“Inch by inch, life’s a cinch. Yard by yard, life’s hard.” -John Bytheway

This is a powerful quote I came across while reading one of my mindfulness books. It’s a message I like to remember when I have a big list of stuff to do, and it reminds me to work through tasks patiently and focus on one objective at a time.

Whether it’s at work or home, sometimes we get overwhelmed by chores, deadlines, goals and other “must-do” things throughout the day that can lead to stress. I think this quote relates to these kind of situations. Multitasking can be hard (yard by yard), and I think it’s better focusing on one thing at a time (inch by inch).

Of course, if one is a chef working a dinner rush hour at a booked resturaunt, then multitasking is a must. However, in other situations I think it’s better to work smoothly and delicately through our work, focusing one small task at a time. To me that’s the meaning of “inch by inch”, rather than rushing to get everything done at once and likely tripping over ourselves in the process.