Dear Peter,

Argentina beat England 2-1 in the World Cup semi-final, with Martinez scoring the winner from a Messi pass right at the end.

It’s wild to see exhausted players accomplish something amazing right at the end. Now I see true power is more about letting go than holding on.

We spend so much of our lives trying to avoid the feeling of being empty. We build elaborate routines and pour caffeine down our throats to trick our bodies into a state of perpetual momentum. The thought of our muscles shaking and minds going blank, signifying ultimate failure, terrifies us.

We often forget that the most profound work rarely happens when we are well-rested.

When you are full of energy, your ego is loud. You overcomplicate the work. You add unnecessary flourishes to your craft because you have the excess fuel to do so. But when you are truly, deeply depleted, the ego collapses. You no longer have the caloric energy to pretend or to posture.

You just execute the essentials.

I watched a carpenter work last month. It was late in the afternoon, and the sawdust was clinging to the sweat on his forearms. He had been on the wood for close to nine hours. He wasn’t as energetic as before, but way more dangerous.

Exhaustion strips away the noise. It forces you to rely on the deep, unconscious muscle memory of your discipline rather than the fleeting high of your motivation.

If the work feels overwhelming and you’re drawing a blank or facing a mess with zero energy left, don’t bail. Stay in the room. Let the fatigue settle into your bones. There is a quiet, brutal honesty that only arrives when you have nothing left to give.

Listen to the quiet.

My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. — 2 Corinthians 12:9

Warmly,

Oluboba Ayodeji