The Sweet Spot

Image by 583286 from Pixabay

Imagine this. You go to your favorite auto mechanic and say to him, please fix my car and please take two weeks and please do a bunch of unnecessary stuff.

Because if some is good, more is better!!

Right? More time on your car and more stuff done obviously results in a better outcome. More, More, More! We want more!!

Or as my friend Andy B explained, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.”

Sometimes you just have to overdo it, apparently.

Sort of the American way isn’t it? No pain, No gain. All or nothing. Get in or get out. Poop or get off the pot! There are too many of these expressions to count! Go big or go home! You know what I am talking about. Everyone does. And, believe it or not, it is most often bad advice. Learning the right amount of anything, not too much or too little, is the art of living.

Am I making a statement for moderation? Nope, this is different. And more subtle. Sometimes the right amount is more than moderate. Sometimes its not. Like I said, this is art. All or none can hold you back, cut into your goals, and keep you from living well. Gosh, I hope my brother-in-law Randy reads this post!!

In medicine, in chemistry, in cooking, in golf, in any human endeavor, there is a concept known as the minimum effective dose. How much input does it take to get the job done? What is the sweet spot? How much cancer medicine to get to remission, how much sodium to get the reaction, how much salt to enhance a steak, how much club speed to make the shot? Moderation won’t get you there, but skill and wisdom will. And skill and wisdom are worth the pursuit.

The sweet spot, the minimum effective dose, is all around us, every day. But many ignore it because it takes time and concentrated effort to find the right amount. How ridiculous would it be for a hurdler on the track to use a pole vault pole? As farcical as this sounds, many of us do it all the time. Going past the minimum effective dose can cause the opposite of the desired outcome. For instance, too much salt can ruin a great steak. Drinking too much water, instead of the right amount, can cause you to lose minerals and be worse off than before. Ever seen grass with too much water? It will turn yellow! Too much back-swing in golf, usually causes a miss-hit. Too many vitamins, expensive yellow pee. It’s everywhere.

And ruthlessly seeking the right amount, the sweet spot, produces the best results.

So many folks come into the office and are surprised how many or how few activator clicks they get on any given visit. If they get a bunch of clicks, they assume they were on the brink of catastrophe. If they don’t get very many, they sense that not much is wrong or that I did not do enough. If I spend more time with time with them, they assume they got more value. If we get done in 90 seconds, they feel they might have been cheated.

In either case the assumptions are wrong. Both of these parameters, how many clicks and how much time, have very little bearing on the outcome. But too many clicks can cause problems and negate the entire adjustment. Equally, too much time in our office can cut into your day or into our ability to serve all who need care. Getting the right amount of input, clicks, and doing it as efficiently as possible, time, is our sweet spot. So let these two things go, how much time it takes and how many clicks, and know that you are getting the right amount.

Please bear that in mind when you come to our office, we are looking for the right amount to get the job done, the results you are seeking.  And also, if your auto mechanic tries to put on new wiper blades after fixing your transmission, be suspect.

Friends, your time and money and health are important to us because we know they are important to you.

If you have areas of your health where you might be overdoing it, let us know, maybe we can help you find the right amount.

Keep it simple!

Cheers,

ks