It was 2 am. We had been playing Nintendo since the early afternoon. Legend of Zelda, baby. We were stuck. We were bleary-eyed. But there was no stopping until we finished the next labyrinth.
When you are deep in a game, there is no stopping. You don’t need to conjure perseverance. You can’t stop*.
The old saying goes, “all work and no play make Jack a dull boy”. The cheat code is to flip it and prioritize games over jobs.
You know when work is play – and if it isn’t, you also know.
Let the games begin.
*Not stopping doesn’t mean beating your head against a wall. Sometimes you have to quit. To quote Phil Knight from his excellent biography, Shoe Dog, “Sometimes you have to give up. Sometimes knowing when to give up, when to try something else, is genius. Giving up doesn't mean stopping. Don't ever stop.