Tag: advice

Well, I officially escaped the 27 club. Another candle on the cake, ring around the tree trunk, cycle around the fiery star at the center of our solar system…I’ve been able to rack up more miles on this fleshly vehicle that is my body. Cheers to that. Following up on my list from last year that was higher level insights, I’ve added some “rules for life” here that I like for their tactical nature. Here’s to continued progress and implementation. One day better, every day, for all days.

1. When getting on a metro, wear your backpack in front of you. This will stop you from being robbed and bumping into people unnecessarily.
2. When walking into a public bathroom, take the closest toilet, it’s been scientifically proven to be the cleanest, while most people assume it’s not.
3. Utilize small talk as a metric in order to gauge basic evolutionary principles: is this person a threat? Anything off-putting? If they can handle a basic conversation, then they most likely will be able to interact on a deeper level.
4. In a world of ever-growing AI, IQ is a depreciating asset while EQ is an appreciating asset. Most people listen to others with the intention to reply. Some listen with the intention to learn. But very few people listen with the intention to understand. When we do this, we can build out a map of the other person, and understand how this new information fits into their overall goals, dreams, and core values that they believe in. Hard skills can and will be automated, but the ability to truly know someone, what they stand for, and be able to relate to them, is something only humans can do.
5. Creativity, or anything we deem perfect is only 10% substance. 90% of it is editing. Fine-tuning, tweaking, adjusting, correcting. It’s one thing to do something, it’s quite another to do it well. This is where the grace and “art” come in.
6. When going to a restaurant, at least 20% of the time – don’t look at the menu, ask the waiter what they recommend, and just get that.
7. Don’t have coffee for the first 90 minutes after waking up, it’s been proven to have reverse effects since you are dehydrated in the morning. Drink water instead. Along these lines, don’t drink coffee after 4pm. You need to sleep.
8. Embrace Shoshin in everything you do. Have a beginner’s mindset and always be open to the possibility of new opportunities. Spend more time playing, and always be curious.
9. Use ego as a driver. If I work in a public area, I check my phone less, because I want to appear productive. If I run where other people are running, my speed increases, because I don’t want to get passed. If I want to improve in a sport, play with others that are slightly better. Never be the smartest person in the room, and if you ever think you are, change rooms.
10. Create incentives for yourself and your company wisely. When the British were governing India, they were concerned about cobras and offered a monetary reward for every snake brought to them. Soon after, local entrepreneurs started breeding cobras just to collect the bounties. After the government found out and ended the policy, all cobras used for breeding were released, which as a result, increased the total cobra population. Oftentimes the incentives we create for ourselves do not align with our own goals.
11. Utilize Pareto’s Law – 80% of your results come from 20% of your activities. 80% of your problems come from 20% of your activities. Trim the fat, and focus on what matters most.
12. Get paid in USD, spend in pesos, yen, rupees, euros, etc. US is the best place to make money, Europe is the best place to spend, Southeast Asia / Latin America is the best arbitrage (value per buck).
13. Drink less. I know it’s hard for you to admit, but your parents were onto something here. Not saying you should give it up entirely, some of your favorite memories have been after a couple of beers where you and your current/new friends loosened up a bit, but sometimes a night in is better than going out. And the next day definitely is.
14. When you are angry or stressed, go lift some heavy rocks in the gym.
15. As far as I know, there is only one true answer to fully getting over heartbreak: time.
16. It’s ok to reach out for help, no man is an island. And if you have ever seen further than others, know that it’s because you stood on the shoulders of giants.
17. The ultimate form of leverage is when you are so indisputably good, that people call you when they need help.
18. Remember the 5×5 rule – Most of us spend way too much time sweating the small stuff. If it won’t matter in 5 years, don’t spend more than 5 minutes worrying about it.
19. Choose the third door into the nightclub of life. In life, there are always three ways in. There’s the first door, where 99% of people wait in line, hoping to get in. There’s the second door, where billionaires and royalty slip through. But then there is always, always… the third door. It’s the entrance where you have to jump out of line, run down the alley, climb over the dumpster, bang on the door a hundred times, crack open the window, and sneak through the kitchen. But there’s always a way in.
20. Apply the principle of Misogi – Do something so difficult one day of the year (every year) that it has an impact on you for the other 364 days. Run a marathon, quit a job, start a business, etc.
21. Follow the Rule of 100 – if you spend 100 hours in a year (equals 18 min a day) at working on one skill, you will be better than 95% of the world’s population.
22. When I want to be more productive, go to phone settings –> Color Filters –> Greyscale mode on. Your brain will be 40% less ‘attracted’ to social media and other phone distractions.
23. Pretend that you have a camera crew always following you around. Be the hero in your own story/movie. Your friends are the sidekicks, your music is the soundtrack, and your challenges are part of the character development. But you will come out on the other side, and it will be better than you can ever imagine.
24. Your days are made up of good, bad, and “just ok.” 10% of the days you wake up amazing, ready to conquer the world, kiss the girl, and seize the day. These days you don’t need motivation, you are going to have a great time regardless. 10% of your days you wake up sick, heartbroken, injured, or upset – these days are the hardest to push through, and even when you do, they usually don’t move the needle forward that much. But the 80% days, the days that define your life, are the “just ok” ones. These are the mas o menos / comme ci, comme ça / so-so. They make up the majority of your life – so you need to push, squeeze the juice, memento mori, carpe diem, and do whatever it takes to win. It will make all the difference.
25. Be a traveler. Go to the local restaurant whose name or menu you can’t pronounce. Jump in the local pickup basketball or futbol game. Walk the streets aimlessly until you inevitably get lost. Take the public transport. Have a drink with strangers. Learn how to say “thank you,” “sorry,” “hello,” and be able to order a cup of coffee in the local slang. Say yes to the randomness and craziness that life throws at you.
26. Be a surfer. Paddle for waves, and when you catch one, enjoy it and be present. Yes, you know that wave is going to end, but it doesn’t matter nor make the ride any less beautiful. The more you surf, the more practice you put in, the more waves you catch. The collection of these raw, flashy, fleeting moments is the pinnacle of human experience.
27. Be a snowboarder. Life is best when you are “living on the slope.” It’s here that we push past our comfort zone, try new things, and experience the most growth. Nobody ever became a pro skier or snowboarder by staying on the bunny slopes.
28. Don’t worry. A bad day is coming for all of us, whether we like it or not. Someone we love will die, and we will die. So no need to cry over spilled coffee or flat tires. Enjoy the sunshine as you sit in traffic, be the last to release from a hug, and wake up every day cheesing from ear to ear. Life’s pretty great when you can bathe in the sun and dance in the rain.