Hey peps
We are all guilty of procrastinating from time to time (and here’s a simple way to stop).
This week (during a moment of procrastination) I received an email from Ali Abdaal.
The email contained 4 procrastination related quotes that made me think about unhealthy late night Netflix binges, taking some time out and how to handle stress.
I hope they inspire you to take action.
1 - Procrastination as Imbalance
You say, I must have rest. Assuredly; but nature appoints a measure for rest, just as for eating and drinking. In rest you go beyond these limits, and beyond what is enough; but in action you do not fill the measure, and remain well within your powers.
Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
2 - Procrastination as Coping Strategy
Avoidance Coping; any strategy for managing a stressful situation in which a person does not address the problem directly but instead disengages from the situation and averts attention from it. In other words, the individual turns away from the processing of threatening information.
American Psychological Association, APA Dictionary of Psychology
3 - Procrastination as Naivety
It’s not that procrastinators don’t like the concept of doing. They look at the bricks on their calendar and they think, “Great, this will be fun.” And that’s because when they picture the moment in the future when they sit down and knock out a work session, they picture things without the presence of the Instant Gratification Monkey.
Procrastinators’ visions of future scenarios never seem to include the monkey. But when the actual moment arrives to begin that scheduled brick-laying, the procrastinator does what the procrastinator does best—he lets the monkey take over and ruin everything.
Tim Urban, Why Procrastinators Procrastinate
4 - Procrastination as Revenge
[Revenge Bedtime Procrastination is…] a psychological phenomenon, where people stay up later than they desire in an attempt to have control over the night, because they perceive themselves (perhaps subconsciously) to lack influence over events during the day.
Daphne K. Lee, How “Revenge Bedtime Procrastination” Explains Modern Life
Enjoy your weekly dose of marginal gains!
🚀 Performance Hacks
5 Benefits of Starting Your Morning Routine (7mins)
“If you win the morning, you win the day” - Tim Ferriss
I started my morning routine over 10 years ago when I launched my first business while working full time as a property lawyer. I reasoned that the only way I could generate some additional time to work on my startup, fit in exercise and work my day job, was to wake up earlier and be intentional about how I start my day. In this video I set out 5 benefits I’ve experienced as a result.
How to unlock your Greatness (45mins)
I’d never heard of Vex King before but his story is truly inspirational. As a motivational speaker and coach, he discusses how understanding good vibes leads to high performance and the simplest things you can do to achieve a positive mindset. If you're a football fan, Vex was behind Jesse Lingard’s success at West Ham last. Well worth a watch.
🧠 Brain Food
Book: 24 Assets. I’ve read this book 4/5 times and each time I learn something new. If you’re looking to start your ow business, or you’ve started and want to scale, this book is well worth reading. It provides you with a method for building a business that becomes a valuable asset and transforming an organisation into something scalable, digital and fun. Check out the accompanying 24 Asset Diagnostic Benchmark where you can compare your business against 24 categories of assets and identifies opportunities for growth, funding, acquisition and exit.
🎙️ Blog Post: The Shortness of Time. We’re quick to call people crazy when they needlessly waste money. However, all of us waste something far more important every day - time. “The amount of time we get is uncertain, yet we know it’s limited. We can’t make any more of it.” This post explains four ways we misunderstand spending time.
📱 Tools + Tech
💻 App: Zero. I’ve been intermittent fasting for over 5 years because of the health and longevity benefits you gain as a result. One of the biggest challenges used to be keeping track of the start and end times for my fast. That all changed last summer when I was introduced to Zero. Tracking your fasts is just one of the benefits of the app. It helps you build a habit for a longer life and you get really helpful guidance from leading experts in the field of health, nutrition, longevity and metabolic wellbeing. Easy to use and super helpful, if you’ve been thinking about fasting or want to up your fasting game - choose Zero. As always, it’s FREE to start using the app!
🐦 Tweet: Here are 10 numbers you should know in 2022. I know 7 of mine. Do you know all of yours?
Interesting: For a full breakdown of the Spotify’s business and how it “controls attention”, check out this Trapital essay.
✍🏾 Quote of the Week
“Taking action is the single most important piece in solving the puzzle of success.”
From Success Habits of High Achievers by Vishal Pandey. Resurfaced using Readwise.