Protect the tail

Tuesday, July 21

I recently came across something called Prince Rupert’s Drop (absolutely go look it up).

You drop molten glass into cold water, and it cools into a teardrop shape with a long, thin tail. The head of that drop is practically indestructible. I saw one video where it was being smashed by a hydraulic press and it bent the press. Insane.

But! There’s always a but.

If you apply even a tiny amount of pressure to the very tip of its thin tail, the entire thing instantly explodes into dust.

One end is indestructible. The other end, of the same object, is immensely fragile.

A lot of leaders - a lot of us - live exactly like this.

On the outside, they look invincible. They absorb massive amounts of stress, handle the crises, and take the hits for the team.

But behind the scenes, they are falling apart. They neglect their health, their mindset, their relationships.

They leave a long, fragile tail exposed.

And eventually, it doesn't take a crisis to break them. It just takes one minor inconvenience, one stressful day, or one difficult conversation. And a seemingly indestructible person falls apart.

Don't confuse being tough with being whole. Protect your tail.
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Keep chopping wood. 🪵🪓

-Kevin