Sharpen Your Axe

Probably not the title you were expecting on psychology blog but still, maybe something about the tale of Two Lumberjacks that could be relevant. Let’s begin.

There were two lumberjacks who both worked 8 hours a day. One would arrive on time, every time, and work all the way through, from 8 till 4. The second always arrived an hour late and took an hour break in the middle of his day. Yet despite their differences, the second lumberjack always finished with more lumber than the first. Frustrated, the first lumberjack asked, “What’s going on? I get here earlier and work longer than you, how do you still chop more wood than me?” “Simple,” said the second lumberjack, “I spend the first hour of the day sharpening my axe and then again in the middle of the day, that way the work stays easy and I chop more lumber”.

The gist goes beyond the idea of working smarter not harder. To sharpen your axe in your daily life you’ll do things like; plan out your day so that each task completed makes the next one easier, wake up a little earlier so your not stressed in the morning, and breaking down a big task into manageable pieces before starting. When you sharpen your axe, the work becomes easier and more rewarding. If you’re lucky work could even start of feel like a game, where the more you do the more want to do it. When you sharpen your axe, you respect that your body, thoughts, and emotions aren’t always ready for what it is you want/need to do, and so you do something about it.

“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the ax.” 

Abraham Lincoln

This isn’t New to You

It’s likely you didn’t need to read these suggestions here to know about them, so why write them? What we know and what we do aren’t always the same. When our friends share their problems with us we see the solutions all too clearly, as we take a look at their lives from the outside. However, we rarely take the time to look at our own lives from the outside. That’s why reflection, journaling, and gratitude practices are so powerful. They give us the outside perspective to see the whole forest through the trees. This blog post is just another reminder to take the time to reflect on your life and ask yourself, “What would a friend tell me about solving these recurring problems?” In fact let’s do this right here right now, lets solve the problem of choosing a time to reflect during your week. You’ll need to answer these simple questions:

When is a good time to reflect?

• Will I be doing anything else at the time, if yes start again?
• Will I be tired, hungry or distracted, if yes start again?

How long will I sit and reflect?

• Is that too much time to fit in at that time, if yes start again?
• Is that too little time to settle in and pick a topic to flesh out, if yes start again?

How will I get my thoughts out of my head?

• Write them down?
• Type them into a device?
• Speak out loud?
• Draw them into a flow chart?

You’ll notice that we’re trying to problem solve before potential barriers rise up. Trying new things can be uncomfortable so it’s best to predict and deal with the discomfort then let it surprise you.

How I Sharpen My Axe

Here are some of the ways I sharpen my axe (informed by Andrew Huberman and James Clear):

• Regular sleep routine:
  • Warm shower to ready my body temperature for sleep.
    • Consistent wake time even on weekends. (One off disturbance during the week are survivable.)
    • Ending morning shower with cold water.
• Wake up routine:
  • After the shower spend 10-15 minutes in the sun, barefoot on the grass.
    • Reflection time.
• Arriving to work 30-40 minutes before my first appointment.
  • Review admin to do list.
  • Review clients for the day and treatment progression.