Habits

A 13-post collection

An interview on the Misfit Founders podcast

The incredibly generous and supportive Biro Florin recently invited me on his show Misfit Founders.

The show was filmed in his beautiful house in Brighton, UK, and we chatted about building a SaaS business, and a whole lot more.

It's the first time I've spoken at length about our work on EcoSend and how GoSquared fits into a bigger picture more than ever.

It's a very long show (the best part of two hours!) so if you have the time, I hope you enjoy it.

Thank you Biro, for inviting me on, and helping to set my life goals for a podcasting setup like yours!

Where do you find inspiration to write?

Every so often, I feel at a loss when trying to figure out what to write about.

I frequently feel uninspired and lacking in ideas, so I will go weeks, possibly months without writing.

But there’s a great source of material I haven’t turned to enough: questions.

Whenever I speak at an event, or meet another founder, or really, anyone, I’m usually thrown a question of some sort.

I’ve started to note these questions down, as they’re the perfect starting point for topics to write about.

I’ve found that writing answers to questions I’ve been asked has three valuable advantages:

1. Writing addresses my frustration

If I had more time, I’d have written a shorter letter. — Blaise Pascal

When I’m asked a question, typically I must think on my feet.

Occasionally, that works OK. But sometimes, about 2 minutes after I’ve answered the question, I’ll realise I had something better to say on the topic.

There’s no rewind, or “edit” button for live conversation.

It can be incredibly frustrating!

By retrospectively writing an answer to questions I’m asked, I can address my frustration by giving a better answer.

2. Writing helps form better answers

I find writing to be a fantastic way to clarify my thoughts.

It forces me to consider something on a deeper level. The act of writing can crystallise a topic for me.

It’s correlated to the way I like to learn: if I must teach someone about something, it will absolutely force me to learn more about that thing.

I’ve often found that teaching others is the best way to teach myself, but it always feels like cheating!

3. Writing multiplies my impact

I’d like to think another benefit of turning these questions into written articles shared here, is that I can be more helpful to you, the reader of this blog.

When I have a chat with a friend, or when I am fortunate enough to speak at an event, I often think “gosh I wish that was recorded, the conversation could have been very helpful for more people.”

A wonderful thing about writing is it tends to last a lot longer than audio or video. It’s easier to find via search, and can more easily be edited to bring it up to date.

Some questions I have written answers to

Some questions I need to write answers to

  • Why are you building an email marketing tool, when it’s one of the most crowded markets you could possibly enter?
  • What’s driving you after so many years to keep doing GoSquared?
  • How have your values influenced your decisions and lifestyle recently?
  • What advice do you have for someone starting out on their own startup journey?

Do you have a question for me? Please

Consistency is boring

"It looks almost the same as the last one!"
"It's surely not worth upgrading from last year's model!"
"Apple has really lost its ability to innovate lately."

Another year, another iPhone.

But this is how Apple rolls.

People remember the exciting moments. People get excited for the shiniest things.

But often, success comes from the boring: being consistent, executing relentlessly, not letting things slip.

Apple may not be able to hang on to their success forever, but since 2007 they have shipped at least one new, successful model of iPhone every single year. They didn't even let a global pandemic get in their way.

They’ve never once slipped up — no exploding batteries, no massively unpopular designs, no unexpected huge delays.

That’s boring, but that’s a big part of what has turned the iPhone into a business that generates $200 billion per year.

Most of us aren't running a global consumer electronics business, but I think there's something to take away for all of us — whether you're a founder, an employee, or just trying to improve in your personal life.

Often the success comes not from a single moment of genius, but from the compounding effects of showing up consistently and not giving up.

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." — Aristotle

Reflect, recharge, and go

By the end of 2022 I was feeling exhausted. I desperately needed a break.

I'm uncertain if I really got a considerable break over Christmas — we hosted Christmas at our house for the first time, I cooked for eight people, and we headed up to Scotland for New Year celebrations.

It was fun, but it wasn’t entirely relaxing.

It was different, though — different to the usual schedule of work, the usual stress and the usual ups and downs of a working week.

Critically, I managed to reflect on 2022, and I spent some time thinking about 2023.

I’ve started January of this year with a few intentions:

  • Don’t eat meat (at least for January)
  • Exercise daily
  • Get to bed by 10pm
  • Wake up before 7am

We’ll have to check in on these as February rolls around, let alone January 2024. But I have intentions and I am feeling positive about all of them so far.

Upon further reflection though, I know I am guilty of a cycle — every January, I feel re-energised, I start afresh, I have great intentions, and I carry them out. I’ve even written on this blog about them (often I write when my energy is highest, too):

Perhaps my more profound realisation heading into 2023 is that even the greatest of intentions can be weighed down and held back — by external forces, by lack of energy, by drifting without realising.

Why don't I have any intentions as September rolls around? Why did my writing, my exercise, my routine fall off mid-to-late last year? Why does that happen almost every year?

In 2023, my most important intention is to not wait until December to reflect, recharge, and reassess myself.

There is too much I want to achieve in this life to let a month slip by.

I will take more time to check in with myself, to reflect on how I’m feeling, how I’m spending my time, and to recharge my batteries to make every day count.

Here’s to a fulfilling 2023.

Episode 14 of Lost and Founder — The January Blues

In my first episode of Lost and Founder of 2022, I talk about how I’m getting through the darkest month of the year, and why January can actually be a great time reflect, reset, and build a stronger you for the year ahead.

I always find January a tough month — all the fun and excitement of Christmas and new years is over, the weather is awful, it’s dark outside, and to top it all off we’re still in the midst of a global pandemic.

But fear not, there’s a world of opportunity out there! I’m spending some time at the start of January to reflect on 2021. I’m not setting myself huge audacious goals because I don’t know what the future holds, and I know the chances of success are low unless I use my previous experience to inform my future actions.

Don’t get caught up in all the “new year, new you” nonsense — be careful what you read on social media! Instead, look at yourself, spend time reflecting on your own successes and where things could have gone better, and use that to channel your next steps as you enter the new year.

Actions / take aways

  • Go easy on yourself — the last two years have been hard on all of us.
  • It’s never too late to reflect — if you haven’t already, you still have time to reflect on 2021.
  • You don’t have to make new years resolutions — instead get clearer on your values.
  • If you are clear on your values, channel your thinking around small habits you can adopt day by day rather than setting huge unwieldy goals.
  • Give yourself something to look forward to at the end of January — like a trip to somewhere you like, a gift to yourself, or some other treat.

Thanks, and see you next time!

Music: Jakarta by Bonsaye. Podcast hosting: Transistor.

The crippling fear of hitting “publish”

“I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.” — Pablo Picasso

I’ve been feeling it increasingly — I’ll put a tweet together, a short article, maybe even a visual piece of work. I’ll be feeling pretty good about it, and then the time comes to hit “publish”…

That’s when the fear creeps in. What if this is rubbish? Is this going to offend someone? Will it be misunderstood? Will people judge me for it?

It’s been enough to make me undo all my work and not hit publish on countless occasions.

I know I’m not alone on this — even the best feel it to some degree whenever they’re about to publish their work.

I keep trying to tell myself, though: don’t let it stop you.

Usually, the worst thing that happens is no one cares. Everyone looks the other way and gets on with their lives.

No one cares as much about you and your work as you do.

With that in mind, I urge you (and my future self) to overcome that fear next time by hitting publish. It’s the fastest, most effective way to learn, iterate, and improve.

Episode 11 of Lost and Founder — What to do when Everything Breaks

After a brief hiatus, I'm back for the eleventh episode of Lost and Founder.

This week I share why it's so important to take a break, to rest, and recharge your batteries.

I’ve spoken a lot about habits and healthy routines on the podcast in previous episodes, but this week I wanted to change the focus to what happens when you fall out of touch with those routines and start to feel overwhelmed.

It's so important to give yourself time to rest and recharge — it's only by pausing you can truly reset and move forward stronger.

As the renowned street artist Banksy once said: "Learn to rest, not to quit."

Actions / take aways

  • Find ways to check in with yourself to understand how you're feeling.
  • If you feel you're overwhelmed or struggling, don't be afraid to pause and rest.
  • Every so often a reset is what you need — take the time you need to get back on track.
  • You might not need a holiday — sometimes just a day to yourself can help.
  • If you've been stuck in the same surroundings, try getting into a different environment — a coffee shop works for me.

Thanks, and see you next time!

Music: Jakarta by Bonsaye. Podcast hosting: Transistor.

Episode 10 of Lost and Founder — Time Management

We've reached the considerable milestone of episode 10 of Lost and Founder — thank you, dear listener!

In this episode, I talk through what I have learned about time management — from how I’ve been using my calendar instead of a to-do list, to the importance of making time for reflection each week.

I hope you enjoy the show — even if I say so myself, I felt like this was a good one.

“The secret to doing good research is to always be a little underemployed; you waste years by not being able to waste hours.” — Amos Tversky

Actions and take aways

  • Take time each week to reflect, and map your time. Book in 15 minutes this week.
  • Try using a calendar instead of your to-do list to plan your tasks.
  • Keep meetings to fixed days in the week — like Mondays and Tuesdays, to free up your other days for deeper work.
  • Wrap up meetings with 5-minute breaks in between to refresh and re-energise.
  • Close your email and only open it at fixed times in the day.
  • Enable "Do Not Disturb" on your devices.
  • Don’t be afraid to pause, and make time for you. You can’t spend every waking hour being productive — you will eventually crash.
  • We each have different limits — so try to find what works best for you.

Thanks, and see you next time!

Music: Jakarta by Bonsaye. Podcast hosting: Transistor.

Episode 9 of Lost and Founder — Finding Focus, Writing, and Habits

In episode 9 of the Lost and Founder podcast, I share why it's so hard to find and regain focus in a business and how I'm working to address it.

I also explain how writing helps me break down complex topics, and revisit some of the habits I've been working on over the last few weeks.

Focus

  • It's really hard to gain once you lose it as a business.
  • Loss aversion can hold you back from making the right decisions.
  • You often lose focus for good reasons — regaining it can cause people to be short-term frustrated. Difficult transition, but the long-term benefits are almost always worthwhile.
  • Not everyone will be happy in the short-term, and that’s OK — as long as you take their feedback onboard, understand it and address it as best you can.
  • Focus is hard!

Writing to learn

  • How Ulysses (a writing app) has helped me achieve my goal of writing 200 words a day.
  • Writing helps me understand topics better.
  • Writing forces me to learn — if I want to teach and share with others I need to understand the subject better.

Habits

  • Skipping — not done enough in the last few weeks, despite feeling great when I was doing it. My goal is now to aim to do a shorter time skipping and bake it into my routine.
  • Writing — going well. Writing 200 words a day, thanks to encouragement from Ulysses.
  • Blocking time in my calendar, instead of using a to-do list — has changed a lot about my approach to time management.

Actions / take aways

  • Focus is about saying no to really good ideas.
  • Be clear on what you want, and what your priorities are — so spend time on those.
  • Don’t be afraid to take time out to get clear on what is important to you.
  • Challenging topic you're struggling to understand? Try to write it down. Scribble it, type it, and you’ll likely find it helps you clarify your thinking.
  • Try breaking down your habits into the smallest possible activity. Don’t give up.

Thanks, and see you next time!

Music: Jakarta by Bonsaye Podcast hosting: Transistor

Should you use a todo list?

My todo list today.

I’ve lived my life with a daily todo list for over 10 years.

In fact, I put a video together to help you get started with Things for managing your todo list.

I get a small dopamine hit whenever I check an item off my list. I have built into my muscle memory the keyboard shortcuts to record anything anyone mentions to me that I’ll need to action in the future.

But every day I still finish with items unchecked. It gets me down and it stresses me out.

Earlier this week, several people sent me this post on how a CEO manages their time and it made me question my obsessive todo list usage. Is it really helping me? Is it contributing to me feeling down? Is it actually holding me back from focusing my time on what I need to do?

For the last few days I experimented with deliberately blocking my time on my calendar for the important work I needed to focus on. I have dabbled with this approach in the past but kept one foot in the “todo list” camp and it didn’t stick.

What I found from a few days last week was eye-opening:

  • I was more conscious of the tasks I put into my calendar (everyone on the team can see my calendar if they want to view it)
  • I blocked time to focus – and this time was protected from meetings. People couldn’t book / invite me to anything that clashed.
  • It drove my awareness of how much time I need to spend on certain important projects – time I wasn’t dedicating before.
  • It made me realise I go into every day, and every week, with an overly optimistic assessment of what I can achieve, that ultimately leaves me feeling like I haven’t achieved enough by the end.

I intend to keep this approach up. I am not ready to drop my usage of Things yet – especially not for my personal life todos.

I’m interested to find out after another few weeks of using my calendar more deliberately if I can learn about the following:

  • How much important work can I do? Not just the urgent work.
  • Can I get better at communicating with others around me what I can / cannot achieve by certain dates?
  • Can I feel better at the end of each day knowing I've focused my time in the right places, and achieved more with my time?

The clearer I can be with myself, the clearer I can be with everyone around me, and the more I can help people achieve their own tasks and projects.

Let’s find out!

Update: in episode 10 of Lost and Founder I share what I've learnt from using my calendar instead of a todo list over the 3-4 weeks since writing this post. TL;DR: it's helping.

Finding time and making time

People often say “I don’t have time”.

  • I don’t have time to write a blog post.
  • I don’t have time to learn to draw.
  • I don't have time to play a masterpiece on the piano.
  • I don’t have time to start a business.
  • I don’t have time to cook.

We all have the time. We’re all given the same 24 hours in every day, and 7 days in every week.

It’s not the time that’s the issue.

Our circumstances, attitudes, environments, goals, and clarity – those are the things that vary.

If your goals are clear, if your environment encourages you to achieve those goals, if your circumstances can be adjusted to allow you time and space to work on your goals – then time… time is made.

  • You make time for writing a blog post – one sentence a day.
  • You make time for drawing – with an open sketchbook, and a pencil at the ready, one 5 minute drawing at a time.
  • You make time for that masterpiece by time-boxing 10 minutes at the piano each morning.
  • You make time to start that business by sharing the idea with one person tomorrow and getting their feedback.
  • You make time to cook by drawing up a meal plan tonight.

Next time you hear yourself saying “I wish I had time to do that” ask yourself how much you wish you had the time. If you want the time enough then it’s really the motivation, clarity, focus, environment, and other factors you’re lacking – the time will be made.

Episode 6 of Lost and Founder – Planning and Habits

Another week, another episode of Lost and Founder. Really trying to keep this habit up!

Speaking of habits...

In episode six, I share my distaste for planning and how I have been reframing planning in my head to encourage me to do more of it. Setting a deadline, and making myself accountable for what I am planning has been useful for showing an outcome to my thinking and planning in the last week.

I've also been reading a helpful and practical book called Atomic Habits, by James Clear. It's all about improving your life by adopting positive, healthy habits, and trying to eliminate your bad habits.

I'm still reading it, but a rule I've already been finding helpful is the two minute rule – try adopting a new habit by breaking it down into the smallest possible task, something that can be done in just two minutes. If you can master that then you're laying the ground work for bigger things. We'll check in next week to see how we're doing – if you try it out, be sure to let me know!

Actions and take aways

  • Set a deadline, a format, and find someone to hold you accountable to your planning.
  • Try the 2 minute rule with habits – let me know what you can achieve and I’ll give a shout out next week to anyone who successfully starts adopting a new habit.

Thanks, and see you next time!

Episode two of Lost and Founder – strategy, tactics, and habits

Another tough week, and episode two of my new podcast, Lost and Founder.

My goal with each episode is to be open and honest, and give a side to the founder journey that often isn’t shared enough – the unglamorous, stressful, uncertain side.

Hope you enjoy the show, and thanks to everyone who tuned in for episode one and gave me feedback and support. I owe you!