So, I found myself digging into this fella, Josef Dostál. You know, the canoe guy. Paddles like a machine, wins medals. And I thought, “Alright, what’s the magic trick here? How does someone get to that level?” It can’t just be about having strong arms, right? There’s always more to it than what you see on TV.
My first step, naturally, was to try and figure out his routine. I went online, read some bits and pieces. Seemed like the usual stuff: intense training, diet, mental focus. So, I decided to try a little experiment on myself. Not the canoeing part, mind you. My coordination is terrible. No, I was trying to get a handle on the discipline aspect. I figured if I could just copy that, maybe some of that champion mojo would rub off on my own work, my own life.
I set up this whole system. Woke up super early, even though I’m a night owl. Made these crazy to-do lists. Tried to block out every minute of my day. My ‘Josef Dostál inspired super-focus plan’, I called it. It involved stuff like:
- Strict adherence to a self-made schedule, down to 15-minute blocks.
- Cutting out all ‘distractions’ – which basically meant anything enjoyable.
- Trying to ‘visualize success’ before every boring task.
Let me tell you, it was a complete mess. I wasn’t more productive. I was just more annoyed. And tired. Really, really tired. My coffee intake went through the roof, but my actual output? Pretty sure it went down. I was just going through the motions, feeling like a robot, and a badly programmed one at that.
Then, the other day, I was stuck in traffic. Just sitting there, fuming, because my ‘schedule’ was getting all messed up. And I saw this construction crew working on the roadside. These guys were grafting, proper hard work, in the sun. But during their short break, they weren’t stressing about the next task. They were laughing, sharing a drink, just completely switched off for those ten minutes. Then, buzzer goes, or whatever, and they’re straight back to it, focused again.
It kind of hit me then. This whole ‘discipline’ thing I was trying to force? It wasn’t about turning yourself into a miserable machine. Maybe the real trick, the thing people like Dostál have mastered, isn’t just the grind, but the ability to switch that grind on and off effectively. To be fully present in the work, but also fully present in the rest. It’s not about endless effort; it’s about smart effort. And being able to recharge so you can go hard when you need to.
So, I scrapped my ridiculous ‘super-focus plan.’ I started thinking more about the quality of my focus, not just the quantity of hours I was chained to my desk. And, importantly, I started making sure I actually switched off. Properly. It’s not about being Josef Dostál, the canoeist. I’ll never be that. But understanding that true high performance, in whatever field, probably isn’t about self-inflicted misery, that was my takeaway. It’s more organic, more about rhythm than just brute force. That’s what looking into Josef Dostál, in my own roundabout way, eventually taught me. Took a while to get there, but hey, that’s how these things go, right?
