The 4 Quarters Technique, Invisible Opportunities, & More
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Here are 5 interesting ideas to spark your curiosity heading into the weekend.
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: I'm hosting a Personal Annual Review workshop on December 16. Attendees will receive the 2024 Personal Annual Review E-Book. The event will be live and recorded for all registered guests.
To register for the special event, all you have to do is preorder one copy of my book and submit your information and order number here!
Today at a Glance:
- Question: Revealing invisible opportunities
- Quote: Enjoying every ride
- Framework: The Four Quarters Technique
- Thought: One year of focus
- Essay: Writes and Write-Nots
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Question to unlock new growth:
What are you doing to reveal the invisible opportunities?
I was recently speaking at an event when a woman in the audience asked me a simple question: "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"
My honest response: "I have no idea."
Before you think I'm crazy, let me explain...
Five years ago, I was working in a career that wasn't for me. I was chasing someone else's dream.
It was a good path, but it wasn't my path.
Today, I'm standing in my purpose, creating positive ripples in the world, through my writing, businesses, and relationships.
But five years ago, if you had asked me to write out 100 scenarios for where I would be today, I would have written down 100 options...and not a single one of them would have been correct.
The most interesting, valuable opportunities in life are inherently unpredictable. They are non-linear. They don't follow the predetermined path.
They are invisible.
And importantly, they are only revealed through action.
The ancient poet Rumi once wrote, "As you start to walk on the way, the way appears."
The answer is found in the action.
It's not thinking about the thing. It's not brainstorming the thing. It's not planning the thing.
The answer is found in doing the thing.
So, what action will you take today to reveal those invisible opportunities?
Quote on enjoying every ride:
"Let everything happen to you: Beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final." - Rainer Maria Rilke
Neither the good, nor the bad, will last.
So, enjoy the ride, because it'll be over in a flash.
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Framework to structure your days:
The Four Quarters Technique
I'm always looking for new ways to help people structure their days for improved productivity, progress, and enjoyment.
I recently came across a brilliant approach from bestselling author Gretchen Rubin, which we can call The Four Quarters Technique:
"Instead of feeling that you’ve blown the day and thinking, 'I’ll get back on track tomorrow,' try thinking of each day as a set of four quarters: morning, midday, afternoon, evening. If you blow one quarter, you get back on track for the next quarter." - Better Than Before The basic idea is that you split your waking hours into four equal quarters.
For example, if I'm awake from 4am to 8pm (yes, I'm a crazy morning person), the split would be:
- Quarter 1: 4am to 8am
- Quarter 2: 8am to 12pm
- Quarter 3: 12pm to 4pm
- Quarter 4: 4pm to 8pm
You can then plan out the core activities you're aiming to work on during each quarter:
- Quarter 1: Morning routine, deep creative work
- Quarter 2: Family breakfast, workout, family lunch, walk
- Quarter 3: Deep business work
- Quarter 4: Family dinner, morning prep, evening routine
I love this technique because it provides structural resets: Even if one quarter doesn't go perfectly according to this plan, you can always reset to execute the next quarter.
A little bit of structure—plus a little bit of grace—can go a long way.
Give it a shot next week and let me know what you think.
Something I've been thinking about:
You're one year of focus away from people saying you got lucky.
Remember that.
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Essay on the importance of writing:
Writes and Write-Nots
This was a great, short essay from Paul Graham.
First, he articulates something I believe very strongly, which is that clear writing requires clear thinking:
"The reason so many people have trouble writing is that it's fundamentally difficult. To write well you have to think clearly, and thinking clearly is hard."
But in a world where you can avoid that "hard" using simple AI tools, many will avoid it (as humans are lovers of instant gratification).
Unfortunately, the consequences of that avoidance are troubling:
"So a world divided into writes and write-nots is more dangerous than it sounds. It will be a world of thinks and think-nots. I know which half I want to be in, and I bet you do too."
Worth a few minutes of your time.
In Case You Missed It:
In Wednesday's issue, I shared my Personal Annual Review exercise, with 7 simple questions that I use to reflect on my year and spark new growth in the year ahead.
- What did I change my mind on this year?
- What created energy this year?
- What drained energy this year?
- What were the boat anchors in my life?
- What did I not do because of fear?
- What were my greatest hits and worst misses?
- What did I learn this year?
I'm hosting a Personal Annual Review workshop on December 16. Attendees will receive the 2024 Personal Annual Review E-Book. The event will be live and recorded for all registered guests.
To register for the special event, all you have to do is preorder one copy of my book and submit your information and order number here!
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Sahil's Recommendation Zone
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Sahil Bloom
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