There is no shortage of people online telling you how to optimize your life.
Get a perfect 8 hours of sleep each night.
Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day - no exceptions.
Get 4 days of resistance training a week.
Get 4 hours of Zone 2 cardio.
Train your VO2 max at least once a week.
Hit your calories and macros.
Go through a 2-hour morning routine before your family gets up.
10 minutes of morning sunlight.
Dim the lights at 8 PM.
Stop eating 3 hours before bed.
No screens an hour before bed.
Sauna.
Cold plunge.
Red light therapy.
Don’t be on your phone.
Watch your cortisol levels.
It can be exhausting.
Because sometimes in our effort to overcome anxiety, we end up creating more of it.
Listen, I love most of the items on that list. I try to follow many of them, and they’ve helped me in practical ways. I’m all in on cold plunging, morning sunlight, and resistance training.
My problem isn’t with routines or healthy habits.
My issue is when life becomes about optimizing every detail instead of living it to the full each day.
There are times my kids want to talk to me late at night, and that means I don’t get the perfect sleep score.
Sometimes I want to have a piece of cake (or two) with my family when we’re celebrating a win or a birthday.
If a friend reaches out and needs help, I want to say yes—even if it means missing a workout.
There are seasons when I’m launching something God has put in my heart, and it’s a lot of work. I’m pretty sure that spikes my cortisol levels.
And that’s okay.
Have a plan.
Decide the rhythms and priorities that matter to you.
Challenge yourself.
But don’t let the perfect picture of an optimized life keep you from living yours.
What if the life you’re trying so hard to optimize is already the life God wants you to enjoy?
The goal isn’t perfection. It’s being present to what matters most - to God, and to you.
I don’t think Paul always got his Zone 2 cardio in.
But he lived a life that still bears fruit 2,000 years later.
What’s helped me is simplifying all those ideals into 8 simple daily rhythms I try to live by. These have become the core practices we focus on in The Steadfast Way:
Pause – Stop throughout the day to pray and talk to God
Praise – Intentionally practice gratitude
Engage – Have a meaningful conversation with my wife or kids
Enjoy – Do something I love, even if it’s just for 5 minutes
Lift – Train my body
Learn – Challenge my mind
Encourage – Reach out and inspire a friend or co-worker in their calling
Execute – Accomplish my top priority at work
These practices help me focus on the right rhythms without getting overwhelmed by what the details have to look like.
I coach leaders every week on how to design a life they’re proud of - one that’s full, intentional, and aligned with who God created them to be.
If I can help you do the same, send me a message and let’s talk.