Emails are always hoping to find us well. Many times they do not. Our series, “I Hope This Email Finds You Well” (IHTEFYW) shines a light on how we founders stay happy and healthy, while deep in the startup trenches.
I grew up very poor. Homelessness defined my early teenage years, and sometimes we didn’t know where the next meal would come from.
Growing up like that, work wasn’t just important, it was the only way to escape our circumstances. So, it became an obsession that consumed me. Anything that threatened to distract from that — be it friendships or leisure—took a back seat.
Spreadsheets became an integral part of managing my work and would soon save me from myself…
Things seemed to be going pretty well — I was studying 7 days a week, acing exams, and got into Oxford University, something no one from my school had done before. The formula seemed to be working, but at what cost?
Despite the progress, happiness was hard to find. I was caught in a relentless cycle of work, punctuated by anxiety, exhaustion, and unpredictable bouts of burnout.
Oxford's demanding schedule—constant work and a never-ending barrage of essays and reading—left me consistently missing deadlines. After ignoring the problem for far too long, I sought the help of a study advisor.
She suggested something simple: a time-diary to gather data on where I was spending my time, so we could pinpoint the problem. And after a week of tracking, the problem was clear: I wasn't taking any breaks between marathon essay-writing sessions.
She told me to take a day off. I told her she was crazy. She laughed and insisted that I give it a go.
So, I did. It wasn’t particularly enjoyable, to be honest. I felt immensely guilty for the whole day. But, something strange happened that week, I finished both my essays early and felt more mentally clear than I had in weeks.
This completely changed my understanding of productivity. Rest wasn't just the absence of work; it was an integral part of performing optimally. But rest didn't mean wasting away the hours in bed—though, admittedly, I love a good "rot" now and then (/every weekend). It meant engaging in activities that replenished my energy:
That being said, viewing rest purely as a means to productivity isn’t super healthy, either. I’ve gradually moved away from that mindset, and increasingly I view it as an ends within itself rather than merely a means. But, in the beginning, that framing was crucial to assuage the guilt.
Enter the "The Parachute Method”. Since my study advisor’s process worked so well, I applied it to my entire life. I listed all the symptoms of burnout on a spreadsheet and every Sunday I’d track how badly I was feeling those symptoms.
When the spreadsheet started to fill with conditionally-formatted warnings, I knew it was time to "pull the chute", slow my descent into burnout and take a break. I'd "lose" a day or two to rest instead of a week to burnout.
On my days off, I experimented to see what renewed my energy and what did not. And on weeks that were great, I’d note down what made them great. From those learnings, I created rules. These rules dictated everything from taking regular hikes and exercising, to meditating and limiting social outings to conserve the oft neglected social battery.
These commandments, crafted from trial and error, became my roadmap to a balanced life.
In the end, it wasn't just about finding a balance between work and rest. It was about redefining what productivity meant to me. Through my spreadsheets, I created a life where work, happiness, and fulfilment weren't just possible—they were inevitable.
My process involved 4 crucial steps, which can be applied to solving any problem in your personal life or while running your business:
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