The Battle Between Striving for More and Doing Too Much

This morning I read Stop Doing Too Much:  The "Minimum Effective Dose" for Teachers on Matt Miller's Ditch That Textbook blog.

In this post, Matt states, "I believe that I, as well as many other teachers, do too much."

Matt continues by describing all the ways that teachers expend effort/resources that don't push the needle in terms of the change that they want to make.

Matt also refers to the "minimum effective dose" principle as it relates to boiling water.

Matt states that, "Water boils at 212 degrees.  Higher temperatures will not make it 'more boiled.' Higher temperatures just consume more resources that could be used for something more productive."

This post reminded me of the message in the inspirational video below titled 212 Degrees- The Extra Degree.

In 212 Degrees, the message is that trying just a little harder, giving that extra degree of effort, makes all the difference.

So, I'm curious.  Are we constantly pushing for an extra degree?  Do we need to occasionally step back and evaluate our efforts based on the "minimum effective dose" principle?

What are we doing that is making the most impact?  What efforts or resources could be reallocated to increase our productivity?

Educators, what do you think?