I'm tired, I'm not myself and I'm not enjoying the sport as I have done for the last decade. Some might recognise it as burnout; I just know that over the last few years I haven't had the answers.
In the last five years, what have you become better at saying no to?
Question
What is an unusual habit or an absurd thing that you love?
Daily life
Question
What small daily thing do you do that most people would consider a waste of time?
Daily life
Do restrict your browsing to a few websites a day. Don’t go near the online bookies – unless it’s research. […] Do not search amazon.co.uk for the book you haven’t written yet.
The Guardian Review, 20 February 2010 source ↗
Others on this question
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Adam Peaty
British swimmer; Olympic champion 2016 and 2021
Recorded
Public statement announcing his break from swimming, April 2023, The Independent, 1 July 2023
source ↗
Simone Biles
United States artistic gymnast
I just felt like it would be a little bit better to take a back seat, work on my mindfulness. And I knew that the girls would do an absolutely great job and I didn't want to risk the team a medal for kind of my screw ups because they've worked way too hard for that. So I just decided that those girls need to go in and do the rest of the competition.
Recorded
Post-competition press conference, Ariake Gymnastics Centre, Tokyo Olympics, Rev, 27 July 2021
source ↗
Peter Doherty
Veterinary surgeon and immunologist; Nobel laureate in Physiology or Medicine, 1996
On returning to Brisbane, I realised fairly quickly that I am an experimentalist at heart. A career as a diagnostic virologist was not for me!
Recorded
Laureate-written autobiography for Les Prix Nobel, Nobel Prize Outreach, 1 December 1996
source ↗
Ory Okolloh
Co-founder of Ushahidi; lawyer and open-government activist
I am personally passionate and anal about non-negotiables. If those needs aren't met, I quit. Life is too short to play-act if you don't have to.
More from Roddy Doyle
View profile →Do keep a thesaurus, but in the shed at the back of the garden or behind the fridge, somewhere that demands travel or effort. Chances are the words that come into your head will do fine, eg “horse”, “ran”, “said”.
Do, occasionally, give in to temptation. Wash the kitchen floor, hang out the washing. It’s research.
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- In the last five years, what new belief, behaviour, or habit has most improved your life? 20 answers
- What does the first sixty minutes of your day look like? 16 answers
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