#76 Rebuilding

Hi friends,

I’ve recently undertaken a process of deconstructing and examining many aspects of my life, and now comes the rebuilding.

I’ve made many changes to achieve the best physical, mental, and emotional health possible. Here’s a look into my daily habits.

It’s a long list and may seem excessive, but recently, I’ve been thrown off many of my habits, so I’m working to first get back to baseline, and then grow.

Why am I following these?

They’re not intended to be a recipe for success but for balance. So, on a Tuesday evening (just after drafting this post), when a loved one unexpectedly called, I could answer and give the conversation my full attention because everything else was in order.

The goal of success is to have the time, energy, and resources to enjoy what matters most.

Sleep

• Optimise conditions for quality sleep (e.g. meal timings, blue light from screens)

• Synchronising circadian rhythm (sleep cycle) with the sun (I’ve brought forward my sleep and wake times)

• Read fiction before bed

Morning routine: I do these before commencing any work to ensure that each day begins with a focus on my own physical, mental, and emotional health. Only you have your best interests at heart, so start the day working for yourself before anyone else.

• Exposure to sunlight within 30 minutes of waking

• Note one person and one thing I’m grateful for

• Journal thoughts and emotions

• Gym/run

Work

• Focus on ‘What needs to get done?’ instead of ‘What can I get done?’

• Working with clear intentionality on 1-3 daily critical tasks in very intense focused boosts, ignoring everything else during that time

• Follow the 80/20 rule: 20% of the input creates 80% of the output

Commitments

• Default to ‘No’ unless it is a ‘Hell yeah’

• Saying ‘No’ to anything likely to cause stress

• Create slack in my schedule to remove time pressure

Health

• Ensure most weekly caloric intake comes from healthy whole foods

• No alcohol unless on very select occasions (two toasts, to people’s lives, in the past months)

• Regular stretching, mobility, and foam rolling, minimising sitting time

Information consumption

• Consume content with clear intentionality

• Significant reduction in knowledge intake, ensuring this by committing myself to write a few brief words on the key takeaway of anything consumed

• Cap total daily social media time to 15 minutes (apps lock me out after this limit)

Nature

• Long daily walks in nature

• Spending as much time outside as possible, including meals

• Ensuring idle time every day to simply ‘do nothing’ and therefore think

• Appreciate simple things around me daily (like the sunset currently glowing in my flat)

Connection

• Be open with people, and regularly communicate thoughts and feelings, even if it means difficult conversations

• Spending quality time with loved ones and close friends

• Meet people one-on-one outside of established groups for deeper conversations

Implementation idea

Ask yourself:

1. Are my daily habits aligned with what’s important in my life?

2. What changes could I make to improve this?

Best, AJ.

You can now listen to me narrate Plane Thoughts each week: link

On my bedside table:

• Fiction: The Confession by John Grisham (link)

• Article: As Nvidia Goes, So Does the Valuation of US Stocks, John Authors, Bloomberg (link)

Comments, questions, disagreements? Hit reply to reach out to me directly.

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