Matt Gibson

When finding or changing direction in life, the common approach is to sit in a dark, silent room and think...hard.

However, whilst thinking and reflection absolutely have their place, without taking action and doing things, your progress is...nil.

OG essayist, Ralph Waldo Emerson, captured this best by saying:

"Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood."

So, to learn what we truly want, or how we want to live, we must do more than just think our way through it.

Enter: Living by Experiment

Experimentation can be defined as:

A procedure carried out under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect or law, to test or establish a hypothesis, or to illustrate a known law.

Simplified, an experiment can help in 3 ways when it comes to working out what we like / dislike, or what we want from life:

• Find out new things about ourselves

• Validate assumptions that we have about ourselves

• Reject what we thought we knew about ourselves

I've now applied this in many different ways to my life:

• Tracked my energy levels at different times throughout the day to understand the impact of what I eat and drink

• Experimented with living as a digital nomad in 5 different countries to-date

• Trialled different productivity "hacks" to see which ones work for me and which ones don't

When you're unsure about your next step or how to proceed, design an experiment

There are 3 things to keep in mind when running your life experiments.

• It's not forever: by putting an end-date on something you can try something new without feeling like you are committing "forever". You should be specific here, e.g., 30 days, or 1 week etc.,

• You get to an outcome: like any good experiment, you should have criteria that you measure to help you decide whether your hypothesis stacks up or it should be discarded

• Dip your toe in the water: one of the main reasons I love experiments is because I can ease into a new habit or lifestyle choice. For example, if you want to be a digital nomad, why not try living in another city in your own country first? Try it out, track your criteria and reflect on the outcome.

Experiments are liberating. They give you an answer either way in a short timeframe.

When you're stuck with what to do next, experiments allow you to take action without committing 100% to a new life / habit / decision.

Try it out! What one thing have you been thinking about that you can run an experiment with?

I bombed a best man speech.

With the other best man, we managed to butcher the big moment. Months and months of planning, writing, refining and practicing...all for utter failure.

We received some laughs, some "ahh's" but overall, the biggest disappointment of my life.

It is by far the most humiliating experience of my life. I still wake up in a cold sweat about it.

All of it made worse by the fact that we worked so hard, put in so much effort. And we failed.

But my previous speeches had been resounding successes (as verified by independent sources, honestly), so what happened this time?

We had lost sight of the real purpose of a best man speech. To speak from the heart about our best friend(s).

Be authentic and keep it brief

This speech really isn't about you. It's about the couple in front of you, and saying whatever you'd like to say to them.

Here are the lessons I so brutally learned.

#1. Limit your practice. Seriously.

I'd never been accused of this before, but we practiced and rehearsed waaaay too much. We cared too much.

By practicing too much, our speech became wooden. It lacked authenticity. It felt unnatural.

When we say important, emotional things to people we love or share funny stories, we don't practice them. And they feel so much more authentic for that reason.

#2. Follow themes, not a script.

To help your speech feel natural, it's important to stick to general themes, not a script.

Reading off of a script is not cool, and should only be done if you're a really nervous public speaker. Even if you memorise it like we did, your brain tries to follow the exact words you wrote on the script.

Plus, if you miss a word, you get thrown off. But in a normal conversation, if you use a wrong word, it feels completely natural!

The only caveats are:

• Pick a good opening line or two, to help you settle into the speech

• Pick a suitable toast for an ending

#3. No more than 5 minutes

Typically you're last to speak. And if you're anything like us, the audience have sat through 3+ long and terrible speeches already.

People don't want a long speech.

Just like an atomic essay, less is more.

It's easier to keep people's attention. The audience want to laugh, toast and then get on with celebrating!

Let me reiterate. This is not your moment in the limelight and people want a brief, punchy speech!

So in summary...

Keep it real. Be authentic. Be brief.

Remember when you were a kid? Fearless. Then you get introduced to society with all its rules and expectations. What you can / can't say, can / can't do.

Enter limiting beliefs.

Limiting beliefs are the stories we tell ourselves about who we are and what we can / cannot do.

Which for most of us, is completely OK. But if you're a new entrepreneur like me, then limiting beliefs can be deadly. They will stop you in your tracks and cause complete inertia.

Sitting down and identifying them is a crucial first step to help navigate through a new and uncertain world.

What are typical limiting beliefs?

• fear of failure / success

• not worthy of success

• not good / strong enough

• fear of rejection

• not enough time

• others control your life

• doing what you think others want

They typically present themselves in our fixed responses to our circumstances or ourselves:

• "I was born this way"

• "I'll always feel this way"

• "I'll never be x, y or z"

How do you identify them?

Unfortunately, they are typically deep within our subconscious. But here are 3 simple steps to finally find yours:

1. Fixed Mindset: Find anything you believe about yourself or your circumstance that cannot or will not change

2. Excuses: Next time you find yourself making an excuse or saying "this is just who I am", ask yourself - is this true?

3. Societal Expectations: Identify times you say "I should" based on what you think others would want you to do

What are your limiting beliefs?

Within the Productivity movement, there is huge focus on how to maximise motivation and rightly so. Without motivation, it’s difficult to take action, and without action, we have no progress.

But a topic very rarely discussed is Energy Management.

Energy can be simply defined as:

“the capacity for physical or mental activity”

There are 4 frames to review your Energy levels

1. Magnitude: improving overall energy in terms of intensity and endurance.

2. Consistency: reducing dips throughout not only the day but also week or month. Aim for a work load that you can replicate day after day.

3. Timing: finding your peak energy timeframes. You will have a unique circadian rhythm impacting when you have most energy.

4. Drains: avoiding negative energy “drains”.

Here is a simple checklist of items to improve your Energy

Things to add or improve:

1. Sleep: as per “Why We Sleep”, less sleep = less energy (along with less cognitive function). Review your sleep for length and consistency.

2. Exercise: anything from a daily 10 minute walk through to high-intensity exercise will boost your energy if load is managed correctly.

   • Short-term: exercise floods the body with endorphins, boosting mental alertness

   • Long-term: exertion will cause your body to create more mitochondria which boosts your bodies ability to store and use energy

3. Nutrition: minimizing insulin spikes is key to managing energy throughout the day.

   • What you eat: Carbohydrates and processed foods will cause insulin spikes

   • How much you eat: insulin reacts to the amount of food. Try to avoid huge meals

   • How often you eat: intermittent fasting improves energy as less energy and blood flow is directed towards digestion

4. Hydration: a lack of water will cause your blood pressure to drop, leading to poor circulation to the brain and poor cognitive function.

Things to avoid or limit:

5. Stress: Cortisol and emotional fatigue can reduce energy. Meditation, yoga, walking outside and breathing techniques reduce stress.

6. Alcohol, drugs and smoking: this one is self-explanatory, but these toxins have a wide-ranging negative impact on your energy.

How is your energy levels throughout the day / week or even month? How do you stack up against the energy checklist?

I've spent the last few months in the eternally sunny city of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina.

Buenos Aires isn't a city that features highly on the list of digital nomads (and tourists in general). However, I think this is city is a hidden gem. It's definitely one of my favourite cities in the whole world.

This city offers so much. Great people, great weather, great food and, of course, amazing wine.

However, it's not always so easy to be a tourist in Buenos Aires. This isn't a place that markets itself and it can be hard to know what to do and where to go. So, here are my hidden gems in Buenos Aires.

To Stay: Palermo Hollywood

This place is historically the media centre (hence the 'Hollywood' name), but is now a beautiful, buzzing residential area near the centre of Buenos Aires. Less bars and nightlife than its neighbour, Palermo Soho, this place offers solitude in such a busy city.

Palermo Hollywood offers the highest density of incredible restaurants, bars and cafes of any city district I've visited in the world. Plus the tree-lined streets and cool buildings make this a beautiful, stylish place to stay.

To Work: AreaTres El Salvador

Good wifi, great food and unbelievable coffee. This co-working hub also has a peaceful garden for afternoon siesta's when you need to re-charge.

To Eat: Top 5 Places

So many options here, so I'll give you my top 5:

• Don Julio: one of the best steakhouses in the world, make sure you book!

• Fogón Asado: a great Argentinian experience, with an asado tasting menu, unbelievable wine and all sat round the Parilla (barbecue)

• Sacro: to balance all the steak, head to this amazing vegan restaurant and try the charcoal empanada!

• Ya Cabron: Low-key taco place, with a simple but excellent menu and unbelievable guacamole

• La Esquina del Antigourmet: I love the concept of 'antigourmet' but don't be fooled, food here is great, cheap and huge servings!

To Drink: Coffee & Wine

Coffee: One place to recommend, Cuervo Cafe on Costa Rica. This place is 'cool' personified, with amazing staff and a great Spotify playlist. Packed in the evening between 5-8pm as Argentinians venture out for 'afternoon tea' before partying late into the night.

Wine: Ja! offers an extremely generous and excellent wine tasting for $50 a head. Well worth it!

Buenos Aires is an up-and-coming, affordable choice for digital nomads

In the next 12 months, there are rumours of a cheap, easy-to-get digital nomad visa, making this an even better option. Due to the economy, prices are super cheap, the people are great and the weather is fantastic almost all year.

Why wouldn't you fancy a few month in Buenos Aires?

In January, I shifted down to 50% working for a corporate client. This is 3 years after I moved away from being a permanent employee into the wild west of contracting. I've had mixed success so far.

After 5 months, here is what I've learned about that transition in case you are thinking about making a similar change. Hopefully, this helps you walk into any changes with your eyes open and prepared for the challenge. Now, let's dive in.

#1: The mental challenge of giving up money today for potential gain in the future is hard

When you've spent over a decade building experience and your salary level, you get hit with the sunk-cost when trying to move to the unknown.

It's natural. You're giving up something you've put years of time and effort into, for an unknown reward. You'd be crazy not to question it.

This why I went 50/50 in terms of time. A soft play, a hedge. Dipping my toe in the water. But that isn't the best bet in my experience so far as...

#2: 50% of time doesn't equal 50% of time

It seems simple, I split half my day on X, and half my day on Y. However, work is clearly not as simple as that.

Without strict boundaries, it's also easy to see time, energy and concentration bleed into both parts of the day. And there is no better boundary than that of one day to the next. My advice is keep whole days free where possible.

Not all time is built equal.

Dependent on circadian rhythm, everyone has periods of the day with more focus, energy and clarity. To-date, my corporate client has been getting the best 50%, which means my 50% is < than 50%.

#3: A corporate career hasn't equipped me with the main skills I need for the future I want

It's humbling. Starting something new. You have passion, you have motivation. You want to change your direction. Then day one...BAM!

"I have no idea how to do this"

...and procrastination ensues...

My corporate career has given me many skills, and these do help, but they are supporting actors in the world of startups. I've realised there is much to learn, and whilst that's daunting, it's also exciting.

I've learnt more in 4 months than I have in previous 10 years working for some of the biggest companies around.

Good luck to all those taking the plunge and working for more!

I love mapping out what I want from life and brainstorming how I'm going to get there.

And since I love mapping out my vision for life digitally, I have a handful of tools I use over and over again. They have become part of my regular habit, and I recommend them to anyone and everyone.

Here are my favorite tools to do X:

1. Tool #1: Miro is the ultimate collaboration tool. Perfect for mapping out ideas, with virtual sticky notes. I love the fact you can continue to add and add without having to limit space. Plus you can invite people in to get feedback and bounce ideas.

2. Tool #2: Nebo is a note-taking app for the iPad, and as I do my best thinking when writing, this app is brilliant for me. The free form pages enable you to draw / write as much as you want, allowing you to bring analogue writing to the digital world.

3. Tool #3: Notion, a fan-favourite for many, the flexibility to build page within page is perfect for building a platform to manage all aspects of life. If they added a drawing option, it would be unbeatable!

If you end up using these tools, let me know what you think!

If I had to pick, I have 1 big goal in life.

And that's to pursue direction and meaning in my life, and to help others find it in theirs too. To live a life full of intention, and not to drift through years as if I get a repeat.

The reason this is my goal is because, in the modern world, finding direction and meaning is difficult for so many

I believe every person should have direction in their life, working towards something that is meaningful to them, that they have passion for. I believe when you do have that clarity of direction, the effort you give everyday feels that much easier, and that much more rewarding.

Conversely, doing something everyday to potentially have freedom to do what you want in the future is incredibly difficult. You feel out of alignment. Something feels off. And that's because it is.

The mindset of 'working to live' that has pervaded society for the past century needs updating.

If you have similar life aspirations, shoot me a message.

I'd love to connect!

One of the most pervasive ideas in society today is that everyone should seek happiness.

But what really does happiness really mean? The Oxford Dictionary doesn't help much..

Happiness = "The state of being happy"

Right then...much clearer.

A bit of further digging and the general sentiment across multiple sources is that happiness is a state equated with feeling pleasure or contentment.

Side note: the word 'happy' came from the word 'lucky' in most languages, suggesting that previous generations believed that happiness was largely a by-product of luck.

But has the goal of finding constant 'happiness' set unrealistic expectations, ironically leading to dissatisfaction and dare I say it "unhappiness"?

Additionally, most of us are led to believe that happiness is the end goal — a place that can be reached if we make the right decisions, learn from our mistakes, and keep improving.

Happiness is not a destination, it's a state of mind, and one that you won't be in 24 hours of the day, because Humans aren't designed to be constantly happy. We are designed to reproduce and survive. Contentment and happiness is discouraged by nature as it would lower alertness and possible threats to our survival.

So what's a realistic view of happiness? Penny Locaso of Hackinghappy.co suggest the following:

“Happiness is being able to ride the wave of every emotion that life throws at you, knowing that you can come out the other side just a little better than what you were before because you have the skills (focus, courage, curiosity), the resources (a positive mindset), and the support structure (a community) to make that happen.”

That feels a lot more realistic to me.

What does happiness mean to you?

The biggest lesson I've consistently struggled to learn is the lesson of reviewing my immediate friendship environment.

If you want to change your life, the best thing you can do is change your peer group. Your immediate social environment. The people that influence you.

Typically these individuals will be people you've been friends with for years. Likely your friendship will be bound by history, or by adventures including alcohol.

The sad truth is that you will likely outgrow these friendships. They will no longer serve you.

One of the biggest failures we make in life is to helplessly accept the social networks we grow up with from school or work.

The hardest, but most effective lesson I've ever learned is, the people you associate with shape the life you live.

Ruthlessly review your social environment.

Does it serve you?

If your friendship group doesn't serve you, it will hold you back.

It's incredibly tough. You've been friends for years. But that individual/s doesn't have the same drive or goal in life. What do you do?

It's tough, but the answer is: find a new social peer group.

#1. Review your best friends. Do they add to your life?

It's an easy assumption to make. My best friends add to my life...

But actually, do they? Do they continue to be supportive of your ambitions and goals?

#2. If they don't, NOW is the time to raise it with them.

You should be honest with your friends. If you're honest and they decide to go a different direction? Well that's fine, it's their prerogative. But you should give them the chance.

#3. But if not? Now is the time to cut and find like-minded people.

It's imperative that if your friends aren't supportive of your ambitions, that you cut and run. It's so easy to stay in your comfort zone. But you will be much better served long-term finding like-minded people. Find people with similar ambitions. With similar skill-sets. With similar mindsets.

It will be transformative.

It's ruthless, but how many of your "old" friendship group still add to your life?

I have struggled with running for a long time. I'd start and pick up niggles. Or be sore for days. It doesn't help that I'm 120kg...

Over the years, I have learned that most people who want to get faster at running end up failing because they go too hard. They think getting better at running means run more / faster.

They never realize that this enthusiasm to go hard on every run is what's actually holding them back. It doesn't help that ego gets in the way too. To be honest, it took me quite a while to learn this lesson.

The key to become a 'runner' even if you don't think you are built for it is by doing the majority of your runs at a much easier pace than you want to go.

A good guide is the Maximum Aerobic Function (MAF) 180 Formula. Take 180 and minus your age. This is the heart rate you should try and maintain for the duration (e.g., 30 years old would equal 180-30 = 150 bpm).

Overcoming failure is a crucial part of succeeding, moving forward, and making actionable progress.

But don't worry: we've all been there.

Over the past few years, I have read multiple books on the subject of learning and digesting content from books.

Reading books is a great habit, but after reading 100's of books, I realised I wasn't actually learning or retaining much from them. I'd learn lessons and have eureka moments, but then 2 weeks on, I couldn't summarise anything about the book.

That's when I started to learn about learning. Specifically, how to read.

I encourage you to give these 3 a read to help put the foundations in place to get the most from your reading time.

Book #1: Learning How to Learn by Barbara Oakley and Terrence Sejnowski

I first read this book in 2020 after joining a free Coursera course provided by the authors

Here's why I think you'll love it:

• It gives a simple overview to the neuroscience of learning. This background was crucial to me understanding what's going on in the brain when we learn

• Recommends using multiple sense to boost learning efficacy i.e. read and listen, or watch and listen.

• Provides an overview on how to use metaphors and mental pictures as a powerful tool for both comprehension and retention

Book #2: Make it Stick by Henry Roediger and Mark McDaniel

This book teaches you how to learn and study based on research about how the brain understands and retains information.

Here's why I think you'll love it:

• Suggests easy-to-implement strategies to understand the underlying principles of a subject

• Covers how to leverage mental models for better comprehension

• Covers how to best implement retrieval techniques for retention

Book #3: How to Read by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles van Doren

Finally, I think everyone should read this book.

For me, this book changed my mindset towards reading in 2 ways:

1. Be intentional about what and why I'm reading a book. There are 2 types of reading for learning; a) to collect facts and b) for comprehension

2. You can 'read' a book in 15 minutes through inspectional reading. You don't have to read every word cover to cover.

Some of the techniques are even easier today such as keyword searching on e-books and availability of summaries didn't exist in the 1970's.

What approach do you use when you read a book?

This guide outlines a key finding from behavioural science to help you stay on track.

If you review the most successful people in history, one theme continuously jumps out.

Consistency.

Day after Day, Month after Month, Year after Year, Decade after Decade.

Unfortunately, many people struggle for consistency. They start something, then forget about it, move onto something else, before starting again.

Your focus isn't your focus.

Here is why you struggle to keep focused on your goal

• The world is a melting-pot of distraction

• We have limited attention

• We're built to focus on the thing in front of us (in case it can eat us or we can eat it...)

However, luckily you can take advantage of a key behavioural science concept of Saliency.

Salience bias is our tendency to focus on items or information that are more noteworthy while ignoring those that do not grab our attention

Here's how, step by step:

Step 1: Make your Focus or Goal VERY OBVIOUS

We focus on items or information that are more noteworthy. So take advantage.

Here are some examples of how:

• Post-it notes on your desk / fridge / wardrobe / bathroom mirror

• Create a regular reminder on your phone and laptop

• Write it down in Notes and save as background image

• Print it out in big A4 and post it on your wall

Step 2: Spend 5 minutes every morning planning towards your Goal

Many get up and get on with their days without intention. If you want to achieve or change something, you need to be intentional about your time.

Set time-blocks in your calendar to spend time on your main focus. There aren't many things with more saliency than a blinking email reminder!

Step 3: Spend 5 minutes every night reflecting on progress

Set a reminder, and review how you moved towards your goal today. By reinforcing your focus and goals before sleep, you are more likely to reinforce its importance in your mind.

This approach is both simple to implement and powerful.

10 minutes of effort up front, and then daily will help keep your focus just that. In focus.

Sports analogies are often used to give guidance for how to improve in life and in business. However, there is one key aspect that differentiates sport from life & business. The frequency and clarity of Feedback Loops.

I'm going to share a feedback system to help bring you the feedback you need to progress with your goals and ambitions.

So what can we learn from Sport? Sports teams typically get direct, clear feedback every time they play. They also get qualitative and quantitive feedback daily:

• Coach & peer feedback

• Physical performance metrics

• Video analysis

Life isn't quite like that. Think about work performance. If you're lucky, you get monthly 1-2-1's and quarterly performance appraisals. Most get much less. Some get nothing.

Without feedback, you're drifting without direction

• Direction: without feedback, how do you know if you're moving in the right direction

• Efficiency: feedback can help identify wasted or unhelpful efforts

• Fast-track: feedback from those ahead of you can speed up your journey

• Validation: feedback from multiple sources can help validate a theory or hypothesis

Here's how you can build in a holistic feedback system to keep on track.

3 steps to a holistic feedback system

Reflection: First, build in regular reviews with...yourself. Frequency should be daily or weekly. Sit down, and write down your thoughts on these questions.

• Am I still heading on the right course to my main focus / goal?

• Did I put enough intentional time into my main focus / goal today?

• What habit or action moved me tangibly forward towards my main focus / goal today?

• Is there anything that I could do better tomorrow?

Metrics: Second, identify and regularly measure 2-3 key lead metrics that support your goal or focus. Ideally frequency of metrics should be daily or weekly.

A lead metric is input focused. For example, when writing daily articles, record and review metrics such as:

• Time invested

• Ideas generated

• Daily enjoyment rating

These items are much more within your control, and lead to better outcome or lag metrics (e.g., number of articles posted, likes, followers etc.)

Feedback: Finally, find a way to get feedback from others on your process and outputs.

• Outputs: find a community like Twitter, Slack, LinkedIn. Frequency should be multiple times per week.

• Processes and approach: find 3-5 people that have mastered what you are trying to do. If you don't have an existing relationship, you can still learn from reviewing from afar how others do things and comparing it to your processes and habits.

Every afternoon feels like a drag. The inevitable slump in energy. The lack of focus. The inability to concentrate.

I'm going to share 3 free and quick methods for reversing tiredness.

But first things first, you're probably not tired, you're lethargic

You probably haven't moved since breakfast or lunch, and the body has entered a "rest-and-digest" state. Luckily for us, the human body is incredibly efficient at conserving energy. However, in a world where 8-10 hours work are the norm, this isn't always helpful.

Unfortunately, many have the limiting belief that a lack of sleep may be the cause. Or worse, that the mind and body have hit a wall and that without further sleep nothing can be done.

Here's how to get rid of lethargy, step by step:

Step 1: Perform 1 exercise for 30-60 seconds

Perform a set of your favourite exercise until you want to stop. As simple as that. Perform the exercise with intensity and speed for more effect.

I'm not suggesting a 30 minute walk outside (although great, not always practical), just 1 set of your favourite exercise. No rep range, just something vigorous and semi-challenging.

This will snap your body out of the parasympathetic system into the sympathetic system, increasing blood pressure and improving blood flow to the brain.

Step 2: Drink water

Drink 1 large glass of water. Use cold water for extra effect.

Depending on the study, as many as 50-80% adults don't drink enough water. Which is completely fine, only...

Dehydration causes your blood pressure drops, leading to poor circulation and reduced blood flow to your brain. This causes feelings of sleepiness.

Step 3: Look up!

Look up. The theory is that it sends a wakefulness signal to the brain (bonus points for outside in daylight).

This one comes from the talented Andrew Huberman and originally comes from hypnosis. It sounds ridiculous, but just try it. It works!

So next time you feel tired and can't take a siesta, try the above. Et Voilà!

For many years, I felt apathetic about life. Struggled for enjoyment. Existed but as a spectator of life, not a participant. Just "meh". Sound familiar?

Typically this would be classed as mild depression. Only I wasn't "sad" and I didn't have any history associated with mental health issues. It wasn't depression in the classic sense. It was an addiction.

Let me be clear. There are many people who struggle with mental health and need qualified, experienced help.

However, I propose that many of us are suffering from an entirely fixable condition.

You are addicted to quick-fix Dopamine

Dopamine is the pleasure neurotransmitter. The chemical that gives you a burst of pleasure both before and during a rewarding activity. It motivates us to seek rewarding activities again and again.

The problem isn't Dopamine. It has kept humans alive for millennia by ensuring we seek food, warmth, sex and safety. It's critical to survival.

The problem is two-fold:

1. Quick-fix Dopamine from low-value activities: instant and free access to scrolling, alcohol, drugs, pornography means that we are training our brains to seek low-value activities.

2. Constant Dopamine load: constant access is like always operating with the foot on the 'gas'. Eventually, sensitivity to Dopamine-inducing activities is reduced, making good things feel more "meh".

"Please step away from the phone"

If you are struggling for interest or motivation, review how much time you are spending on screens (laptops, TV, phones, tablets). How can you cut this significantly over the next 7 days?

Over 7 days, you will start to feel your brain resetting. Like cutting sugar from your diet, you will feel cravings. But if you stay strong and cut your time significantly, you will start to feel more. More motivation. More excitement. More presence.

Reset your relationship with Dopamine

Addiction to cheap Dopamine is fixable and will improve how you experience life. By resetting your Dopamine relationship, you will improve your motivation, drive and sensitivity to pleasure.

Here are some methods that can help you improve your Dopamine set point longer-term:

• Reduce screen time and scrolling

• Cold-water exposure

• Reduce caffeine intake

• Intermittent Fasting

Next time you feel unmotivated or feel apathetic, instead of beating yourself up or assuming you are just born this way, try working on the methods above.

And be patient. This one thing could change your life.

Technology brings limitless opportunity but unlimited distraction.

Not so long ago a life "well-lived" included; birth, school, graduation, a solid job, marriage, kids, retirement, enjoyment. In that order.

The rapid development of technology, and the opportunities it brings, has contributed to the complete disruption of this age-old, trusted process.

Now, we are faced with the wonderful but enormous question of "How do you deal with the paradox of choice and limitless opportunity?"

Many drift through life as if Time was renewable.

Many of us live as if we get a re-do. A replay. Gorging on Dopamine via Netflix, YouTube or [insert any app here].

Choosing how we spend our Time has become the most difficult and critical responsibility we have.

But how can we choose wisely without a clear vision of what we want from life? Who we want to be? What we want to experience?

Our ability to imagine and create a different, better future for ourselves is what separates us from all other lifeforms on this planet. But how often do we do this in a structured, effective way?

Living with Intent is the Antidote.

• Create a clear and compelling Vision for yourself. What do you want from life? Be ambitious. Be specific. Avoid societal expectations.

• Focus. What is the number one most important thing you want to change or achieve aligned to your Vision? Why is it important to you? Make this your Focus Area. Don't fall into the trap of trying to do it all.

• Systemise. What are the building-block habits you need to support your Focus Area? Start with one. Make it stick.

• Show up. What 1 thing can you do today that will support your Focus Area? Don't bite off more than you can chew. Start small. Build momentum.