Each day has a limit. Sometimes you can predict when you’ve hit it, but more often than not you’re surprised. You thought you could do more, thought there was more time, more energy, more of something.

But then the end of the day approaches and you have to make a decision. You can keep going at the thing you were doing, or you can put it up for the next day. The third option is to pause, then come back. 

Over the last few years I’ve leaned toward pausing and coming back fresh. Doing so creates a forcing function. You have to get something done because you won’t just work on it forever. The end of the day is coming, wrap it up. 

You also know that you’re never too far from stopping, from spending time with people you love, from taking a break. 

That’s not to say there aren’t periods of time where you stay at it longer. I’ve done plenty of that. But it’s rarely worth it. 

Stopping and coming back the next day also lends toward a healthier response to work in the long run. 

I’ll keep experimenting with this.