âA life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in doing nothing.â â Ge
HOW TO ACCELERATE PERSONAL PROJECTS Tips, tricks, and liberating constraints Martynas Jocius Yaga Gathering 2015
“There are no experts. There is only integrity between doing and having done.” — Terence McKenna
Personal projects: ● ● ● ● ● ●
come from within are fueled by personal inspiration can be completed by 1 person + some help have the potential to grow into a startup are perfect staying small and personal helps in self-realization
But we postpone ideas, because: ● ● ● ● ●
we “know” we have no time we “feel” we lack energy our jobs “make” us tired we lack some powerful “state” of mind we dream about a magical “moment” when time, energy, and good mood will come
So we pay the price of: ● ● ● ● ● ●
achieving less than we are capable of losing experience that is waiting for us growing slower delaying self-realization not learning how to execute good ideas missing new opportunities
Try a simple framework: (1/3) ● Collect ideas every day. Take notes, work with your notes. ● Stop dreaming about your life mission for some time. Do what inspires you this year, this quarter. Follow your heart. ● Select the most inspiring idea and dedicate 6 months for it. If it fails — not a big deal.
Try a simple framework: (2/3) ● Split your project into tasks, then use 80/20 rule: remove 80% of the tasks that will give only 20% of the benefits to you. ● Spend 1 month validating idea, 3 months executing it, and 2 months enjoying results. ● On weekdays get up earlier and spend 1-2 morning hours working on your project for 3 months.
Try a simple framework: (3/3) ● Delegate. Hire freelancers to do things you cannot do by yourself. Use your daily job to pay for their work. Find ways to spend less. ● Track 1 metric every day: “1-2 hours for my project today: Done/Failed”. Make a weekly list, review it often, think about ways to improve daily execution.
“A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in doing nothing.” — George Bernard Shaw
Liberating constraints (1/2) ● Understand your life's muscles (power) and bones (constraints). You cannot move if you have no bones (constraints). Good balance of both is the key to moving forward. ● The less time you have, the better producer you can become. ● Morning energy is your true hack.
Liberating constraints (2/2) ● Have a deadline. Make a list of milestones with end-dates. ● Free time is not found, it is made. For most people it is easy to make 1-3 hours every day by optimizing work, leisure, and sleep. ● Daily job costs time and energy, but gives grounding and cash for experiments.
“Don’t be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make, the better.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
A few more tips & tricks ● Help your brain feel alive: B12, oils (coconut, hemp), balanced food, less carbs, more water. ● Boost your mind: yerba mate, pu-erh tea, fresh coffee. ● Do it because it inspires you. Don't be corrupted by ambition.
My best personal projects ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
Blog virsmai.lt Dėmesio Virsmai (book) 11:11 (music) Flow (music) Awareness (music) Live & DJ shows Podcast (upcoming)
“No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit.“ — Helen Keller
slides available at:
bit.ly/next6months DO EXPERIMENTS AND HAVE FUN
