Not Every War Is Yours to Fight
After a bit more than ten years into my professional life, I've reached the stage where I can quite confidently say what works and what doesn't. Or at least I think I can. Or at least I can tell what usually works for myself, which might be different from what works for you.
God, it already became unnecessarily complicated after a couple of sentences. But anyway, here it is:
Pick your battles.
Not every war is yours. Not every point is worth fighting for. What is important is to know when to use your energy to fight.
In my work as a software development teacher and an athletics coach, there are a lot of battles I could pick every week. Every day, even. Starting my career, I would have picked them all, but as time progressed and experience increased, I've become more selective. I know better now when to stay out of discussions. Not always because the outcome is not important, but because it doesn't feel important enough to me.
Arguments back and forth about the naming of courses in our educational program? Be my guest, but I'm more concerned with their contents and what my students learn.
A back-and-forth about when our club's athletic track will be cleaned and restored? Do it whenever, as long as I know the dates in advance so I can prepare alternative training locations.
Nitpicking on small details in a presentation? Oh, pick whatever color you want, my friend, as long as the general ideas can still be transferred.
I know better than to fight every battle that appears on the road. My week is filled with many things that already require a lot of energy. Be my guest and fight these battles without me. I'm just here to try and win the war.