For the last month or so, I've been focused on improving a single, seemingly small aspect of my day. Although there are many factors that come into play to determine the quality of my daily routine, I knew that improving this one single thing would mean that the rest of my day was also improving.
This led me to define three levels of living. "Living" is such a broad term, and I am in no way trying to offer a theory of what it means to live and how you should do it. By "living," I mean the way one moves through their day, which ultimately determines the quality of one’s life. The idea behind discussing these three levels is strictly a practical one. If each of us can recognize ourselves on one of these three levels, we can also recognize the high-leverage changes that we can make to improve our days and our lives.
I would like to start by explaining the component of my day that I recognized as the highest-leverage change I could make in my day. From there, I’ll proceed to explore the idea of the three levels.
I've recently noticed myself spending more time mindlessly scrolling than usual. And hopefully this confession makes some of you feel a bit better, or at least less lonely in your unhealthy habits. I often receive messages from people telling me how they struggle with wasting way too much time on social media. And, just because I'm someone who apparently reads and writes a lot, they think I'm immune to the modern temptations of cheap dopamine. So allow me to give all of you a more realistic picture of today's world. I've had the privilege of getting to know some exceptionally successful individuals. Successful in many different ways. And I still haven't met anyone who has brought their unnecessary screen time to zero.
But back to our story. The amount of time I've been wasting in front of a screen has been fluctuating over the years.
Ever since I started writing online, I've had extended periods of time where I would spend maybe 10–15 minutes each day scrolling on social media or watching YouTube videos for the sake of entertainment. All the rest of my screen time was intentional and structured around accomplishing tasks that moved me toward my goals. But I've also had periods where I would end my day realizing that I'd spent hours staring at my phone or laptop, mindlessly consuming content, not even knowing what I'd like to receive from it. Recently, I found myself somewhere in between. I was still getting most of my daily tasks done, but I felt kind of sluggish. Not in the physical sense, but in the sense of my mental performance and my ability to be present in the moment.
After some reflection, it became clear what I needed to focus on: I needed to make my transitions as short as possible. By transitions, I mean those small windows of time between two activities or tasks. In my routine, some of the main transitions are between the first block of work and training, then between training and meal, and between the post-workout meal and my second working block. Maybe your routine looks different, but you'll easily recognize similar transitions throughout your day.
Why does the key to the quality of my day and life lie in these transitions?
There is nothing significant that I can accomplish during these transitions. These small windows of time aren't used for anything. The best thing one can do is just move from one activity to the next. But our days rarely achieve this kind of flow. In fact, it is in these transitions that we most often pull out our phones, and before we know it, we had a scrolling session that did absolutely nothing for us but only delayed our next task or activity and disconnected us from the present moment.
The important thing to note is that the purpose of shortening these transitions is not simply to "save" time that can then be used for more work and productivity. I am not proposing a life of constant work and no rest or relaxation. I am not advocating for a busy life—a life spent in a hurry. Quite the opposite, I think that our modern obsession with productivity makes people miserable.
However, I am calling for a life lived with intention.
If you want to take your time and do whatever you are going to do more slowly and mindfully, I think that's great. Enjoy preparing your meal and eating it; don't be in a rush just so that you can "save" a couple of minutes.
But after you've finished your meal, your work, or any other task, why just keep sitting around? Unless you want to meditate or engage in a moment of silence and stillness, which I support and encourage, what is the purpose of not moving on to the next step of your day? Let's be honest; we all know what happens if you don't continue moving. You eventually (or immediately) pull out your phone. Do you have something specific you are looking for? Most often, not. The end result? You’ve wasted a significant amount of time and made it even harder for you to focus on your next task.
But even with this explanation that I am not advocating for a busy life, you might still say that I am talking about moving on to the next task or activity, which implies that you should have a full to-do list every day. That's also not the case. As far as I'm concerned, maybe you have a single task you want to accomplish in your entire day, and that's great. But what are you going to do after? Are you going to go for a walk? Are you going to meditate? Read? Listen to music? I'm not telling you what you should do in your day; I'm just telling you that you should consider living with more intention. Because no matter how different our routines are and the amount of free time we have, it is equally true for all of us that, if we go through our day without intentionality, we will eventually fall into the trap of mindless consumption and end up looking back on our day as wasted.
So let's stop focusing on how productive you are and look at how you are moving throughout the day. Because you are moving, whether you want it or not.
You are not standing still. Time is not standing still. Life isn't.
Which brings us to the levels.
In my case, the highest-leverage thing I could do about my day is shorten my transition time. That's because, every day, I have a pretty clear idea of the tasks I want to accomplish. And, once I get to them, my ability to focus is at the very least decent, and sometimes even exceptional. My day has a structure, and I’m consistent in following that structure.
But making the transitions shorter wouldn't make much sense for someone who is not clear on what tasks those transitions stand between or who is not capable of sitting down and focusing on a task for an extended period of time.
This is why we need to identify different levels of moving through the day.
The first level would be that you are getting carried throughout your day. Or maybe carried by your day, whichever is easier for you to imagine. You are living with zero intention. No structure whatsoever. No plan for what your day should look like. I would like if no one reading this was on the first level, but the fact is that quite a lot of people live this way. And the only types of feelings and mental states that living like this can produce are hopelessness, meaninglessness, no fulfillment, and even depression and self-loathing.
Then we have the second level, where you are moving through the day, but you are moving slowly. The intention and structure are there, but you still haven't really grabbed hold of your day. This is the situation I found myself in when I decided to start focusing on the speed of my transitions. I would say that this level is characterized by structure being a much stronger factor than intention. The structure is what actually keeps you moving through the day; you know what are the things that need to be done. But your intention of you being the mover is not strong enough. Because the intention is lacking, you are susceptible to losing momentum in those transitions. Structure is there to be followed, but you need an engine that is on par with the structure. And the engine is intention.
And the third level is moving quickly throughout your day. You are gliding. Your intentionality is in full effect. It is no longer just structure that helps you move from one task or activity to another. The structure acts like the sails of the boat called Your Day. The intention is the wind in your sails. And the wind is blowing as strong as ever, making your boat cut through the waves of distraction with ease. You have seized the day. And there has been a lot of polemic about the phrase "seize the day." Because the original, Carpe Diem, actually stood for plucking the day, as if it were a fresh and ripe flower. So the critics say that seizing the day is way too aggressive a translation of this phrase. Day is not to be seized. It portrays our modern obsession with productivity and viewing everything as a resource to be used. I wholeheartedly agree with this critique. But in the context of these three levels, I am precisely talking about seizing the day. Not plucking it like a flower, as beautiful as that metaphor is. I am also not talking about using it as a resource in our obsession with productivity. I am talking about seizing power. Just like when rebels seize power from a dictator, I want us to seize power from the dictatorship of constant distractions and cheap dopamine that we are bombarded with.
Looking at the second and third level, they might seem too vague. How to determine what is slow and what is fast movement through the day? When does movement stop being slow and achieve at least regular speed? Where exactly is the line between the second and third level?
I don't have the answer. Nor do I think there can or should be a precise measure for something like this. I believe you feel the difference between simply following the structure and being the captain of your day. At the end of the day, it doesn't even matter where exactly the line is between the two. The purpose of these levels is not to compare and compete with each other. Most of us will recognize ourselves on the first or second level and should focus on looking forward and upward, not left, right, and back.
If you are on the first level, your primary concern definitely shouldn't be shortening your transition times. You must first give some structure to your day. What are the tasks, and, more importantly, what are the levels of those tasks, that you can start executing on a daily basis and stay consistent with? Take some time to seriously think about this if you are on the first level, and then act on it. This is my challenge to you.
If you find yourself on the second level, as most of us will, I invite you to consider focusing on your transitions. How much wind do they take out of your sails? Could you keep them shorter, not for the sake of obsessing over productivity, but for the sake of feeling like you are the one who is in the driver seat of your day? Will you join me in practicing faster and more intentional movement before different parts of our day?
Finally, if you find yourself on the third level, the only thing I can say is congratulations. I am happy for you, and I hope you stay there. And, of course, wait for the rest of us. We are coming.
Thank you for reading.
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Excellent points on daily framework. It was only yesterday that I realized my daily life lacked structure and intention. Reading your thoughts today gives me more gratitude towards mere coincidences. Thank you Teacher.
A fantastic read my friend!
Signing up for living a little each day!