Working hard on something you are passionate about is a lot like running in a race. The minute you ease back on the throttle, you better hope that your competition doesn't pounce. You better have a big enough lead on your competition to allow yourself to relax. That relaxation time needs to be earned. Too much relaxation breeds complacency. And if you are not in an environment in which you are competing with someone, you really aren't working toward a worth while goal, but just spinning your wheels. You are either living off the spoils of some prior success or inheritance. Work like you are about to be attacked by a pack of rabid dogs or seek out such an environment. Don't get it? Go watch a horse race. Every split second counts. That winning rush of adrenaline is like no other. Should everyone seek out such an environment? No, not everybody all the time. But to never have done so is cowardly. Nobody is successful by working 100% smarter than everyone else 100% of the time. Those that say they do are liars. To do so is like saying they never had a failure, and everything came easy for them. Achieving success is a complete bitch. Those that have the energy and stamina to succeed in the end are the ones who earn the right to slack off. Execution is everything.
