Welcome to Life's a Game, a weekly newsletter to help ambitious people build a more meaningful and integrated life. Was this sent to you? Subscribe here so you don't miss the next one.​

​​Why I Fake Deadlines 👀

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Quick Spin:

• Putting the cart before the course
• The most dangerous phrase for success
• 3 Steps toward (actually) achieving that goal

🧩 Thanks for keeping Life's a Game Free!
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I know a lot of you probably work for yourselves or have a side gig, or maybe you’re starting your own company, and therefore have (or soon will have) a need for invoicing. One of things I like about Mercury, the banking* fintech I’ve mentioned a few times, is that they have super useful tools for anyone to use for free — you don’t even have to be a customer. Things like a free invoice generator, profit margin calculator, balance sheet template, and more. Try the full experience here. Mercury is trusted by 200K+ startups, small businesses, and ecommerce companies and now solopreneurs like me!
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♟️ MY TURN:

In my office Hours community you will hear me say “put the cart before the course”.

Why would I tell people to take money before they have the content fully created and fleshed out?

A study on accountability was done by the Association for Talent Development.

The researchers found that individuals have the following probabilities of completing a goal by taking these actions:

• Having an idea or goal: 10% likely to complete the goal
• Consciously deciding that you will do it: 25%
• Deciding when you will do it: 40%
• Planning how to do it: 50%
• Committing to someone that you will do it: 65%
• Having a specific accountability appointment with someone you’ve committed to: 95%

The act of telling someone and then making appointments with that person will take you from 65 - 95%.

This was the unlock for me.

We’ve got to yell our deadlines from the rooftops to force ourselves to get the thing done.

Yet so many people have this backwards.

• “Once I have the course ready……I will start charging people”
• “Once I get into better shape…..I will do a family photo shoot or sign up for a race.”
• “Once I master the skill…..I will apply for that job”
• “Once I get settled in my career….I will think about dating / family, etc”.

"Once I" is a dangerous phrase.

This newsletter started as a place to share all the ways I gamify my life to build one full of success without burnout.

And I have a secret to share…..

I’m not a disciplined person without a deadline.

So I fake it.

Well at least I put an arbitrary deadline / forcing function on something I want to do.

Because I wouldn’t prioritize without it.

• I was dragging my feet on launching this newsletter so I just announced June 15, 2023 on social media to force me to get it out into the world.
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• I signed up for a marathon before every baby turned 1 as a forcing function to build movement into my calendar.
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• I would have never been able to write an 80,000 word book in 3 months without a deadline from my editor.
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• I sent an email to a famous investor telling them I was going to be in LA and would love to grab coffee. (once they said yes, I booked the flight)

WHY DOES THIS WORK?

Deadlines create forced prioritization.

This thing is happening…..you need to prioritize it.

Our human brains are designed to avoid discomfort and letting others down, so a deadline gets us out of our internal loops on all the things that could go wrong.

You will never be 100% ready to do anything.

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♟️ YOUR TURN:

Struggling to make progress in an area of your life or feel stuck? It’s time to fake a deadline.

Step 1: Pick something

I want you to choose one area of your life you want to pick up steam, motivation and momentum.

• Getting in shape?
• Launching a project?
• Making new friends?

Step 2: Pick a date.

Now - choose a deadline for a thing that would represent forward progress.

• Getting in shape? → Running a 5k in 5 months.
• Launching a project? → Pick a date to launch it.
• Making new friends? → Announce that game night or dinner.

Step 3: Announce it and LOOK at it.

Now it's time to tell the world.

• Put that date up on your wall.
• Put it in your calendar.
• Start planning towards THAT DATE.
• And keep telling others about it.
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This is how we create that sense of prioritization and urgency in our brain.

Doing new things is scary.

But what separates the people achieving their goals from those not?

They embrace the scariness.

What is 1 thing you are going to focus on?

I want to hear it!!

PS Everything has changed now that I'm taking personal branding seriously. I'm hosting two FREE events in May to help you level up your personal branding.

• Join me May 21st at 12pm EST for a super tactical lunch & learn on LinkedIn. Sign up here!​
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• Join me May 22nd at 2pm EST as I join the Mercury Raise community for a startup founder deep dive on how to balance building a company and a personal brand. Sign up here!​

*Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group, Column N.A., and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.

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