the world isn't linear.

We like to view the world as linear.

But it’s not.

We think:

I’m gonna put in 8 hours of work, and I’m gonna get 8 hours of output back.

Doesn’t work that way.

The guy in your local grocery store probably works way harder and longer than you are.

Clearly NOT the same output.

then what does matter?

1. What you do

2. How you do it, and

3. Who you do it with

These three are wayyy more important than how hard you work.

what you do

I did my undergrad in Electrical and Electronics. Something I had zero interest in.

But I still ended up doing way above average and ended up graduating with very decent grades.

I did way above average in something I didn’t like.

I took notes, detailed to the T. I studied, actually bringing myself to understand some concepts so I knew what I was reading.

In my 3rd year, I realized.

If I am this good at something I don’t like, imagine if I did something I loved.

That thought broke me.

What you do matters.

Do stuff that excites you to the core.

I understand that life gets in the way, and we all have to do some things that we don’t like.

But find something that truly excites you, and drown in your own curiosity.

Go deeper into that rabbit hole until you find what is worth doing.

And if you can monetize that habit, perfecto.

If not, and if you fail, at least you still get to do something you love.

There’s always a rainbow on the other side.

Don’t get stuck in life’s ways.

The wind keeps blowing in random directions.

Adjust your sails.

how you do it

Task: Chop down a tree in 6 hours.

Tools: You have an axe, but it’s blunt.

You decide to start cutting down the tree, but it takes a fuck ton of time because it’s not as sharp.

You spent 6 whole hours trying to cut down this tree but failed, miserably, when instead…you could have sharpened it for 4 hours.

This quote from Lincoln basically says: ‘Make sure you’ve got the right tools and skills for the job.’

People often have a go at something, fail, and then blame it on the task being too complex.

If the task seemed too complex, why have a go straight at it anyway??

You could break the problem down into simpler, easier action items. Then proceed to check each small task one at a time, and voila! You’ve done the job.

It’s that simple.

I know as you’re reading this it sounds obvious, but we still don’t do it often enough.

Don’t try to play checkers with bishops and knights.

Take a step back and look at the bigger picture.

Then, attack.

who you do it with

I’ve written a previous dial on how you are the sum of the 5 people you hang out with.

It said:

Keep one eye on your friends, and one eye on your enemies.
At least you know what your enemies’ intentions are.

You cannot study in a noisy environment.

The action you are trying to do requires focus, which is null in a loud surrounding, by default.

The more you try to focus, the more you cannot. (we’ve all had that)

The amount of unnecessary conversations we have in a week is ridiculous.

I’m not saying don’t talk to anyone if it’s not about success and motivation, nah nah nah.

All I’m talking about is the conversations where people you’ve barely associated with, tell you what to do, and how to do it.

You know exactly the type of people I’m talking about.

All I will say is this:

They are irrelevant.

You know what to do now, and how to do it.

Why would you take advice from someone whose life you don’t wanna live? 🤷