The Simmering Six

Stop working nonstop if you want peak performance

Photo by Paul Bulai on Unsplash

I was recently listening to an episode of The Tim Ferriss Show with Josh Waitzkin, and a discussion about getting “in the zone” for peak performance stood out to me. During the podcast, this concept is mostly considered as it applies to sports like martial arts. Turns out, it’s much more widely applicable than that.

There is a never-ending debate about how many hours you should work to be successful, yet avoid burning out. There’s no right answer to this, but Josh provides a useful framework for thinking about work-life balance.

In a world where we are busy all the time with a wide-ranging number of interests and inputs, we often operate at a 6 out of 10. Not too hot, not too cold. This seems okay, but consider the optimal state of being at a 10.

“There’s the undulation, most people in high-stress, decision-making industries are always operating at this kind of simmering six, or four, as opposed to the undulation between just deep relaxation and being at a 10. Being at a 10 is millions of times better than being at a 6. It’s just in a different universe. Same…