5 habits that will fix 93% of your problems

Summary

This video script offers practical advice for overcoming feelings of lethargy and lack of motivation. The narrator suggests five simple habits to help regain focus and productivity: defining what 'winning the day' means for you, waking up when planned, tackling the most important task ('the daily dragon') first, getting sufficient sunlight and exercise, and reflecting on your day's performance to iterate and improve. The underlying message is that small, consistent habits can create a positive cycle, gradually raising your baseline happiness and productivity over time.

Takeaways

• 😐 Everyone experiences periods of feeling unmotivated, lethargic, and apathetic, which is normal and a part of life's natural highs and lows.
• ✅ To get out of a rut, define what 'winning the day' looks like by setting clear goals and objectives for yourself.
• 🌅 Start your day strong by waking up when you intended to, as keeping the commitment to yourself builds self-esteem and positive momentum.
• 🐉 Tackle your biggest and most important task (the 'daily dragon') early in the day to avoid procrastination and fatigue.
• ☀️ Spend time outdoors in natural sunlight and go for walks in nature to improve mood, focus, and mental well-being.
• 🔍 Review your day's performance and reflect on what went well and what could be improved, treating life as a skill to be continuously improved.
• 🎯 Use your personal values as a scorecard to evaluate your daily progress and performance.
• 📈 Consistently applying these habits can gradually raise your baseline of how often you feel good and productive.
• 🧠 Reframing tasks and goals in an epic or adventurous way can make them feel more motivating and engaging.
• 🔄 Embrace the 'learning loop' of feedback, reflection, and iteration to continuously improve your 'living life' skill.

Q & A

What is described as the 'chaotic path of improvement' in the context of the script?

The 'chaotic path of improvement' refers to the natural process of experiencing highs and lows in life, where one's baseline of feeling good gradually increases over time through recognizing and acting upon periods of feeling below average.

Why is defining 'winning the day' important according to the script?

Defining 'winning the day' is crucial because it provides a clear goal and helps prevent the feeling of perpetual low-grade discontent and frustration. Knowing what constitutes a win allows for focused effort and satisfaction from achieving set objectives.

What is the significance of waking up when you said you would, as mentioned in the script?

Waking up when you planned to is significant because it sets positive momentum for the day, reflects self-discipline, and reinforces self-esteem by keeping the promises made to oneself. It's an easy win that prepares you for more challenges throughout the day.

How does reframing tasks as fighting a 'daily dragon' impact productivity?

Reframing tasks as fighting a 'daily dragon' makes them seem more epic and motivating, encouraging the completion of the most important tasks first. This approach leverages storytelling to enhance motivation and productivity.

What are the benefits of getting more sunlight, as explained in the script?

Getting more sunlight increases serotonin production, which boosts mood, focus, and calmness, while decreasing melatonin production, which is associated with sleepiness. Sunlight is essential for maintaining natural bodily rhythms and can help alleviate anxiety, depression, and overwhelm.

How does going for a walk contribute to getting out of a rut?

Going for a walk, especially in nature, has been shown to ward off premature death, boost psychological well-being, and decrease activity in the amygdala (which processes emotions), thereby contributing significantly to getting out of a rut.

Why is reviewing the day's performance considered crucial for improvement?

Reviewing the day's performance is crucial because it closes the learning loop of feedback, reflection, and iteration, allowing for the adjustment of strategies towards achieving goals. It prevents mindless repetition of actions and encourages mindful progress.

What does the 'learning loop' involve, and why is it important?

The 'learning loop' involves feedback, reflection, and iteration. It's important for skill improvement because it allows individuals to understand what works and what doesn't, enabling them to adjust their actions accordingly for better outcomes.

How can defining what winning the day looks like create a virtuous cycle of success?

By defining what winning the day looks like and achieving those defined goals, individuals end their days on a high note, which motivates them to tackle the next day with enthusiasm, thereby creating a virtuous cycle of success through consistent positive momentum.

What is the purpose of using the concept of 'Vision casting' as mentioned in the script?

The purpose of 'Vision casting' is to use one's values as a scorecard for evaluating daily performance, which helps in aligning daily actions with long-term goals and values. It's a technique for reflection and adjustment to ensure continuous progress and problem-solving.

Outlines

00:00

😐 The Chaotic Path of Improvement

This paragraph discusses the natural ebb and flow of motivation and energy levels that we all experience. It emphasizes the importance of recognizing when we're in a rut and taking action to reverse the trend. By adopting small habits, we can gradually increase our baseline and shift what constitutes a 'bad day' to a better state over time. This process is referred to as the 'chaotic path of improvement'.

05:00

✅ Five Habits to Get Out of a Rut

The paragraph introduces five habits that can help get out of a rut and regain productivity. The first habit is to define what 'winning the day' means, by clearly outlining goals and how to achieve them. The second habit is waking up when intended, as following through on small promises builds self-esteem. The third habit is to tackle the biggest task, or 'daily dragon', first thing in the morning. The fourth habit encourages spending time outdoors in sunlight and going for walks in nature for mental health benefits. The fifth habit is to review and reflect on the day's performance, treating life as a skill to be improved through a learning loop.

10:01

🔁 The Learning Loop for Improving Life Skills

This paragraph explains the concept of the 'Learning Loop' - a cycle of feedback, reflection, and iteration that allows us to improve any skill, including the skill of living life well. It emphasizes the importance of reflecting on our daily performance and using tools like 'value casting' to evaluate our actions against our values. By consistently cycling through this learning loop, we can avoid getting stuck in ruts and continuously improve our approach to life.

Keywords

💡Motivation

Motivation refers to the driving force or reasons behind one's actions and behaviors. In the context of the video, motivation is discussed as a state that can fluctuate over time, where one may experience periods of high motivation (feeling energized, productive, and focused) and low motivation (feeling drained, lethargic, and apathetic). The speaker suggests that these highs and lows are normal, and the key is to recognize when one has been in a low-motivation state for too long and take action to reverse the trend.

💡Defining Winning

The concept of 'defining winning' refers to clearly identifying what constitutes success or achievement for a given task or day. The speaker likens this to understanding the rules and objectives of a game, emphasizing that without a clear definition of what it means to 'win,' any strategies or efforts may be misguided or ineffective. In the context of daily life, 'defining winning' involves setting specific goals and criteria for what it means to have a successful or productive day, providing clarity and direction for one's actions.

💡Positive Momentum

Positive momentum refers to the idea of building and maintaining a forward-moving trajectory of progress and success. The speaker suggests that starting the day with an 'easy win,' such as waking up when you said you would, creates positive momentum that can fuel further accomplishments throughout the day. This momentum is described as a 'virtuous cycle' that can inspire motivation and excitement for tackling subsequent tasks or challenges.

💡Daily Dragon

The 'daily dragon' is a metaphor used by the speaker to describe the most important or challenging task of the day. By reframing this task as a 'dragon' that needs to be 'fought' or conquered, the speaker aims to make it feel more epic and motivating. The idea is to tackle the 'daily dragon' early in the day, rather than procrastinating or being distracted by smaller tasks, as delaying the most crucial task can make it feel more daunting and drain one's energy.

💡Sunlight

Sunlight is presented as a vital component for maintaining physical and mental well-being. The speaker explains that human brains have evolved to process sunlight in a way that increases the production of serotonin (a hormone associated with mood regulation and calmness) and regulates sleep-wake cycles. The lack of natural sunlight exposure, due to modern lifestyles dominated by artificial lighting, is linked to issues such as anxiety, depression, and decreased focus. The speaker recommends spending more time outside in sunlight, particularly through activities like walking in nature, to combat these negative effects.

💡Learning Loop

The 'learning loop' is a concept introduced by the speaker to describe the process of improving skills through feedback, reflection, and iteration. It involves collecting feedback on one's performance, reflecting on what worked or didn't work, and then iterating (changing one's behavior) based on that reflection. The speaker suggests that applying this learning loop to the 'skill' of living life can lead to continuous improvement and progress towards one's goals.

💡Rut

A 'rut' refers to a state of stagnation, lack of progress, or feeling stuck in a negative pattern or mindset. Throughout the video, the speaker discusses strategies and habits to help individuals break out of these 'ruts' or periods of low motivation, lethargy, and apathy. The habits presented, such as defining winning, building positive momentum, and engaging in the learning loop, are framed as methods for reversing negative trends and regaining a sense of purpose and productivity.

💡Self-esteem

Self-esteem is the confidence and respect one has for oneself. The speaker highlights the importance of keeping promises made to oneself, such as waking up at a set time, as a way to maintain self-esteem. Breaking these self-made promises is described as subconsciously degrading one's opinion of themselves, leading to lower self-esteem, less ambitious goal-setting, and a diminished belief in one's ability to succeed.

💡Reflection

Reflection refers to the act of carefully considering or evaluating one's actions, thoughts, or experiences. In the context of the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of taking time at the end of each day to reflect on one's performance and progress. This reflection is presented as a crucial step in the 'learning loop,' allowing individuals to identify areas for improvement and make adjustments for the future.

💡Values

Values refer to an individual's principles, standards, or beliefs that guide their behavior and decision-making. The speaker suggests using one's personal values as a 'scorecard' for evaluating daily performance during the reflection process. By aligning actions and choices with one's core values, individuals can gain a sense of purpose and direction, and measure their progress towards living a life that is consistent with their values.

Highlights

We all experience highs and lows in life, and the trick is to recognize when you've been spending too many days below average so you can take action to reverse the trend.

Define what winning the day looks like by getting clear about what you want to accomplish and how you want to accomplish it.

Wake up when you said you would to start the day with positive momentum and maintain your self-esteem by keeping promises to yourself.

Reframe your most important task as a 'daily dragon' to make it feel more epic and motivating.

Spend more time outside in sunlight to increase serotonin production, boost mood, and feel calm and focused.

Go for a walk, especially in nature, to decrease activity in the brain's amygdala and process emotions better.

Review your day's performance by reflecting on whether your actions moved you closer to your goals.

Think of living life as a skill that can be improved through feedback, reflection, and iteration.

Use your values as a scorecard to evaluate your day's performance through a technique called 'vision casting'.

Combining these five habits can help you avoid getting stuck in a rut and improve your baseline of how often you feel good.

Transcripts

have you ever rolled out of bed one

morning and for whatever reason you just

kind of felt blah like you're not sick

and there's nothing wrong per say but

you feel kind of drained and unmotivated

like you don't really feel like doing

anything and as you sit there observing

this kind of BL feeling you you realize

that you've kind of felt this way for a

few weeks now tired lethargic apathetic

and it's frustrating because you can

think back and you're like man I was

crushing it last month I was focused I

was energized I was productive and then

one day you just you woke up and

everything was different you didn't even

realize it at first but your mojo just

kind of up and disappeared now if you've

ever felt this way don't worry this is

completely normal we all experience

these highs these lows because that's

just how life is half the time you're

going to feel above average and half the

time you're going to feel below average

that's how averages work the trick is to

Simply recognize when you've been

spending too many days in a row falling

below average that way you can quickly

take action to reverse the trend and if

you make a habit of this then in time

your Baseline of how often you feel good

it starts to increase and now what

constitutes a bad day would have

qualified as a good day only a few years

ago this is what we call the chaotic

path of improvement and we're all on it

now I've personally fallen into a whole

lot of ruts over the years and what I

found is that to get out of them and get

my Baseline trending back up it doesn't

require me to do anything crazy I I

don't need to take Massive Action

usually I just I need to commit myself

to five small habits which I'm going to

share with you in this video the first

is to Define winning the day I want you

to imagine that you sit down to play a

game for the first time your your friend

he tells you all the rules he explains

how the pieces move and maybe even

shares some basic strategy but if he

leaves out one piece of Vital

Information then none of it actually

helps so what is that one thing that you

need to know in order to play any game

effectively it's this you got to know

how to actually win the game

like is it the person with the most

points the fewest points or is it the

person who completes the level the

fastest I mean you would play golf very

differently if you thought the goal was

to get through all 18 holes as quickly

as possible right that might actually

make it fun now the truth is if you

don't know how winning is determined

then it doesn't really matter what you

do how smart you are how creative or

hardworking you are ultimately your

strategies they're useless and whether

or not you actually win the game is

going to be determined by blind luck now

it's pretty obvious to see why this is

not a good strategy in the context of a

game but this is exactly how most people

are playing the game of Life most just

never stop to Define what winning the

day actually looks like and as a result

they go through the motions just hoping

they get lucky and somehow they stumble

into a win but that's generally not what

ends up happening here's what does since

you don't have a clear idea of what

winning looks like you go through life

always feeling like you're losing

because there's always more that could

be done and this leads most people to

experience a state of Perpetual

low-grade discontent in and frustration

they never get that euphoric high that

comes from winning the championship game

not only does that suck but it's

entirely avoidable so if you want to get

off this treadmill of psychic discontent

then just take 10 minutes every morning

to chalk the field and Define for

yourself what does winning that day look

like get clear about what it is you want

to accomplish and perhaps more

importantly how you want to accomplish

it and here's a pro tip make the game

easy to win if you go above and beyond

that's great but it's more important to

just get positive momentum moving in the

right direction when you do that you get

to the end of your day on a high note

and this gets you excited to tackle the

next day which creates a virtuous cycle

of success now in our next habit I'm

going to share with you a super simple

trick for initiating that virtuous cycle

and to do that all you have to do is

wake up when you said you would so much

of success in life is just maintaining

momentum in the right direction which is

why it's so important that you start the

day with positive momentum and the

easiest way you can do that is by giving

yourself an easy win before you even get

out of bed in the morning morning in

that moment when your alarm has just

gone off and you're groggy you're half

asleep and you're faced with one of the

most important decisions of the entire

day will you do as you said you would

hit the alarm and get up or are you

going to break the promise you made to

yourself and hit snooze now I get it

this might seem like a small decision

and you're probably thinking what's the

big deal Anthony another 5 minutes isn't

really going to change anything and to

that I say yes yes it will it changes

the most important thing which is are

you the type of person who shows up and

does what you say or aren't you it's

that simple now listen only one person

in the entire world is even going to

know what decision you made in that

moment but it also happens to be the

only person whose opinion of you matters

yourself your self-esteem is the

reputation you have with yourself and

when you break the promises you make to

yourself such as I'm going to wake up at

this time or I'm going to hit the gym

three times this week or I'm going to

make a 100 cold calls today whatever it

is when you don't follow through you

subconsciously degrade the opinion you

have of yourself you stop setting as

ambitious of goals you lower your

standards you stop taking the actions

which would lead you to success Because

deep down in your heart of hearts you

don't believe you have what it takes

because you couldn't even get out of bed

in the morning when you said you would

but to clarify I'm not saying you need

to wake up at 5:00 a.m. or compromise

your sleep in any way the key here is to

make a decision the night before about

when you're going to wake up and then

follow through with that so if you say

I'm going to wake up at 9:00 a.m. great

get up at 9:00 a.m. if that's 5 then

cool that's 5 also I just want to point

out here if you use the snooze button as

part of your process that's okay just

don't compromise the process for example

if you know that the alarm is going to

go off at 5:30 but you plan to hit the

snooze three times and be out of bed by

6 that's fine but when 6:00 comes around

you better not hit that snooze button a

fourth time or you're going to be

starting your day behind the eight ball

with a loss which is going to make our

third habit way harder than it already

is and that habit is all about fighting

the dragon first now I've got a

confession to make I am a massive nerd

in a past life I was a Science Fiction

and Fantasy author I wrote a whole bunch

of novels and one of the things I love

most about science fiction is how every

story revolves around a hero doing

something incredible Luke Skywalker

blows up the Death Star froto trcks

across Mordor to drop the ring in a

volcano Katniss everine goes full Rambo

mode on a bunch of teenagers to save her

sister against impossible odds Our Lives

by comparison are dominated by a to-do

list filled with things like go grocery

shopping or walk the dog or pay the

bills as a result this can start to make

you feel like you're the hero of a

really lame story now I've discovered

something pretty incredible recently we

can make things feel more or less epic

simply by the words we use to describe

it for instance if you want to motivate

a child to do something they wouldn't

normally want to do you've just got to

reframe it as an adventure so instead of

we need to find your coat so we can

leave reframe it as we need to go on a

quest to find your mythical missing

jacket so we can go on an adventure to

the grocery store all right so this

works incredibly well on children but

you're not you're not so gullible right

wrong you are nothing but a big kid and

the same principle applies we can alter

our behaviors simply by changing the

words we use to describe the actions we

need to take for me reframing things so

that they feel epic is incredibly

effective for improving my productivity

and a really powerful reframe is in how

I think about the one thing now the one

thing is a concept that's all about

determining what is that singular most

important task that if you were to

complete it it would move you towards

your goal the fastest recently I've

started calling my one thing the daily

dragon and again I know I'm a nerd but

I'm not going to apologize for it but

something about the idea of fighting a

dragon is just it's so much more

motivating to me than a simple to-do

list item and it might not be the same

for for you but you know maybe give it a

shot now here's the thing about the

daily Dragon it's never going to get any

smaller or weaker than it is at this

very moment so delaying isn't going to

do you any favors in fact you're

probably delaying the inevitable by

wasting time and energy fighting all the

smaller monsters in your life all you're

really doing is tiring yourself out

which is going to make your battle with

the daily Dragon harder than it needs to

be so to get out of a rut and get your

life back on track wake up in the

morning when you said you would Define

what winning the day looks like and then

go fight the biggest baddest dragon as

early as you possibly can just get it

out of the way then get on with the rest

of your epic life and this leads us to

the fourth habit that's going to solve

99% of your problems get more sunlight

for the majority of Humanity's existence

we've only had access to two sources of

light the Sun and fire and of these two

the sun has by far been the biggest

source of light in our lives as a result

our brains evolve to process sunlight in

a very unique way for example exposure

to sunlight increases the brain's

production of Serotonin which boosts our

mood and helps us feel calm and focused

if you take away sunlight then the brain

thinks it's nighttime and therefore it

triggers the release of another hormone

called melatonin which makes you sleepy

our relationship with sunlight which

evolved over millions of years has been

massively disrupted over the past

Century by the rise of artificial lights

now dominating Our Lives now this is

great for Society at large but it's not

always great for the individual who

spends more and more of their life

disconnected from natural sunlight and

the result is that our cycles and

rhythms are all out of whack and this

leads to issues with sleep focus and

creative thinking as a result more than

ever people are experiencing increased

levels of anxiety depression and

overwhelm but the solution is simple

spend more time outside in the sun and

you can actually make your time outside

even more effective for your mental

health by doing one more thing go for a

walk seriously a metaanalysis of 15

different studies found that by taking

around 6,000 steps per day it Wards off

premature death and boost level of

psychological well-being that seems like

a pretty achievable goal all things told

but if you really want to get the most

bang for your buck go for a walk in

nature more studies show that a

60-minute walk in nature versus in an

urban environment it decreases the

activity in the amydala which is the

part of your brain which processes

emotions so this can go a really long

way towards getting you out of your rut

just go for long walks outside in nature

now of all the habits we've discussed so

far they're all great and they will

produce beneficial results in your life

but if you want to get the most out of

them you got to make time for our fifth

habit which is to review the game

footage defining what winning the day

looks like is only half the battle the

other half occurs when we review our

performance for the day and this is one

of the most important steps because if

you don't do this you just go through

life on autopilot repeating the same

actions again and again and again never

really stopping to question whether or

not you're actually getting any closer

to your goals now here's a crazy concept

that really changed how I move through

the world I started thinking about

living life as a skill and like all

skills it's something that can be

improved if we deploy something called

The Learning Loop see improving any

skill requires three things you need

feedback reflection and iteration

feedback is required so we can know

whether or not the thing we just tried

worked out or not for example if you

shoot a basketball and it hits the

backboard and misses then you've got

immediate feedback that whatever you

just tried didn't work now we need to

reflect on what we did and come up with

a hypothesis for what we might have done

wrong then we use that information to

iterate which is really just another way

of saying we change our Behavior to test

our hypothesis and this leads us back to

the beginning of the learning Loop

because one way or another whether the

ball goes in or out we're collecting

more feedback now our rate of learning

any new skill depends on how quickly and

effectively we can cycle through the

learning Loop unfortunately most of us

aren't improving our living life skill

because while we might be collecting

feedback and maybe even iterating if

we're not actually taking the time to

reflect on what and how we're doing then

we're just a monkey throwing a ball

mindlessly at the hoop hoping it gets

lucky and this is why it's so important

just to take time each evening to just

do a quick scan and evaluate your day's

performance personally I like to use my

values as the scorecard and to do this I

use a technique called Vision casting

which I broke down in a video called how

to get ahead of 99% of people in 2024 a

link for that should appear here on the

screen somewhere but I'll also drop one

in the description below I highly

recommend you check that out because I

found value casting to be a really

powerful tool for solving many of my

life's problems and if you combine that

with the other four habits we've

discussed in this video I don't think

you're ever going to get stuck in a rut

again yo what's up guys I hope you

enjoyed the video and if you did do me a

favor get down there and hit the

Subscribe button and then get to the

comments and let me know which one of

these habits has had the biggest impact

on your life and we'll catch you in the

next

[Music]

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you you got

me we

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