Doing everything you want consistently every day is impossible…But would you be satisfied with accomplishing 80%?
The brand new mansion, sports car or trophy wife/husband; I hope you don’t see all happiness this way as they all have a diminishing return… Wouldn’t you prefer to have confidence, competency and overall enhanced well-being? Making daily progress is the better way (According to Timothy A Pychyl Ph.D. from pscrhologytoday.com*) Once you have clarity through defining your own goals it’s time to look out how you can optimise your life to double your progress:
1.Reduce your dopamine hits- Most people view these as just something you do everyday: Scrolling through news feeds on social media, checking your phone, watching Netflix, over indulging on sugary foods… These are all considered as instant gratification. By themselves they aren’t harmful but when they slowly start to take up more and more of your day, they start controlling you; It becomes an addiction to get that next high…
Why do we need to be aware of this? (According to Trevor Haynes and Rebecca Clements from Harvard University) If we don’t get this under control they can lead to minor panic and anxiety attacks…There are several ways to manage your dopamine hits: 1.Allocating a time slot at the end of the day to send all your messages/posts (for example on iPhones you can set a time limit for how long you have access to Instagram) 2.Having a dedicated reader or device (i.e. your tablet being the only device that has the social media apps installed) 3.Having a focus or goal for the 30mins/1hour to prevent endless scrolling through other linked pages.
2.Control the type of media we consume– News reporters are in the business of covering stimulating stories; we hear more bad than good… According to an experiment carried out by McGill University in Canada* people tend to have a negative bias when absorbing media as a result of our hardwired biology – (scanning for threats for our survival). This can be broadcasted through social media sites and amplified further by reactions to comments on an individual’s post. Have a zoomed-out perspective and be rational about the ideas you take on… Asking yourself what’s the motive and are these facts or opinions.
3.Taking care of nutrition, exercise and sleep:
Everyone is unique when it comes to diet, there are so many… i.e. Keto, paleo, vegan, water based… Create a system that works for you, try each of them and measure your energy and stress levels (your 2nd nervous system is in your gut)… You may want to also try an elimination diet starting with dairy and gluten then slowly introduce them back to see which makes the most difference. You can use the same method with supplements i.e. Omega 3, individual vitamins, enzymes and electrolytes.
Sleep is so important. Having a night time routine before bed is an effective way to improve quality of sleep. Do what can to change your state, to slow things down (ideas: meditation, stretching or a hot non-caffeinated drink). Use a sleep tracker to measure how effective your routine is, something like a Fitbit which will shows you how many times you’re in deep REM sleep and your sleep cycles… Keep tweaking your routine till you better your quality of sleep.
Exercise has proven to change your brain chemistry in a positive way and can increase serotonin levels (according to health line*) thus reducing stress. I’ll leave it to you to choose your own workout, again measure and track what works best for you. For example, does a long distance run work better than high intensity sprints, or weight training vs kettle bells… etc
4.Habits– Consistently completing your daily tasks. Taking on a systematic approach prevents you from being overwhelmed, most people are paralysed from making too many decisions (resulting in stress). It’s easy to build momentum when things are simple, start off by picking three main areas to work on and add more gradually. A good place to start is to adapt your goals using ‘Benjamin Franklin’s 13 virtues’. Remember to have in mind things can always be tweaked if necessary, getting started is the challenging part.
5.Downtime for play and recharging- Most people overlook and forget schedule this which often leads to burnouts… There are formulas you could use to match your unique thresholds… For example – 11 days working then 3 days off, you could go into further details by having lists of things you’d want to do into in those 3 days to maximise your play whilst also recharging effectively.
I’ve mentioned a few concepts taken from mentors, entrepreneurs and friends that I consider to be in top 5% when it comes to success.
Share these ideas with anyone who is unaware there is a systematic approach to reduce stress and increase productivity.