People are not suited to stay in a state of high tension for the long term. From a physiological perspective, the human stress response system is designed for short-term threats. When danger appears, stress hormones are rapidly released, and the body enters a state of readiness; once the crisis is over, the system naturally subsides, restoring balance. This is an efficient but inherently short-lived mechanism. The problem is that modern society prolongs this stress response, which should be brief, into a daily norm. People remain on constant “standby” under long-term high pressure, but their bodies and brains can never fully exit the fight-or-flight mode. This state does not improve efficiency; instead, it gradually erodes the immune system and damages neural functions, leading to chronic overexertion.

Long-term tension truly consumes not just the workload itself, but the uncertain, endless sense of urgency. You cannot predict when the next crisis will occur, so every moment is spent exhausting mental energy on defense preparations. Work ceases to be a process of creating value and becomes merely a survival drain. A more insidious and dangerous impact manifests in the decline of cognitive abilities. Continuous stress hormones damage brain regions related to memory and decision-making, causing issues such as decreased attention, impaired memory, and frequent judgment errors. Many seemingly “degraded abilities” are essentially the brain’s self-protective slowdown after overloading. You think you are persevering, but in fact, you are overdrawing.

Some may believe that in fierce competition, if you don’t stay tense, you will be eliminated. But psychology has long shown that truly efficient states do not stem from sustained pressure, but from situations where challenge and ability are matched, and individuals feel a sense of control. Long-term tension destroys this sense of control, leaving only conditioned reflex stress responses, which in turn eliminate the possibility of creativity and deep thinking. Therefore, what needs to be distinguished is: stress cannot be completely eliminated, but continuous tension can be avoided. The key is not to escape work, but to establish boundaries and a sense of rhythm—recognize what are genuine challenges and what are merely contagious anxieties of others; learn to switch between sprinting and recovery, rather than treating everything as an emergency.

Those who can go far are often not the most tense, but those who understand rhythm best. They focus intensely when needed, and truly shut down the “standby mode” after finishing, allowing the brain to recover. Since human energy is not unlimited, constantly denying oneself space to breathe will ultimately lead to a sharp decline in efficiency. Life is a marathon, not a 100-meter dash with no end. Truly worthwhile achievements require sustainable passion and a balanced rhythm, not long-term nerve tension like a wire that could snap at any moment. We must learn to distinguish: what challenges promote growth, and what are chronic drains on life. The former can be exhausting but still fulfilling; the latter silently depletes a person without notice.