Welcome to issue No. 069 of the Lever

Ever feel like things aren’t going your way?

You’ve done big things but lately are feeling burnt out, stressed, and depressed.

Like, what’s the point?

You are having trouble getting out of your own way and catching a gear.

Or you’ve hit a point in your life where, looking back, you realize that you aren’t happy with where you are now but don’t know what to do about it.

Everyone else seems to have it figured out, so why can’t I?

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I’ve been there and know how hard it can be to get started again. To get some momentum going.

Fortunately I’ve discovered a science-based system to get you back on track and moving in the right direction.

Each step is a small one, but the combined effort will get you where you need to go.

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1 - Tidy Up

In a 2014 commencement address at the University of Texas, Admiral William H. McRaven told the students:

“If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.”

His point was that how you do the small things is how you do the big things. And it is an easy place to start.

Your environment influences behavior and motivation.

A clean room encourages you to put things away. A messy room encourages you to leave more mess, because it’s like, “what’s the point?”

Use the Shipshape Rule to get started:

A place for everything, and everything in its place.

Like goes with like. Put similar things together.

And when you run out of room in that space consider getting rid of the excess.

Lighten the mental load of all that ‘stuff’.

I guarantee you’ll start to feel better.

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2 - Look Good Feel Good

You know that feeling when you get a new outfit and you hit the town feeling fresh?

Feeling good about how you look is the ultimate confidence booster.

And its scientifically proven that dressing well conveys more authority and deference when interacting with others.

The other side of this point is how you feel when the clothes come off.

Everybody wants to look good naked. Kicking some of those bad habits (like ice cream in bed) and starting a fitness practice is one of the best things you can do to take control of your life.

When it feels like nothing is going your way it is incredibly empowering to get outside and do some exercise.

It’s a positive action that you can do at any time, that nobody can stop you from doing.

Take back control of your life.

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3 - Human Interaction

When you feel like your life is fu*ked you start to withdraw.

You stay home, sit around, and feel sorry for yourself.

Having a less active social life is also something that can easily happen as you get older. This can be an early step in feeling like everything is falling apart in the first place.

We are social creatures. Having healthy interactions (that don’t revolve around work) is important.

This is something I’ve struggled with personally. As your career takes off, your social life suffers, and this can lead you down that path.

It took a while to figure out but eventually it was rekindling an old hobby that did it.

Joining a group that gets you out of the house to share an interest totally unrelated to the rest of your life is a great way to reset.

Golf, a weekly card game, a softball team.

Get out there, get interested in something you enjoy, and recharge your batteries.

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4 - Control Your Time

Everything you do is task.

• Tidying up
• Reading newsletters
• Learning something new
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All tasks take time. And you’ve only got so much time.

Having some kind of system for managing your time therefore becomes one of the most important things you can implement.

Nothing gets done without time to do it in. Yet our modern environment has been designed for distraction. We actively give our attention away, only to look up hours later and wonder, “where did the time go?”

Getting your life under control means getting your time under control.

Here is a simple little system to get you started:

1. Write out a list of all the things you want to do
2. Identify the top 3 priorities
3. Move those onto a clean sheet of paper
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When you wake up tomorrow immediately get to work on your list.

Cross them off as you go.

Make a new list at the end of the day and go again.

This simple list will start giving structure to your day.

(If you want a deep dive into time management I wrote a whole book about it. There is a link to it below.)

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5 - Financial Literacy

I’ve saved the scariest for last. You’ve got to get your finances under control.

Student loans, inflation, cost of living. We all know it ain’t easy out there.

But ignore your finances and you’ll forever be stuck.

This isn’t about getting rich (although you can!). It’s about taking control of your finances no matter what level they are at.

The easiest (and hardest…) first step here is to make a budget.

Understand the money coming in, and the money going out.

Understand your assets and liabilities.

And understand that the hole you try to fill with irresponsible spending will just get deeper and deeper.

I don’t have a million dollars in the bank. And not gonna lie, some months looking at finances can be depressing.

But looking back at an upwards trend, or paying for an emergency using your emergency fund is very empowering.

And running your home like a business is also great practice for running a business ;)

(follow @campwealth for easy to digest, expert advice in this area)

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Unfu*k Your Life

Life can be hard, but it’ll never get easier if you ignore these 5 things:

• Tidy Up
• Look Good Feel Good
• Human Interaction
• Control Your Time
• Financial Literacy
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You have all the power and autonomy you need to create a better life for yourself and those around you.

Start today.

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