Switchbacks

Sometimes it makes sense to put in effort for the sake of effort. (Image by Alina Kuptsova)

When playing a musical instrument, proper technique is the path of least resistance.

It only seems more difficult to use correct technique if you’ve developed a habit of playing a different way.

You are actually more effective when you work less hard.

As with a lot of physical skills from weight-lifting to running to using a kitchen knife, refining your technique is actually a matter of removing unnecessary effort, doing the most with the least. This makes the work more sustainable and prevents injury from repetitive movements.

Incorrect technique tends to result from going too fast or trying too hard — or both. The singer who is straining for a note and the knitter with a death grip on the needles have this in common.

Graeson Harris-Young, who teaches mindful posture, draws his students’ attention to the bodily tension that results from resisting gravity — from lifting away from the earth instead of settling into its support. Even a seemingly passive activity like sitting can be full of effort when it doesn’t have to be.

All of that extra work makes every task more difficult. It makes life more difficult. Our fingers don’t have to press down piano keys, for instance — all we have to do is drop the weight of our arm into the key with the aid of gravity. This allows us to flow across the keys swiftly and effortlessly.

Pushing ourselves to work hard is like climbing straight up a mountain. But unless we’ve got something to prove, we humans, throughout history, pretty much never climb straight up a mountain.

We use switchbacks, which allow us to hike across the face of a slope instead of straight up. That way, the path is longer but less steep.

The total work to get to the summit is less, even though there is greater distance traveled.

The culture that many of us grew up in causes us to resist this idea. Perhaps it seems more virtuous to scale up a rocky face, or more heroic.

Perhaps it seems lazy to hike the path with the more moderate incline, taking the easy way out.

Ironically, doing things the hard way is often far less productive. If you refuse to use the switchback trail, your donkey and cart won’t be able to accompany you and haul many pounds of stuff on your behalf.

And putting in excessive effort can also be a way of avoiding a more meaningful challenge. For instance, if I spend all my time doing menial chores, I’ll run out of time for writing.

Or we might hide behind the kind of effort we’re used to in order to prevent unfamiliar experiences like free time, relaxation, or success.

As with any change, transforming these habits is hard work in itself. But it’s worth it, not only for the greater productivity we get to have at a lesser cost, but also for the personal growth that transformation represents.

We do have to work, even if it’s simply the work of feeding our bodies and keeping them upright. But we can design the work so that it takes less out of us. We can make use of all kinds of tools and support. We can learn from other people instead of figuring everything out on our own. And we can take the switchbacks instead of the steeper direct route. Both get to the same place in the end, but one leaves us with a lot more energy and enthusiasm for what’s next.