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I’ve finally reached that age in which the events in life start zooming past you at record speed and you can do very little except to ponder how quickly that thing happened. (In case you were wondering, that precise age, by my own calculations, is 45 years, four months, and six days.)
There are advantages to this newly-acquired superpower–specifically if one’s fixed expenses, savings, and investments are automated as Ramit Sethi recommends in his books. Another advantage, when one applies the core principles of Stoicism, is that discomfort seems more fleeting and survivable.
The downside is that I have to remind myself regularly that the struggles that my high schoolers go through regularly feel a lot more intense and insurmountable than my current perception. It’s easy for a guy my age to lose touch with the angst of the average teen–a vast population for which time is perceived much more slowly.
It’s with that in mind that I’ve come up with a few points of reflection for the younger mind perceiving life’s events at what feels like a snail’s pace:
- Despite perception, we all have the same amount of time to seize in any given day.
This reality is fixed, and it has inspired me to optimize my time at various points in my life. I’d recommend that you study the habits of peak performers in your field of interest. What choices are they making differently that give them the competitive edge over others with less optimized schedules? If you can’t find anyone in your field to emulate, study Benjamin Franklin. He was famous for his rigorous daily routine, among other things. Study that and be inspired.
2. Be proactive and intentional about each day.
Another thing that impacted Franklin’s productivity was to start his day with the question, “What good shall I do this day?”
When our mindset is set on positively impacting our specific sphere of influence, we’re primed to make a positive influence. That’s because of something called the Baader-Meinhof phenomenon (also called the “frequency illusion”)
Essentially, our brains are malleable and vulnerable to persuasion. It’s within this context that we can program them to look for specific patterns. By priming the brain to look out for ways to infuse good into one’s day, we prime our perception for such events.
Peak performers and successful athletes use this phenomenon to their advantage all the time when they visualize as vividly as possible what success at a specific task might look like. Serial self-optimizer Tim Ferriss uses tools, such as “Morning Pages” made popular by Julia Cameron in her book, The Artist’s Way, to make his day more intentional.
3. Be intentional about uncovering your blind spots.
Just like our brains can be programmed to perceive certain patterns more readily, they can also be programmed to overlook other things. These overlooked aspects of our lives are called “scotomas.”
Unfortunately, this sort of programming is usually done without our intention, and it’s a byproduct of our adopting a particular set of beliefs or overall worldview.
That’s not to say you shouldn’t have beliefs or a defined worldview. On the contrary, being intentional about why you do what you do is a good thing–as long as it’s not weaponized to cause the suffering of others.
The first step to uncovering one’s blind spots is to have the humility to acknowledge them. In Plato’s The Apology, Socrates famously said (after a conversation with a politician), “I fear neither of us know anything important, but he thinks he knows something he doesn’t know, whereas I similarly don’t know anything, and also don’t think I know anything.”
Be like Socrates (but please don’t drink the hemlock).
4. Sometimes it’s less about what you do but how well you reflect and learn from what you do.
Going back to Franklin, let’s talk about another daily habit of his. At the end of his optimized day, he would ask himself another question: “What good have I done today?”
Despite our best intentions each morning, our days will not go exactly according to plan. That’s because there are too many unexpected occurrences in the way: exhaustion, hunger… the millions of inevitable variables that come from living in a world with a few billion other humans with their own best intentions.
The best way to cognitively course correct and have an even better day tomorrow is to give yourself intentional time for reflection. Ferris also uses The Five Minute Journal to aid in his nightly reflections. If you find yourself staring at a blank page at night when trying to reflect, consider a tool like one of these to get the creative juices flowing.
5. Reflect on your own mortality
The Stoic philosophers often shared the phrase, “Memento mori,” which means “Remember that you must die.” (I bet those Stoics were a joy to chat with at parties.)
Reflecting on mortality, however does two important things: 1.) It reminds you that the meaningful thing you’re putting off might never get done if you don’t prioritize it now and 2.) It keeps you humble, reminding you that there will be a time, many generations from now, when your contributions to society will likely be completely forgotten.
Time is on my side
I’m a middle-aged guy who could stand to lose a few pounds. My lifespan could be coming to an end any day now. So could yours. Please don’t let that get you down. Instead, seize the day in the knowledge that you’re capable of doing great things. When you learn from any or all of these great minds who have learned the power of optimization, you’re quite likely to impact the society in which you live.
So what if you’re forgotten a few thousand years from now when our descendants are zipping around in spaceships lightyears away from the charred remains of our planet? The impact you make on the lives of those who exist today is well worth the effort, no matter how fast or how slow time appears to go by for you.
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