September 15, 2025, marks the first day of a fast my husband and I are doing with our church, Transformation Church. Over the years, I’ve fasted from many things: sugar, alcohol, social media, and even TV.
This time, my husband smiled and said, “I think yours should be coffee.”
Instant resistance. I love my morning ritual. The warmth, the smell, the rhythm. I agreed, but inside I knew, I wasn’t convinced.
All weekend, the question lingered: Is coffee really what God is asking me to release?
If you’ve never prayed for direction, here’s what it feels like for me:
“God, I pray that you reveal to me the direction you have for me with fasting next week. I release control and allow you to guide me.”
And then you wait. Sometimes the answer comes as a whisper. Sometimes it comes as the same lesson repeating itself until you finally learn.
That’s what happened to me over the past two weeks. Everywhere I looked, I saw nudges about focus, potential, and execution.
And then it hit me:
- I hadn’t chosen coffee because it was my true distraction.
- I had chosen it because my husband suggested it.
- It looked like alignment, but really, it was appeasement.
Here’s the guidance I received:
“You’ve built a structure that looks like alignment, but it’s actually distracting you. You’re still doing it your way, and it’s keeping you from what you truly want, and what I’ve called you to do.”
That stung. But it also freed me.
Instead of fasting from coffee, I’m fasting from false structures, the ones that make me feel productive but actually keep me from my 20%.
Here’s how it looks in practice:
- Two daily deep work blocks focused only on the 20% of priorities that move the needle.
- No phone until 11AM and starting every day with prayer, journaling, reading, meditation, and walking.
- In-person meetings only on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
- Ending each day no later than 4:30PM and shifting into what I have coined “vacation mode” for the remainder of the day, which includes rest, play, and presence.
The formula is simple:
Seeking < Solitude in Season + Structure = Synergy
And the leadership principle behind it is one I learned 27 years ago at JP Morgan Chase:
Twenty percent of your efforts drive eighty percent of your results.
Most leaders know this. Fewer live it.
That’s why they stay exhausted, busy in the 80% instead of impactful in the 20%.
But you don’t have to. You can fast from what’s distracting you, and finally lead in the 20%.
So here’s my question for you:
What one comfort, distraction, or false structure could you fast from this week so you can unlock your true 20%?
Share in the comments. I want to know.