4176: 7 Alternative Ways to Evaluate Your Life Every Day by Chris Guillebeau on Defining Success

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[00:00:55] [SPEAKER_00] This is Optimal Living Daily. 7 Alternative Ways to Evaluate Your Life Every Day by Chris Guillebeau of chrisguillebeau.com I'm your narrator Justin Malik, the guy that reads blogs or articles to you every single day of the year, including weekends and holidays. I appreciate you listening every single day. It really means a lot. We get right to our next post as we optimize your life.

[00:01:24] [SPEAKER_00] 7 Alternative Ways to Evaluate Your Life Every Day by Chris Gillibeau of chrisgillibeau.com As regular readers know, I'm all about setting goals and working toward big projects over time. When you have a big goal, especially one with a clear endpoint, it's easy to know when you've achieved it. But most big goals take time, and as I've been learning, our lives consist of more than just a series of work-oriented projects that occupy our time.

[00:01:52] [SPEAKER_00] No, to truly define success, we need to think of both these long-term goals and the actions we take every day. We also need to ensure our lives are in proper order. The challenge lies in the middle. How do we accomplish all of this? Therefore, it may be more helpful to create an alternative method of evaluating ourselves as we go along. Here are seven different ideas to consider. Number one, at the end of the day, ask yourself, did today matter?

[00:02:19] [SPEAKER_00] Sure, you could spend a long time thinking back on your to-do list and reviewing your calendar, and what were all those emails about? But when you ask yourself this question, chances are you'll know the answer intuitively. Did today matter? If so, great! Do more things like it tomorrow. Can't remember anything in particular that made a difference? Well, better change it up. Number two, define success at the outset of every day, or even better, the night before.

[00:02:45] [SPEAKER_00] Before you hit the ground running, take a few moments in meditation or thoughtfulness to decide what you'd like to see happen by the end of the day. Again, be sure to prioritize. It'd be great to make a ton of progress on everything, but you probably won't. What's most important? What is realistic to achieve? Quote, Man is a success when he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night, and in between, does what he wants. Bob Dylan. Making this decision has a side benefit.

[00:03:14] [SPEAKER_00] In addition to helping you focus when you're able to hit that definition of success, you have an automatic answer to the question of, did today matter? Of course it mattered, because you did what you said you would. Number three, use ActionAli to remind yourself of your two to three priorities. My long-time friend and genius developer, Nikki Hajal, recently created a new tool called ActionAli, which is software for your Mac, no Windows version yet, sorry,

[00:03:40] [SPEAKER_00] that'll remind you throughout the day of the two to three things you've selected as most important in your life. ActionAli is very different from most productivity tools. Instead of helping you do more, it'll actually help you do less, but do it better. Whoa, what a concept. You can get a free seven-day trial and see for yourself. Number four, do that thing that you've been putting off. Procrastinators unite. Or on second thought, let's wait until tomorrow. There's one surefire way to get that thing done that you've been putting off.

[00:04:10] [SPEAKER_00] Do it before you do anything else. Don't let yourself answer any email, begin work on something new, or even shock and awe. Have your first cup of coffee or tea before doing that dreaded thing. I know, it's complicated. And when there's something you're really avoiding, you very well may want to resist it. But this method works. Number five, create new metrics. I use metrics to measure a lot of my business goals. How are product sales going? How's the blog? Who's reading and who's visiting?

[00:04:40] [SPEAKER_00] When I was going to every country in the world, I had an easy metric. The number of countries I'd visited, cross-referenced against the total number of existing countries. I'm at 193 of 193 now, which is fun. But these metrics, as appropriate as they are to these kinds of goals, aren't comprehensive for our whole lives. So if you're seeking harmony or just a different way to stay on track with all aspects of your life, maybe you need some new metrics. Here's a new habit for me. Every day in 2015, I will write or call one friend.

[00:05:10] [SPEAKER_00] The habit correlates with an easy metric. How many days did I practice this habit? I started two weeks before the end of 2014 and so far I'm doing great. As with writing 1000 words a day, I may miss a day once in a while. But the point is that it's a habit. If I get off track, I'll find my way back. I asked on Twitter if anyone else had an unconventional way of measuring daily success. I especially liked these two answers. From Sophia Studio, quote,

[00:05:37] [SPEAKER_00] Did I find time for spiritual remembrance and a sense of both gratitude and longing? End quote. And from ThisIsJohnny, quote, Did I help someone today who needed help? End quote. Number six, increase your units of momentary happiness. I wrote about units of momentary happiness after reading Springboard by G. Richard Schell. The concept is simple, yet valuable. Think of those times when you actively felt happy. Do more of them. How many times did you feel happy today?

[00:06:07] [SPEAKER_00] Where did those moments come from? How can you have more of them? And number seven, answer two questions at the outset of every day. If the idea of defining success proves elusive, or you just don't want to think of your top two to three priorities, take a different approach and ask yourself these two questions at the start of the day. How are you feeling? And what do you want? Take the time to actually write down your answers, even if it's just a short sentence or two for each, or a quick set of words and phrases that make sense to you.

[00:06:37] [SPEAKER_00] Throughout the day, whenever you have a choice of how to spend your time, think back to your answers. Perhaps the best solution will spring to mind, or at least orient you in the right direction. You just listened to the post titled, Seven Alternative Ways to Evaluate Your Life Every Day, by Chris Guillebeau of chrisguillebeau.com. And I'll be right back with my commentary.

[00:07:02] [SPEAKER_01] Fall savings are happening now at the Home Depot. Save up to $500 on select appliances. Plus, enjoy free delivery when you spend $998 or more. From prepping to cooking to cleaning up, Frigidaire has you covered. The custom flex temp drawer switches from fridge to freezer. With more than 15 cooking modes, including stone-baked pizza mode, you can enjoy restaurant-quality pizza in as little as two minutes. Then clean up with the Frigidaire dishwasher, featuring the industry's fastest normal wash cycle. Shop fall savings now at the Home Depot.

[00:07:29] [SPEAKER_01] Off the value of October 21st, USLAC store online for details.

[00:07:34] [SPEAKER_03] Pink Panther us here. Coach and Spotify are teaming up to bring music and style together, and they want you to be part of it. Grab your friends and head to the Tabby Tour, hitting cities around the country with live performances from special artists, exclusive experiences, and personalized products. And discover custom playlists on Spotify, built just for you based on who you are and how you listen.

[00:07:54] [SPEAKER_02] Live your story with Coach. Learn more at coach.com.

[00:08:00] [SPEAKER_00] Thank you to Chris. With list style posts like these, I always recommend trying only one at a time so you don't get overwhelmed. So if something stood out to you and sounded like something you could add to your daily routine, try it out. And then if it doesn't work, you can always try a different one. Personally, I really like number six, which is thinking about what makes you happy, and then how many times did you feel happy today? Where did those moments come from? And how can you have more of them? Because I did that for about a year, I think.

[00:08:29] [SPEAKER_00] I tracked my mood every single day and then wrote down what I did. Then I looked back and then decided I should have more of those types of days. It's pretty simple. So you can try that out if you want. But that'll do it for today. Thank you for listening and sticking around until the end. Have a great weekend if you're listening in real time. And I'll see you tomorrow as usual, where your optimal life awaits.