guide For Runners
Holiday gift guides are inescapable, insufferable, and mostly useless. So instead of hawking stuff you don’t need, here are eight immaterial gifts every runner should put on their wish list this season. - How To Build A Race Season Without Burning Out
Building a race season is like pacing an ultra: if you go out too hard, you’ll blow up before the finish. Start conservatively. Trust the process. Give your body the recovery it needs to adapt. - The Space Between Seasons
After crossing the finish line of my big 100-mile race this summer, I expected pure joy. Instead, I found myself in that quiet, disorienting space that comes after a big goal—the moment when purpose fades and rest feels strange. - Do You Remember Your First Mile?
So if you’re stuck, plateauing, or overwhelmed, pause and ask: What was your mile one? Your mile ten? What did it take to get there? And what would it feel like to carry that same raw belief, or disbelief, into the next big thing? - I Almost Forgot This Was the Whole Point – What a 48-Minute Mile Taught Me About Joy
One mile. Forty-eight minutes and sixteen seconds. A personal worst, possibly. A dark PR. What was I doing with my life? - Ability Agnostic: Because Caring is Cool
Being ability agnostic means giving yourself the kind of care you’d give a Real Athlete™, because, plot twist, you are one.
1 comment
Jennie Conyers
Omg!! This is exactly what I needed today. Thank you, Zoe. I will be looking for that book and devouring it asap.