The Dangers of “Effort”

I have noticed in most books about self-improvement that the focus is on waking up early, establishing clear goals, pushing yourself–effort, effort, effort.  However, while these techniques might lead to material success, they may do so at the expense of health, a flourishing life, joy, and inner peace.  There is something missing.  The spiritual perspective.  The Dao.

If you have a vision for your life that syncs with your deepest calling, you will be pulled towards your goals as much as you have to push.  You won’t feel like Sisyphus endlessly pushing his rock up the hill….

There are a couple of exceptions to this point of push vs. pull.  First, when you are called to do something, but your fear is keeping you paralyzed and daunted, then you will have to push through the fear.  Likewise, it may take a bit of effort to build up momentum towards your calling.  But at some point, this should shift over into a pull from the vision.

This does not mean you won’t spend countless hours working towards your goals.  It’s just that once you get in sync and build momentum, at some point, each and every moment should not be full of “effort”–there should be joy pulling you along as well….