Aesop’s famous fable The Hare and the Tortoise says it all: Slow and steady wins the race. Any long-distance runner will tell you that maintaining a sprint speed over an extended stretch is simply not feasible. In order to establish a rhythm that allows the body to fuel itself and recharge for the long haul, slow and steady really is the ticket. A good lesson for those of us who tend toward living life in the fast lane, rarely stopping to get our bearings or to re-assess our chosen path.

We happen to live in an ever-accelerating world, where more work, more communication, more time spent being “on” is touted as the only way to live and get ahead. Paralleling this trend is the ever-growing number of studies and articles citing that an increasing percentage of our population is suffering from chronic fatigue, adrenal failure, depression, insomnia, poor heart health, and obesity. The two are inexorably linked: The more we go, go, go, pushing our systems to take on additional stressors, the more our physical and emotional states decline.

So why do we do it? Why do we take on more when we know, deep down, that we’re already exhausted or pressed to our limit? Answering this question honestly will provide insight that could help turn down the speed of your full-to-the-brim-and-then-some life.

There are two common answers to the question of why we chose to keeping running on empty:

1.    Because so-and-so (my boss, my husband, my mother) wanted/needed me to take care of something.

2.    Because I had some extra time and thought I should use it to do something “productive.”

In the first case, it’s important that you understand how often you undertake additional tasks for someone else. If you are being asked to add things to your plate at the behest of others, take stock and notice if those activities make up the majority of your to-do’s. Though it is important that we be willing to help others, that doesn’t mean that we have to yield to their requests so much that we become fatigued or resentful. Balance your to-do list so that you are attending to your needs and wants at least as much as you are others’. This includes at home and at work.

In the second instance, beware of creating busy work. Cultivating an attitude of “more is more” will eventually lead to anxiety and burn-out. Just because you have extra time in your schedule doesn’t mean you have to fill it by using every spare moment to talk on the cell phone, surf the Internet, or rework an already-comprehensive sales report. Watch this tendency to keep going, even when you don’t have to. You’ll have to become your own best coach in these situations, reminding yourself when you are overdoing it with unnecessary time-fillers.

Once you start whittling down the to-do’s a bit and stop filling every single second with a task, you might be surprised by what you discover. By slowing down, we make space for the things that matter, and learn about what doesn’t matter as much as we thought. This practice will undoubtedly leave you with more time to complete the activities that you do need to get done. To listen to your spouse with more clarity and focus. To eat lunch away from your desk. Or to take a nap because you feel tired.

We have been taught that fast and efficient is the only way. It’s up to us to take charge, step out of the fast lane, and remind ourselves that slow and steady does win the race.