If you know Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits, then you are familiar with “Sharpening the Saw.”
Sharpening the saw is about self-renewal.
It is about recharging ourselves. Improving ourselves.
So that we can continue to perform at our best.
However, can you sharpen the saw too much?
Too Much Practice, Not Enough Game
A friend of mine has been sharpening the saw for many years.
Specifically, he is a writer. And he does what any writer does… he writes.
He has practiced. He has learned. And he has honed his craft.
In fact, he has written several books. But, no one has ever read them.
Why? He feels he still needs to practice.
And instead of getting in the game, he continues to sharpen his saw.
You can never win, if all you do is practice.
You can’t score if you are sitting on the sidelines.
Do you know someone who has practiced their craft, yet never gotten in the game?
Too Much Sharpening
The example above holds true whether you are talking about a skill, your physical fitness, or almost anything.
You can overdo it to the point that you are neglecting your daily life.
Or you can overdo it by continuing to prepare when you are already ready.
Too much of anything, even a good thing, is still too much.
You may be Sharpening the Saw too much if…
- All You Do is Practice – Too much practice, leads to too little doing. Do the practice, but then take action. Get in the game.
- You Are Too Internally Focused – You may be focusing so much on your internal improvement that you are not aware of others and what is going on around you. Don’t forget to take a look outside yourself once in a while.
- Other Priorities Suffer – If you are obsessed with one thing you may let other things suffer. Sharpening the saw is important, but not at the cost of other priorities.
- Stuff is Not Getting Done – One sign that you are spending too much time sharpening the saw, is that things are not getting done. Renewal is important, but you have to get your work done, as well.
- You Are Obsessed With Being Perfect – Can you be too sharp? Yes. You may be the best you can be, but your sharpening is a waste if it never gets utilized. To paraphrase Patton, “A good solution now, is better than a perfect one next week.”
Use the Saw
Renew yourself.
However, don’t lose sight of the day-to-day.
Keep the balance between renewal and doing.
You can sharpen your saw all day long.
But, if you never use it… it is just wasted effort.
Do you do too much sharpening and not enough doing?
Craig,
Great topic!
It is very easy to fall into this trap.
There is just SO much material on the web (articles, blogs, videos, podcasts) that you can consume. Yet, that is just theory and you are jumping from one piece of education/training to another.
I have been guilty of this myself, but I have promised to slow down 🙂
Spending time on just learning theory is waste of time. Until you take action on what you learn, that’s when the real self improvement happens.
Timo
Craig,
Great topic!
It is very easy to fall into this trap.
There is just SO much material on the web (articles, blogs, videos, podcasts) that you can consume. Yet, that is just theory and you are jumping from one piece of education/training to another.
I have been guilty of this myself, but I have promised to slow down 🙂
Spending time on just learning theory is waste of time. Until you take action on what you learn, that’s when the real self improvement happens.
Timo
Craig,
Great topic!
It is very easy to fall into this trap.
There is just SO much material on the web (articles, blogs, videos, podcasts) that you can consume. Yet, that is just theory and you are jumping from one piece of education/training to another.
I have been guilty of this myself, but I have promised to slow down 🙂
Spending time on just learning theory is waste of time. Until you take action on what you learn, that’s when the real self improvement happens.
Timo
Craig,
Great topic!
It is very easy to fall into this trap.
There is just SO much material on the web (articles, blogs, videos, podcasts) that you can consume. Yet, that is just theory and you are jumping from one piece of education/training to another.
I have been guilty of this myself, but I have promised to slow down 🙂
Spending time on just learning theory is waste of time. Until you take action on what you learn, that’s when the real self improvement happens.
Timo
1. I hated that book. Advice is too generic and non-operational.
2. That said, you need to read ‘Talent Is Overrated’ by Geoff Colvin. His thesis is that it’s not merely practice that makes you better, but deliberate practice. You’ll have to read it to get the whole gist.
3. I still hate that book.
@Zen_Ken Which book? 😉 Just kidding.
@Zen_Ken Which book? 😉 Just kidding.
1. I hated that book. Advice is too generic and non-operational.
2. That said, you need to read ‘Talent Is Overrated’ by Geoff Colvin. His thesis is that it’s not merely practice that makes you better, but deliberate practice. You’ll have to read it to get the whole gist.
3. I still hate that book.
1. I hated that book. Advice is too generic and non-operational.
2. That said, you need to read ‘Talent Is Overrated’ by Geoff Colvin. His thesis is that it’s not merely practice that makes you better, but deliberate practice. You’ll have to read it to get the whole gist.
3. I still hate that book.
@Zen_Ken Which book? 😉 Just kidding.
@Zen_Ken Which book? 😉 Just kidding.
I cannot even count how many times I have tried to make something perfect before I do it and then never do it. I keep telling myself, I need this “one” more thing to make it perfect and that one thing never comes.
I cannot even count how many times I have tried to make something perfect before I do it and then never do it. I keep telling myself, I need this “one” more thing to make it perfect and that one thing never comes.
I cannot even count how many times I have tried to make something perfect before I do it and then never do it. I keep telling myself, I need this “one” more thing to make it perfect and that one thing never comes.
If you spend all your time sharpening the saw, you may become a saw sharpener 😉 – as an analogy to personal development coaching.
If you spend all your time sharpening the saw, you may become a saw sharpener 😉 – as an analogy to personal development coaching.
If you spend all your time sharpening the saw, you may become a saw sharpener 😉 – as an analogy to personal development coaching.