93 Are you living your purpose, or just going through the motions?
No. 93 – 6 Oct 2024
Welcome to the 93rd edition of the True Progress Newsletter, a weekly newsletter on cultivating inner control and resilience for high performance.
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INSIGHTS
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The most successful leaders and entrepreneurs live by an ethos. It contains their core values, mission statement, legacy, and vision of where they're going. It keeps the road clear as day.
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Focus is just a byproduct of knowing what to do, day in and day out. Temptation and distractions will get you off track.
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A personal ethos ensures that your busyness is directed toward meaningful, productive work:
“It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?”
— Henry David Thoreau
CHALLENGE
When was the last time you stopped to consider if your daily actions align with your values, mission, and the legacy you want to leave behind? In the midst of the daily grind, it's easy to lose sight of the bigger picture. That’s why reflection is essential—it gives you the clarity to reconnect with your purpose.
Write a one-sentence statement that defines your purpose and long-term vision.
Identify three core values that define your actions.
Reflecting on your mission, vision, and values, do you feel that your actions over the past month have been in alignment with them? If not, what specific steps can you take to better align your actions with the person you aspire to become?
⌾ Reply to this email and let us know how it went.
SYSTEMS
PARA
The PARA Method, developed by Tiago Forte, is an invaluable way to organize your personal and professional work life.
French novelist Gustave Flaubert once said, “Be regular and orderly in your life so that you may be violent and original in your work.” To accomplish this, you must organize for action, according to the active projects you're working on right now.
PARA stands for projects, areas, resources, and archives.
Projects is any endeavor with a specific goal and end date.
Areas don't have either but a standard to be maintained. Think health, finances, family, etc. They're the roles you play in work and life.
Resources are things you want to reference in the future, things you might be interested in. It's a catchall for anything that doesn't quite belong to a project or area but you're still interested in getting information about it.
Archives are things you've completed or put on hold, any project completed or canceled, areas you're no longer committed to maintaining, or resources that are no longer relevant.
Here's the cheat sheet to organize your life using PARA:
Will this thing I captured help me move a current project or goal forward?
If yes, move it to a respective project.
If not, will this help me uphold an area of responsibility?
If yes, move it to a respective area.
If not, will it support one of my interests or curiosities?
If yes, move it to Resources.
If not, place in Archives or delete it.
WIN
Diana is an attorney, solo practitioner, and of counsel to a mid-sized DC law firm. She struggled with procrastination, and productivity and had no time for things she neglected for years.
In 12 weeks, we freed up her time to make room for family and health, decreased her procrastination, and increased her ability to handle high-stress days.
Here's how we did it:
We built focus by embedding her ethos throughout her week.
We increased her energy levels through proper exercise, hydration, and recovery.
We regulated her nervous system and emotional control.
We implemented systems around goals and priorities so that more could be accomplished with less effort.
Are you a leader, entrepreneur, or attorney who wants to finally reclaim time, increase your productivity, and learn to shine under stress? Click this link to apply for our coaching program.
Till next week,
— Carlos & Stef
