This post was originally an email to my newsletter. If you like this, you’d love my newsletter. You can sign up here.

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1. Wake up to a clean room/house/work space.

2. Declutter as much as you can⏤in your home, at work, in your mind, and in life.

3. Have a go-to playlist that triggers a specific mental space⏤for the gym, for working, for relaxing, for drinks with friends, for a dinner party, etc.

4. Get in some type of movement every day.

5. Sweat every day.

6. Track your calories and macros for at least 12 weeks to get a better understanding of your eating habits.

7. “Check in with yourself before checking in on the world.” ⏤ Matthew McConaughey

8. Plan out every minute of your work day, starting with the highest priority.

9. Before your highest priority task, build momentum by getting an easy win: reading 20 pages, going for a walk, cleaning your room, sending a nice text to someone, plan a dinner for later in the day.

10. Give yourself something to look forward to if you finish your work for the day. (One of my favorite comedian’s, Bert Kreischer, calls them “treats.”)

11. Spend 2-4 hours per day doing important work with zero distractions.

12. Practice “fear-setting” by asking yourself, “What’s the worst that could happen?” It’s often not as bad as you imagine it.

13. If you can afford it, move to a big city for at least a year of your life.

14. Ask (specific) questions from people smarter than you that have what you want.

15. Constantly play devil’s advocate with your own ideas.

16. Meditate. Write down your thoughts with no judgment. Reflect.

17. Eat foods that make you feel better after eating them.

18. Do workouts that cause you to leave the gym feeling better than when you came in.

19. Adopt a pet.

20. Learn how to cook and make meals for loved ones.

21. Invest in a Roth IRA regularly.

22. Create a 6-month emergency fund. (You know, in case of a pandemic.)

23. Live below your means and avoid keeping up with the Joneses.

24. Spend money on things you love, cut back ruthlessly on things you don’t care about.

25. Pick a career where you can’t be replaced by automation.

26. Spend your day in a way that allows you to sleep well at night.

27. Regularly get 7+ hours of sleep as if your life depends on it. (Hint: it does.)

28. Talk to strangers and make eye contact during everyday activities.

29. What you do, where you live, and who you’re with are the most important decisions you’ll make.

30. Lift weights, do cardio, and make time for mobility work.

31. Don’t take yourself so seriously. Play!

32. Read regularly. Bonus points if the book is a classic and stood the test of time.

33. Nothing is as bad or good as you think it is.

34. You’re never as good or as bad as you think you are.

35. Nobody is as happy as they look on Instagram.

36. Expect nothing to go according to plan.

37. Learn how to dress well and buy quality clothes that fit you.

38. Cut/limit problem people in your life and replace them with people who make you feel alive.

39. Try to get really good at one thing, then leverage it.

40. You are not your career, don’t take criticism so harshly.

41. Stand for what you believe in, but don’t let the identity consume you.

42. Lower your expectations of others, raise your expectations of yourself.

43. Understand your emotions can be real, but not true.

44. Don’t argue with strangers on the Internet.

45. Have a routine, but don’t be married to it when something fun pops up.

46. Excess of anything can make your life worse. Moderation is typically the boring, but correct, answer.

47. Tell the truth.

48. Success mostly comes down to consistently doing the harder choice and choosing long-term over short-term.

49. Caffeine, alcohol, and water is an amazing synergistic combination.

50. You’re going to die. We’re all doomed. But that’s what makes life beautiful and worth living.

Anything you’d add? Let me know in the comments.

-Matt

P.S. This post was originally an email to my newsletter. If you liked this, you’d love my newsletter. You can sign up here.