4 Principles to 10x Your Results - How I Manage My Day

Summary

Join us in a day-in-the-life video as we navigate through a typical workday filled with unique rituals and productive strategies. Starting at 4:30 a.m. with a brisk cold plunge amidst snowfall, the journey continues with a morning routine that includes making a special morning cocktail and embracing the winter wonderland. The video highlights four core principles for structuring a productive day: matching energy to output, emphasizing movement, leveraging Parkinson's law for efficiency, and the importance of being present. From testing V2 Max to creative focus blocks and family time, discover how these principles can transform your daily routine, enhance productivity, and maintain a balance between work and personal life.

Takeaways

• 😊 Starts day early with cold plunge and coffee
• 💪 Has structured time blocks for different types of work
• 🧠 Does creative work when energy is highest in the morning
• 👨‍👦 Spends midday time moving and with family
• ⏱ Uses Parkinson's law to limit time for draining tasks like email
• 📚 Reads and reflects at end of day when contemplative energy is high
• ⛄ Makes time for fun with family even when busy
• 😴 Focuses on being present with loved ones in non-work times
• 🧘 Ends day with solo relaxation like sauna or snow angel
• 🏃‍♂️ Prioritizes consistent movement through both formal exercise and breaks

Q & A

What time does the person start their day, and what is the first activity they engage in?

The person starts their day at 4:30 a.m. with a cold plunge, even in snowy conditions.

What is the first core principle of structuring the person's day, and how is it applied in the morning?

The first core principle is to match energy to output. In the morning, the person focuses on creative tasks during a 3-hour block from about 5:15 to 8:15 a.m., considering it their most creative time.

What does the person consider light snow, and how does it reflect on their view of winter weather changes?

The person considers the morning's snowfall as lightweight and comments that East Coast weather is not what it used to be, suggesting that people have become softer regarding snow days.

What is V2 Max, and why is it mentioned in the person's day?

V2 Max likely refers to a measure of aerobic capacity. The person plans to get their V2 Max tested, indicating an interest in monitoring their physical health or performance.

How does the person integrate movement into their day according to the second principle?

The second principle involves movement, both formal, like gym sessions or cardio workouts, and informal, like avoiding prolonged sedentary periods by doing push-ups or short walks during work breaks.

What is Parkinson's Law, and how does the person apply it to their workday?

Parkinson's Law is the idea that work expands to fill the time allotted for its completion. The person applies this by setting short, focused blocks for energy-draining tasks like email to prevent them from consuming the entire day.

What is the fourth principle mentioned, and how does it relate to spending time with family?

The fourth principle is about being present, emphasizing the importance of being fully engaged and off from work when spending time with family, like building a snowman or making dinner.

How does the person handle work and family balance during snowy conditions?

Despite the snow, the person continues their work routine, including outdoor activities, and spends quality, present time with their family, such as playing in the snow and having dinner together.

What is the person's routine for winding down at the end of the day?

To unwind, the person engages in reflective activities like reading, away from technology, followed by a sauna session to calm the mind and prepare for sleep.

How does the person's attitude towards cold weather and snow reflect on their overall approach to challenges?

The person's willingness to engage in a cold plunge in snowy weather and their disregard for light snow as a hindrance demonstrate a resilient and adaptable approach to challenges.

Outlines

00:00

🌄 Early Morning Routine and Principle #1: Match Energy to Output

The video begins before dawn, highlighting a morning filled with a cold plunge in snow, a mishap while preparing a morning cocktail, and a trip through a snowy landscape for a coffee pickup. The narrator emphasizes the importance of starting the day early and utilizing the time when creative energy is at its peak for creative tasks. This period, from around 5:15 AM to 8:15 AM, is dedicated to significant creative work, such as writing a book. The use of classical music is mentioned as a tool for enhancing focus during this creative block. The segment concludes with a successful writing session and transitions into family time, setting the stage for discussing the first core principle of structuring the day: matching one's energy levels to the task at hand to optimize productivity.

05:01

🏋️ Principle #2: Movement and Principle #3: Leverage Parkinson's Law

In this section, the focus shifts to the importance of movement, both formal and informal, throughout the day to maintain high energy levels. The narrator shares experiences of formal exercise, including a gym session and a V2 Max test, and informal activities like short walks and stretches. Lunch preparation features healthy ingredients and a playful interaction with a child, reinforcing the value of incorporating movement into daily routines. The narrative then introduces the third principle, leveraging Parkinson's Law, which suggests that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. By allocating short, focused time blocks for energy-draining tasks like email, efficiency is maximized, preventing these tasks from consuming the entire day.

10:02

❄️ Principle #4: Present is Everything and Evening Routine

The final segment emphasizes the importance of being fully present during off times, illustrated by building a snowman with family and preparing dinner amidst a snowy evening. It showcases the narrator's effort to be genuinely engaged with loved ones, highlighting that quality time is not just about the duration but the energy and attention given. The principle of being present is underscored by an evening routine that includes reading and reflective time away from technology, which helps in winding down and preparing for a restful night. The video concludes with a brief night-time adventure in the snow, demonstrating a balance between work discipline and enjoying life's simple pleasures.

15:19

👶 Unexpected Interruptions and Final Thoughts

The concluding paragraph touches on the realities of balancing work and family life, exemplified by the narrator's need to soothe a child back to sleep. This moment serves as a gentle reminder of the unpredictability of daily life and the importance of flexibility. The narrator summarizes the four core principles used to structure the day: matching energy to output, the necessity of movement, leveraging Parkinson's Law for efficiency, and the paramount importance of being present with loved ones. The video ends with an invitation for viewers to apply these principles to their lives, encouraging curiosity and continuous improvement.

Keywords

💡structure

The word 'structure' refers to the organization and planning of one's day and activities. The main message of the video is about the speaker's four core principles for structuring his workdays to maximize productivity, energy, focus and wellbeing. He provides examples of how he structures different blocks of time for creative work, business tasks, movement/exercise, email, family time, etc.

💡energy

The speaker emphasizes aligning one's energy levels with different types of work output throughout the day. For example, he says his creative energy is highest in the early morning, so he dedicates time then for creative projects. Managing one's energy means understanding your personal rhythms and patterns over the course of a day.

💡focus

The principle of focus refers to the speaker's practice of designating concentrated blocks of time for specific types of tasks, while eliminating distractions. He focuses intently on one activity during each block, such as creative writing, answering emails, reading, rather than multitasking.

💡output

Output means the work tasks and goals the speaker structures his day around, like writing, business meetings, investing decisions, etc. Matching energy to output means aligning the right work mode to his energy level at each part of the day.

💡move

The speaker emphasizes physical movement and avoiding long sedentary periods as an important principle. Movement boosts energy, productivity and wellness. He builds in exercise blocks but also takes regular micro-breaks for simple activities.

💡Parkinson's Law

This refers to the idea that work expands to fill the time allotted. So the speaker assigns very short, focused blocks for disliked tasks like email in order to finish them efficiently rather than drag them out.

💡present

Being present means focusing completely on your current activity or the people you are with, without distractions from technology, multi-tasking, etc. Presence enhances relationships and recharges mental energy.

💡unwind

The speaker schedules unwind and reflection time at the end of the day, through activities like reading, writing, sauna. This allows processing ideas and preparing for rest.

💡wellbeing

The principles aim to optimize wellbeing - health, energy, fulfillment, relationships. Good daily structure prevents burnout and sustains performance.

💡balance

Balance refers to equilibrium between different aspects of life - work demands versus health needs, productivity versus presence. The speaker's structure facilitates balance.

Highlights

Match energy to output during different times of day

Morning hours used for creative work

Schedule movement throughout the day

Align tasks with energy levels at that time of day

Leverage Parkinson's law - dedicate short focused times for draining tasks

Present is everything - when with loved ones, be truly present

Reading and contemplative thinking done in evening

Morning cold plunge and workout

Getting V02 max tested to track cardio fitness

Snow days change schedule and allow family time

Email only done during designated short time block

Unwind in evening with contemplative reading time

Outdoor family time building snowman

End day with sauna and mindfulness

Contrast hydrotherapy with hot sauna and snow angel

Transcripts

in this video you're going to come with

me as I walk through an average workday

along the way I'm going to hit on the

four core principles of how I structure

my day that you can steal and adapt into

your own life let's

go 4:30 a.m. got some snowfall here this

morning just going to make this morning

cold plunge a little bit more

painful always more fun fun when it's

like

this always

dunk stepping into snow when you get out

of the cold water is one of the most

painful Sensations planned for the day

assuming there's no issue with roads I

am going to go get my V2 Max tested and

see what's going on with thato that was

invigorating morning cold complete make

this morning cocktail go get my

Duncan and then I can walk you through

the first structured block of my

day and I spilled salt everywhere great

roll with the punches

right put that Dunkin order in on the

way out got a little Winter Wonderland

going this morning that's light that's

lightweight you know weather on the East

Coast just isn't what it used to be when

I was kid this wouldn't have even been

considered snow like a snowstorm and I

think everyone's going to have a snow

day today everyone getting

soft I'd sing winter wonderland for you

but I think it would make everybody

click out of this

video poorly fabricated thoughts of

judgment in a cluster drop KCK drop

victim life living don't drop loveon get

it's Tuesday so I got to put the trash

out assuming they're still coming man

the house looks pretty in the snow

though got my Duncan getting to my desk

it's about 5:15 a.m. and this brings us

to principle number one of how I

structure my average workday and that is

to match energy to Output you have

different types of energy during the

course of the day there are points in

time where your creative energy is high

as there are points of time when your

social energy is highest there are

points of time when your capacity to do

like boring task energy is highest and

you want to match that energy to what

you're actually doing the output of that

moment so this first Focus block of my

morning is my creative block this is

when my Creative Energy is highest so I

want to be working on creating output

that is focused on creativity this

3-hour block from about 515 to about

8:15 I'm going to be focused on whatever

the most important creative task is for

me at the moment moment right now that's

my book that I'm really pushing to try

to get the final draft done of by about

April 1st but it could be any creative

project that I'm really focused on and

excited about during this block I'm a

sucker for the headphones on classical

music on helps me get into that creative

state lock in I've been doing the

classical music during studying and

during Focus work ever since college so

I've just stick to

it

it's about 8:15 a.m. just got done with

that Focus creative block great session

this morning got a lot of good writing

done really happy with the progress

there going to head out make some

breakfast with little man spend some

time with the family and take you on to

principal number

two where are you

going we going to make a snowman

today

is that the taco that Dad I got you in

Texas taco taco taco taco attack Taco

attack what you doing

bud what is that what are you

drinking you're

crazy we made

it hey I got the recipe never going to

let any up get the best of me thought it

was dist but hey this is next to me talk

to the spirit you know I've been

Heavenly company show your trajectory

dising it this cuz I say it respectfully

it's time to eat up right like a speed

taking it deeper in that's how it better

be I never let the comparison get to

me V2 Max test

done work that bad boy to death headed

to the gym go get this leg lift in got

my guy going to go rip

it this is what happens on snow days you

get the whole gym to yourself

woo go time principal number two of how

I structure my days move it's that

simple move now this means a couple

different things for me this means that

I have a formal block of time during the

course of the day that is about movement

so you can see I'm here at the gym I

just went and got my V2 Max tested so I

hit some cardio as well but I always

have some form of formal movement during

my days there's also the informal side

of the move piece to my daily structure

which is I try not to be sitting or

sedentary for more than maybe 60 minutes

so during those Focus work blocks at my

desk when I start to feel a little bit

antsy after about an hour 30 45 minutes

I'll do a couple push-ups or I'll go for

a little walk around my house or I'll

just get up and do a couple body squats

something that keeps my body moving

because I found that when I move I have

the most energy flowing through me and

when I have the most energy flowing

through me I operate the best I show up

the best for the people around me

everything about my life is

better

la

between the V2 Max test which was brutal

and this leg workout legs are going to

be toast tomorrow big recovery night

tonight thank

you just walking in from the gym from

the V2 Max test going to make myself

some lunch and then settle in for Focus

work block number two of the day what

you got there octopus you want to help

me make my lunch hi you want to help me

make my

lunch got saw Hills special breakfast

tacos I guess lunch tacos but with eggs

ground turkey beef veggies two eggs on

some carb control tortillas that have

some extra fiber in them bone Appetit

what sound does an octopus

make they thought a little snow could

stop us from going to get our afternoon

Duncan they were wrong sometimes you got

to do it the oldfashioned

way this is why God gave you

hands there we go little snow never

stopped

anybody 12:30 p.m. I'm getting back to

my desk now this is my second Focus work

block of the day going back to principal

one where I said that you need to Align

Energy with output this second Focus

work block is really focused on business

and investing outputs so where the first

one was creative this one is much more

about business things managing people uh

connecting with people talking to

Founders things like that what I found

is that this afternoon block is when my

mind when my energy is in a better state

for doing those activities so again

Align Energy with output this is when

I'm focusing on those so for the next

right about 2 hours from 12:30 to 2:30

that's when I'm going to be focusing on

mostly business and investing related

things that will take us straight into

principle number three which I'll come

back to after this 2hour

block Focus work block two complete

which brings us to principle number

three leverage Parkinson's law to get

energy draining tasks done Parkinson's

law is the idea that work expands to

fill the time allotted for its

completion basically if you set a block

of time for something you're going to

take that long to finish whatever task

you set out to do during it let's use an

example email if you don't have a set

block for email you're going to take all

day doing your emails if you give

yourself 2 or three hours you're going

to take two or three hours to do email

if you give yourself 4 hours you're

going to graze and find a way to take 4

hours to do email so the principle here

that I use to structure my Deb is that I

dedicate really short blocks of focused

time for the energy drain in tasks the

things that would otherwise bleed into

my entire day email is the primary one

of those if I allow it to I will email

throughout the course of the day I'll be

popping open the email thing and it

creates a bunch of attention residue it

creates a whole bunch of cognitive drain

that's pulling you away from the tasks

that actually matter so leverage

Parkinson's law by creating a very short

window of time when you're going to be

unbelievably focused on just that one

thing if you do that you'll get the

thing done faster and more efficiently

and effectively than you otherwise would

have this is my face when I have to

answer

emails but when I get to get it done

faster this is my face that's a wrap on

email which brings us to principle

number four present is everything when

you're on be on but when you're off be

truly off we got some snow today so off

for me means I'm going to go outside and

build a snowman with the the little dude

then I'm going to go to the grocery

store make dinner for my wife and son

and try to be as truly present as

possible during that window of time time

and energy are not the same thing and

when you conflate the two you get into a

lot of trouble when you think oh I'm

spending X number of hours with these

people well if you're on your phone or

you're thinking about other things or

you're stressed or you're emailing or

you're texting during that whole time

you didn't really give a lot of energy

so when I say present is everything what

I mean is when you're present with the

people you love be truly present I

really try to do that I'm not perfect

far from it but when it's a focus in my

mind I'm able to do a much better job

and be honestly just a better human a

better husband a better father a better

sibling a better son all of those things

start to fall into flow for me so the

adventure begins through the Arctic

tundra Roman my little Ernest Shackleton

ready for his trans Antarctic Adventure

come on we're going to go in the

snow you're not so sure about the snow

huh bud are you helping get the arms for

the

Snowman what do we think of the Snowman

what sound does a snowman

make

you want to

try take a bite out of the

snow Elizabeth thought it was a little

too snowy for burgers but I'm of the

opinion that it's always Burger season

that's what we got on the grill for

dinner you going go bring this in feed

the family and then go on to the final

Focus block and unwind block of the day

hey Tuesday night dinner in a movie

sweet potatoo fries Burgers peas little

man Wreck It Ralph wrecks the

internet dinner done little man bathed

and in bed heading back into my office

for my last work block of the day which

is really when I feel like I have more

reflective kind of contemplative energy

and this is when I do reading so I'll

sit down with whatever essays whatever

book whatever thing and spend at least

30 minutes sometimes up to an hour just

reading and separate from any technology

away from my computer away from my phone

and just with a notepad that Amazon

basic notepad and a pen and jot down

anything that comes to mind this is an

important block for me because it's when

a lot of the ideas start to kind of come

in the top of the funnel and those are

the things that I end up chewing on

thinking about a lot that lead to

inspiration lead to different ideas so

this final block of the day uh goes back

to principle one which is aligning

energy with output so my kind of

contemplative thinking energy is high at

the end of the day I've had a lot of

things that have happened during the day

so it's high and this is when I do my

reading and some of my

thaning reading time done headed up and

out to the sauna to just have some of

that quiet unwind thinking time to end

the day how I calm the Mind prepare

myself for a great night's sleep all

right well it's not every day that we

got snow like this on the deck so I feel

like I got to turn this into a little

bit of a fake contrast action Snow Angel

time

oo that's

cold come

here

so while I was in the sauna this little

man decided that he wasn't going to stay

asleep I'm going to go and try to get

him back to

bed these were the four principles I

used to structure my workday now time

for y'all to go until next time stay

curious