> If I wasn’t tired, there’s no way I could be doing a great job at all of those things
His point might have been that when you are tired your ability to do a great job is severely lessened compared to when you are not, this includes your ability to realistically evaluate how good of a job you are doing. Being tired means that you have impaired working memory, attention (especially vigilance), descision making abilities and general cognitive function.
I can't think of a more important predictor to the ability to get work done for long periods of time than knowing how to manage your life and time enough to not be tired all the time. They don't give a shit about how many hours you work, they care about how much necessary work you get done.
There's a trade-off to make here obviously, sometimes it's worth it. Some tasks can still be done if you are operating at 50% of your abilities, but if running a startup and parenting were that easy our world would be quite different.
I won't speculate on the specific situation you talk about because I don't know the details and you do. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt.
That said, your post rubbed me the wrong way because it's too much like the common geek macho bullshit that's too common in this community. You can't bully your brain into working better just with a self-help pep talk full of bland aphorisms and completely ignorant of modern knowledge about health and productivity. And you might want to avoid the comparisons to athletics - elite athletes talk about and track their rest obsessively. They don't show up to a tryout injured and defensively complain when it's pointed out.
(In my experience,) Tired isn't sustainable. It might indeed prove you have the grit to make it, but don't make a lifestyle out of it please.
I love the ending of your article! Cheer up. You're the one running the company, what the hell do the VCs know. They get a pay check regardless of how many hours they show up for work. high five
Some people thrive on finding other peoples' weaknesses, especially those based upon appearances. In PUA terms they're negging you.
I get your point and I believe that quite sucks.
There might be a number of reasons why they do that. Maybe it's just a reason they give for rejection while the real reason is somewhat uncomfortable to say. Maybe they are afraid that you will burn out (and that's legitimate concern, take a break!). Maybe someone enthusiastic just gives a better feeling, vibe, something not very conscious. Because while you are with someone energetic, optimistic, you suddenly become like him. When you are with someone exhausted, you might start to feel the same.
I get your pain, I respect your hard work, but I'd suggest to put yourself in their shoes - maybe there's something you haven't noticed? :)
Obviously if you feel tired you won't function at 100%, but even worse, people who've accumulated a sleep debt (or approx. equivalently, borrowed extra hours of wakefulness), may report feeling rested and yet still suffer severe performance deficits:
http://graehl.org/2013/02/21/chronic-6hrnight-sleep-incompet...
A great article. The point of not only working hard for your career but working hard to build a great family is really refreshing. Too often we see people going, "all in", on one aspect of their lives, whether that is career or personal enjoyment. The balance described might make him tired, but as he said that is a really good thing.
I'm really tired too.
The really strong guy at the gym has probably figured out the importance of rest. If you just watched him dead lift a ton of weight, odds are very good that he didn't dead lift the day before, even if he was at the gym working on something else. He also probably takes an entire week of active rest after every 6-8 weeks of heavy lifting. He's working his ass off, but he's also being smart about it.