You Can’t Sharpen the Knife While You’re Swinging It

Why Leaders Need to Step Back

True effectiveness comes not just from effort, but from perspective. When you’re deep in the weeds, you lose sight of the bigger picture. That’s when blind spots appear — and blind spots in business often lead to missed opportunities, costly mistakes, and burnout.

Sharpening the knife means giving yourself permission to pause and invest in your tools:

• Clarity and Focus – Slowing down isn’t wasted time. It’s where your best ideas surface.

• Perspective – When you step out of the daily grind, you see your business from angles you couldn’t before.

• Strength and Sustainability – Leaders who take the time to sharpen themselves — whether through education, planning, or strategy — are the ones who last.
  
  

The Cost of Always Swinging

If you never pause, your edge dulls. That shows up in many ways:

• Decisions made in haste that don’t serve your long-term goals.

• Reactive choices that solve today’s problem but create tomorrow’s headache.

• Exhaustion that leaves you without energy for innovation or growth.
  
  

What Sharpening Looks Like in Business

At Rae’s Accounting, we see this every day with financial planning and tax strategy. Too often, business owners come to us at the last minute — tax season in full swing — with no time left to make meaningful changes. They’ve been swinging the knife all year, and by April, the blade is too dull to cut cleanly.

But when leaders pause throughout the year — reviewing cash flow, preparing for tax law changes, strategizing for growth — everything shifts. Suddenly, the knife is sharp again. Choices are intentional. Stress goes down. Savings and opportunities go up.

Ask Yourself This Week

👉 When was the last time you stopped swinging long enough to sharpen the knife?

Maybe that means stepping away for a few hours to rethink your business model. Maybe it’s scheduling time with your tax strategist before the year-end rush. Maybe it’s simply allowing yourself to breathe and plan instead of react.

Your future self — and your business — will thank you for taking that time.