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I believed that effort alone would solve every single thing in my life...
I thought that if I worked harder, pushed longer, and forced the outcomes to happen, I would eventually break through any wall in front of me. I respected strength, I admired endurance, and I believed power was the answer.
What I didn’t understand is that a sharp axe cuts better than a strong arm!
You can swing all day with brute force, but if the blade is dull, you’ll only exhaust yourself before you make any real progress. The same principle applies to your life. You can hustle nonstop, grind without rest, and pride yourself on being relentless, but if you aren’t sharpening your mindset, your skills, your discipline, and your inner life… you’re working twice as hard for half the result.
There were times when I was busy but not effective. I was moving, I was putting in effort, but I wasn’t improving the edge. I was swinging with emotion instead of sharpening with intention.
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Sharpening requires humility. It requires stepping back and admitting that effort isn’t enough. It requires reading when you would rather scroll, studying when you would rather complain, going to therapy when you would rather numb out, praying when you would rather panic, and planning when you would rather react. Sharpening feels slower, but it produces cleaner results.
Strength without refinement leads to burnout. Power without wisdom leads to wasted motion. You do not need to become more forceful. You need to become more focused.
Before you attack the next problem in your life, ask yourself if you have sharpened the tool you are using to solve it. Work on your thinking. Work on your character. Work on your habits. Work on your emotional regulation. Work on your faith.
When the edge is sharp, the work becomes precise. When the blade is prepared, the tree falls with less chaos and more control.
Set the precedent in your life that you will sharpen first and swing second.
See you tomorrow!
Jeff
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P.S. Enjoying Today’s Light? Explore the rest of Light In The Tunnel. Mental health support for men and women, plus journal entries and prompts to help you stay grounded.
https://light-in-the-tunnel.beehiiv.com/
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