“Always make a total effort, even when the odds are against you.”

Arnold Palmer 

When is it okay not to give 100% effort? When is it okay to stop trying? If you know you aren’t going to win, is dialing back the effort or intensity okay?

NO! If you are going to do something, do it. Don’t put in 75% effort because you “can’t win” or because “it’s harder than you expected.” The first time you deliver less than you are capable you are lowering the bar and setting a new level of acceptance. If you commit to doing something do it all the way, no excuses, no exceptions.

Why? Because what if you are wrong? What if you are about to achieve the breakthrough necessary to win? What if you are teaching yourself, and others, that giving less than your best is okay? Is that acceptable to you? I would argue that making a total effort, when the odds are against you, is the most important time to give it your all. That’s when you learn what you are made of…