Should I work just a little longer? Probably not.

Why setting real limits and working and maintaining balance will make you more likely to succeed.

In the bustling world of startups and high-paced careers, the mantra often echoed is ‘work harder, work longer.’ However, is this narrative serving us, or is there a deeper, more sustainable approach to achieving our goals? In this Medium article, inspired by conversations with physician executive coach Dr. Michael Brown and lessons from Clayton Christensen, I make my case for the strong application of ‘creative constraints’ and how setting boundaries on our work hours, akin to Cal Newport’s advice, is more likely to lead to high performance, and “most likely to succeed” work, not just for startups, but in college, providing legal services, caring for patients, winning at sales, and providing wonderful world class technical support.

I’m still amazed at how necessary it is for most of us (myself included) to do the work again and again to shift our perspective from success being about hours worked to the more likely to succeed approach that prioritizes quality, adaptability, and sustainable high performance. Hopefully this “think with me” article helps save you some serious time (from overwork) and makes you and your team much more likely to succeed!