00:00:00(轻柔的音乐)
00:00:02好了，我把接下来要讲的这个东西
00:00:07称为“效率矩阵”，
00:00:09它主要包含两个维度，
00:00:11也就是愿景和行动。
00:00:12愿景有点像你的雄心壮志，
00:00:14也就是你对自己真正想要的东西有多少了解，
00:00:17包括设定目标、拥有宏大的梦想
00:00:19之类的一切。
00:00:20而行动，顾名思义，
00:00:22就是你实际上投入了多少精力去干活。
00:00:24如果一个人既缺乏愿景
00:00:26又没有行动，我称之为“随波逐流者”。
00:00:31不是骗子，是随波逐流的人。
00:00:32他们只是在生活中混日子，
00:00:34没有什么明确的目标或抱负，
00:00:36也不怎么采取实际行动。
00:00:38他们就像在水里盲目漂浮一样。
00:00:40显然，没人想处在那种状态。
00:00:42接下来，是那些空有远大愿景的人。
00:00:43他们野心勃勃，目标明确，
00:00:46但就是不付诸行动。
00:00:47我把这类人称为“梦想家”。
00:00:49他们把大量时间花在空想上，
00:00:51却很少付诸实践。
00:00:52然后还有这么一类人，
00:00:54他们执行力极强，
00:00:55非常擅长埋头苦干，
00:00:56但却没有什么抱负。
00:00:58他们并不清楚自己到底想去往何方。
00:01:00我称他们为“仓鼠”，
00:01:02因为他们就像在跑轮上不停奔跑，
00:01:04忙忙碌碌却原地踏步。
00:01:06当然，我们所有人都想达到的境界，
00:01:09就是这里的“大师”。
00:01:11他们是效率和执行力的大师。
00:01:14他们不仅拥有令人向往且为之奋斗的愿景，
00:01:16满怀抱负，
00:01:17而且关键在于，他们正采取行动去实现它。
00:01:19那么，这支视频我主要是想
00:01:23针对那些“梦想家”们。
00:01:24如果你觉得自己很有抱负，
00:01:27有梦想，有目标，
00:01:29但同时又觉得自己很懒惰、没自制力，
00:01:32觉得自己并没有采取行动
00:01:34去把梦想变为现实。
00:01:37这就是我针对这种心态，
00:01:40给出的犀利见解和诚恳建议。
00:01:42如果你正处于这种“空有抱负却懒散”的状态，
00:01:43也就是有目标却没行动，
00:01:46我会遵循这三个步骤。
00:01:48第一步：明确你真正想要什么。
00:01:54很多人看起来很有野心，
00:01:56但这种野心通常是很模糊且缺乏方向的。
00:02:00比如“我想成功”或者“我想发财”，
00:02:03但他们从来没有真正坐下来，
00:02:05去定义这些词到底意味着什么。
00:02:08对你来说，成功意味着什么？
00:02:10变得富有又意味着什么？
00:02:12最关键的是，你为什么想要这些？
00:02:15因为本质上，这关乎于
00:02:18创造一个足够吸引人的目标，
00:02:21让它吸引你前进，
00:02:23而不是让你觉得
00:02:24是在费力地推着自己爬山。
00:02:27这就是所谓的“拉力动机”
00:02:28和“推力动机”。
00:02:30拉力动机就像是：
00:02:31“哇，我真的太渴望那个东西了。”
00:02:32所以很自然地，虽然动力会有起伏，
00:02:35但我能感受到一种
00:02:37朝那个方向前进的驱动力，
00:02:38一种被吸引的感觉。
00:02:40而推力动机则像是：
00:02:42“唉，我应该想要那个东西，”
00:02:44或者“我应该想让自己去想要它，”
00:02:46但内心深处，我其实并不在意。
00:02:47所以每一步都像在挣扎，
00:02:49每件事都觉得是一种煎熬。
00:02:51至于如何定义目标，
00:02:52首先要明确“是什么”，
00:02:55也就是你到底想要什么？
00:02:56能不能更具体一点？
00:02:58如果你知道自己想要什么，
00:03:01达成目标就会容易得多。
00:03:02反之，如果你目标模糊，
00:03:04前进就会困难重重。
00:03:05当你谈到想要成功时，
00:03:06我们能不能量化一下？
00:03:08能不能加一些限定参数？
00:03:09成功对你而言意味着什么？
00:03:10是成为当地律师事务所
00:03:11的管理合伙人吗？
00:03:13那是你定义的成功吗？
00:03:14还是经营一家能让你
00:03:15每年净赚百万美元的轻型副业？
00:03:17这是你定义的成功吗？
00:03:18你到底想要什么？
00:03:19因为目标的改变会极大影响
00:03:21你为之采取的行动方案。
00:03:24接下来，这非常重要但也常被低估，
00:03:25我们需要回答“为什么”。
00:03:29你为什么要在乎这个？
00:03:32你追求这个东西的理由是什么？
00:03:33通常，当我与处于这种状态的人交流时，
00:03:36他们其实并不知道自己为什么要那个东西。
00:03:39他们只是模糊地想变得成功或富有，
00:03:41但从未静下心来去思考，
00:03:43最好是写下来，这对你为什么重要？
00:03:44你做一件事的理由越多，
00:03:47你就越有可能真的去付诸行动。
00:03:50在这里，又有一个阻碍我们的陷阱，
00:03:51那就是“应该”这个念头。
00:03:53“我应该如何”很少能带你到达目的地。
00:03:57那些经常自我施压、说“应该”的人，
00:03:58往往是有梦想、有目标，
00:04:03却永远不付诸行动，
00:04:05或者极少采取行动的人。
00:04:07因为当你只有“应该做”的动力时，
00:04:08我有时会听到有人说：
00:04:10“是啊，我真的很想拿一等学位。”
00:04:13我会问：“嘿，为什么呢？”
00:04:14他们会说：“嗯，我父母辛苦供我出国留学，”
00:04:17“我觉得我有责任拿个好成绩来报答他们。”
00:04:18好吧，但那其实只是一种“应该”。
00:04:20并不是你内心真正想做的事，
00:04:22你个人其实并不真的在乎。
00:04:25你只是因为想让父母骄傲，
00:04:28而在强迫自己去在乎这件事。
00:04:30对某些人来说，这种“想让父母骄傲”
00:04:32的动力并非一种负担，
00:04:35而是：“我内心深处有一种强烈的渴望”
00:04:37“去让父母感到自豪。”
00:04:40“因此，我理所当然会去努力。”
00:04:42这类人并不是“有抱负但懒散”的人，
00:04:44他们既有抱负又在付诸行动，
00:04:47因为让父母或社会感到骄傲、
00:04:48或者达成某些指标的动力足够强烈，
00:04:50足以吸引他们奔向那个结果。
00:04:52但在你的情况下，既然你在看这个视频，
00:04:53我猜这种“应该做”的动机对你并没有什么帮助。
00:04:54对我而言，这种动机从未在生活中奏效过。
00:04:56每当我觉得“我应该锻炼”、“我应该去健身房”
00:04:58或者“我应该更在乎考试成绩”时，
00:05:00那就是我们陷入“有目标但没动力”
00:05:03去执行的境地的时候。
00:05:05所以我们真正要找的是那个“为什么”。
00:05:07在你自以为想要的东西背后，
00:05:09那个核心的、真正的渴望到底是什么？
00:05:10它为什么对你重要？
00:05:12关于理由，通常有两种：
00:05:14理性的理由和感性的理由。
00:05:15而在任何时候，
00:05:18感性理由都能胜过理性理由。
00:05:20我们很多人能编出一大堆理性理由：
00:05:22“我应该拿一等学位，
00:05:24因为这会增加我找到好工作的机会，”
00:05:26“进而让我有安全感、变幸福”等等。
00:05:29这是一串逻辑推理。
00:05:32但由于如今社会的社会契约已经失效，
00:05:34这套逻辑往往根本站不住脚——
00:05:37你可能拿到了很好的学位和成绩，
00:05:40却依然找不到工作。
00:05:42这种现象叫什么来着……认知失调？
00:05:45你的一边大脑告诉你
00:05:48这在逻辑上是通顺的，但另一边却觉得
00:05:49这全是鬼话，因为现在有 AI 之类的冲击。
00:05:51但退一步说，即使逻辑成立，
00:05:53靠理性来说服自己渴望某件事，也很难成功。
00:05:55可如果你能从情感层面说服自己，
00:05:57让你发自内心真正地在乎它，
00:05:59一旦有了足够强大的情感驱动力，
00:06:00你的动力就会比单纯的逻辑推理
00:06:02要持久得多。
00:06:05当然，当你打算开始创业时，
00:06:05你肯定想知道如何利用 AI 工具，
00:06:07因为 AI 正在改变世界。
00:06:09作为创业者，
00:06:10我们绝对不想被时代抛弃。
00:06:12现在 AI 领域每天都有新动态，
00:06:15每周都有新模型发布。
00:06:16这时候，如果能打好 AI 的基础，
00:06:18了解它的运作原理，就会非常有帮助，
00:06:20而这正是本期视频赞助商 Brilliant 的强项。
00:06:22Brilliant 是一个非常出色的在线教育平台，
00:06:24提供数学和计算机科学方面的互动课程。
00:06:26我从 2019 年就开始用它了，非常棒。
00:06:29我在上面学过加密货币、AI，
00:06:31还有 Python 编程基础和算法。
00:06:34Brilliant 最出众的地方在于，
00:06:35它侧重于解决问题而非枯燥的说教。
00:06:39他们会通过视频或文字帮你理解概念，
00:06:41然后立刻让你去解决一个相关的实际问题。
00:06:42这让学习过程变得非常有趣、互动性极强。
00:06:43而且教育理论中也有大量证据支持：
00:06:46比起单纯的学习，边学边练
00:06:48能让你更长久地记住知识，并真正理解其内涵。
00:06:49你可以前往 brilliant.org/aliadal 免费试用 30 天，
00:06:50或者点击描述栏中的链接，
00:06:52或是扫描屏幕上现在的二维码。
00:06:54如果你觉得不错，
00:06:55通过该链接还能享受年度高级订阅 8 折优惠。
00:06:56非常感谢 Brilliant 对本视频的赞助，我们言归正传。
00:06:59举个我自己的例子，当年我还是个医学生，
00:07:02后来成为一名医生时，
00:07:04我想拥有自己的副业、追求财务自由
00:07:05的一个巨大动力来源是，
00:07:06我每天都能看到那些比我大 10 岁的医生
00:07:08对职业感到无比沮丧。
00:07:09我能亲眼看到，也能感受到那种
00:07:11完全不想在那儿待着的心情。
00:07:12他们得强迫自己起床，
00:07:15即便到了四五十岁还在熬夜值班，
00:07:16而他们内心其实只想回家陪陪孩子。
00:07:17虽然有些医生确实很热爱这份工作，
00:07:20但我看到更多的人
00:07:22肩膀上仿佛扛着千斤重担。
00:07:24这种感觉我甚至无法用言语准确形容，
00:07:28但它就是一种实实在在的氛围，
00:07:30每天处在那个环境下，感觉再明显不过了。
00:07:32观察到这些让我尊敬的前辈们也厌恶他们的工作，
00:07:34我意识到：等一下，
00:07:35我必须实现财务自由，
00:07:36这样如果我以后继续行医，也是因为我想做，
00:07:37而不是因为我不得不做。
00:07:40很多同僚都希望能辞职或者至少转为兼职，
00:07:42但他们就是没攒够钱。
00:07:44于是我告诉自己：好，我得去赚钱。
00:07:46这就是一个非常强烈的、感性层面的理由，
00:07:48驱使我去真正付诸行动。
00:07:51如果没有这个理由，而只是想着：
00:07:52“哦，也许某天我应该创个业，”
00:07:54“我应该追求财务自由，因为将来可能有好处，”
00:07:55那样的话，如果没有强大的情感支撑，
00:07:56你很难让自己真正开始行动。
00:07:57所以，假设你已经完成了第一步，
00:07:59明确了你想要的东西。
00:08:00接下来的第二步，
00:08:01就是找出达成目标的障碍。
00:08:04也就是分析：好，你明确了目标，
00:08:06比如很多人跟我说想财务自由，
00:08:07这很好，想要一家年利润 50 万美元的副业，
00:08:10没问题。这些正是加入我们
00:08:11“副业学院”（我的在线商学院）的那类人，
00:08:13详情见下方描述。
00:08:16那么，你有了目标，也有了理由，
00:08:17现在要思考的是：障碍是什么？
00:08:19为什么你还没达成那个目标？是什么在阻碍你？
00:08:23很多人会跳过这一步，直接想：
00:08:26“我要创业，我需要更强的自律性。”
00:08:28适度的自律固然好，
00:08:29一旦有了目标和计划，
00:08:30确实偶尔会遇到不想干活的时候，
00:08:32这时候需要自律来推自己一把去开始。
00:08:33但总的来说，如果你享受这个过程，
00:08:35正如我在《轻松高效》这本书中所说，
00:08:36只要你在享受过程，并且为真正在乎的目标努力，
00:08:38你就不再需要时刻依赖自律了。
00:08:41但在那之前，我们需要弄清楚，
00:08:43究竟是什么阻碍了你？
00:08:44障碍大致可以分为三类：
00:08:47你无法控制的、你可以完全控制的，
00:08:49以及你可以部分控制的。
00:08:51这就是所谓的“控制三分法”。
00:08:53比如，为什么我还没有梦寐以求的
00:08:55百万美元副业？
00:08:56嗯，我没有好的商业点子。
00:08:58这其实是你可以控制的，对吧？
00:09:01想出一个好的点子是你的分内事。
00:09:03当然，这需要付出努力，
00:09:06你可能不知道该怎么想，但“怎么做”是可以解决的，
00:09:07现在你只需要问问 ChatGPT 或 Claude：
00:09:08“我想做一个百万美元的副业，
00:09:10但我没点子，你能帮帮我吗？”
00:09:12很简单吧？这属于你可以控制的范畴。
00:09:14而无法控制的例子则是政府政策。
00:09:16如果你抱怨：“我没能做成 50 万美元的副业
00:09:18是因为政府太糟了，没做该做的事，”
00:09:19也许这是事实，但它通常不在你的控制范围内，
00:09:20除非你在政府高层，或者你父亲是首相，
00:09:21即使那样，很多时候你也控制不了。
00:09:22还有介于两者之间的，即你可以部分控制的事。
00:09:24比如“如何寻找客户”。
00:09:25寻找客户是双向的选择。
00:09:28你想赚钱，就得有人愿意付钱给你。
00:09:30你无法完全控制别人是否想要你的产品，
00:09:31但这属于部分控制。你可以创作内容、主动联络、
00:09:32投放广告，你能做很多事，
00:09:35但最终掏钱的决定权在别人手里。
00:09:36这只是个简单的例子，
00:09:39你需要做的就是分析：好，我真的很在乎这个目标，
00:09:40那为什么还没实现呢？
00:09:41然后把各种原因归入这三个篮子里。
00:09:42我的建议是：首先审视那些你无法控制的因素。
00:09:44比如政策、福利补贴、天气、
00:09:45或是某种身体上的局限。
00:09:46有很多阻碍你目标的因素是你无能为力的。
00:09:48在这些事情上，你什么也做不了。
00:09:50这时候你该问自己的是：
00:09:51考虑到这些我无法改变的现实，
00:09:52这个目标还合理吗？我还应该追求它吗？
00:09:53比如我的目标是打进 NBA，但我身高只有 1 米 6，
00:09:54或者 1 米 5。
00:09:55身高是目前的我无法控制的因素，
00:09:57我对此无能为力。
00:09:59那么，这对我进入 NBA 的概率有什么影响？
00:10:02如果我只有 1 米 5，进入 NBA 的概率几乎为零。
00:10:04这基本不可能发生，对吧？
00:10:08如果我坚持要去挑战这种不可抗力的系统性障碍，
00:10:11我就是在自讨苦吃。
00:10:13在这种情况下，放弃目标才是明智的。
00:10:15想象一下，当你有一个目标并付诸行动时，
00:10:16如果你的行动能切实提高实现目标的概率，
00:10:19这种一致性会让你感觉很好。
00:10:20就像打游戏，每次攻击 BOSS 都能削弱它的血量，
00:10:22或者你正在逐渐熟悉《艾尔登法环》里的招式，
00:10:24你能感受到努力在拉近你与目标的距离，
00:10:24这种成就感会让生活变得美好。
00:10:25最终是否达成目标反而没那么重要，
00:10:28因为人类天生享受“取得进展”的过程。
00:10:30但如果存在一个系统性的死结，比如身高，
00:10:32而你还在盲目行动，你就会像撞在一堵墙上，
00:10:33被这种无法逾越的障碍反复打击。
00:10:35这会让人极度丧气。
00:10:37所以，虽然有人会说“勇敢追梦、相信奇迹”，
00:10:39说库里也很矮，这证明了一切皆有可能，
00:10:41但库里是亿分之一的天才，你大概率不是，
00:10:43而且他其实也没那么矮。
00:10:45所以，与其在痛苦中挣扎一辈子，不如
00:10:47干脆删除这个目标，换一个方向。
00:10:49这种情况只针对那些真正不可控的系统性障碍。
00:10:51但对我接触的大多数人来说，
00:10:53阻碍他们的因素绝大部分都是可以控制的。
00:10:55这里的诀窍在于：忽略那些你控制不了的部分。
00:10:57Jocko 在他那本神作《自律等于自由》中提到过：
00:11:01“无视并超越”。
00:11:03比如你担心在 LinkedIn 上发内容会被人议论。
00:11:04别人的看法是你能控制的吗？并不完全是。
00:11:05所以，这时候你就该无视这个障碍，
00:11:07通过努力工作来超越它，
00:11:09除非那真的是像“1 米 5 打 NBA”那样无解的问题。
00:11:11你要做的就是无视并超越，
00:11:14忽略那些你控制不了的障碍。
00:11:15这听起来容易做起来难。
00:11:17人们太容易把失败归咎于外因了，
00:11:18把没创业归咎于经济环境、
00:11:19天气、政府，或者任何能甩锅的对象。
00:11:20这样做很轻松，但毫无用处。
00:11:22正是这种心态，让人们止步于空谈目标，
00:11:25因为他们把精力全放在了不可控的系统性障碍上。
00:11:27所以，我们直接忽略这些。
00:11:29好了，现在剩下的就是我们能控制的障碍了。
00:11:31一旦识别出这些，
00:11:33只需要制定计划把它们除掉就行，这并不难。
00:11:34没商业点子？试过问 ChatGPT 吗？大概没有。
00:11:36不知道怎么找客户？看相关的教学视频了吗？
00:11:37读过 Alex Hormozi 那本专门讲如何找客户的
00:11:39《1 亿美元线索》吗？
00:11:41你有没有做过那些能排除障碍的常规动作？
00:11:44这是每个创业者在建立业务时必学的一课：
00:11:45障碍永远存在。我想做到年营收千万美元，
00:11:48现在肯定也有某些障碍拦着我。
00:11:49可能是因为我们的产品不够贵，
00:11:52也可能是因为客户还不够多，但这些都是可解的问题。
00:11:53它们要么完全可控，要么部分可控。
00:11:54只要世界上还有人解决了这些问题，就说明答案是存在的。
00:11:57接下来的任务就是像个侦查员一样，
00:11:58拿着放大镜去找出解决办法。
00:12:00我发现那些最终成为“效率大师”的人，
00:12:02其实就是那些能识别并清除障碍的人。
00:12:04那些顶尖的 CEO，那些拿着高额薪水的人，
00:12:05他们的核心能力就是高效地识别并解决问题。
00:12:07那些既有抱负又能通过行动实现梦想的人，
00:12:10那些财务自由、时间自由、创作自由的人，
00:12:11他们的看家本领也是这个。
00:12:15反观那些“梦想家”，那些空有抱负但没执行力的人，
00:12:16拥有一个愿景很容易，
00:12:18但真正难的在于去拆解和移除这些障碍。
00:12:21如果你把思维转变为：“障碍是什么？
00:12:22我该如何识别并移除它？”
00:12:24你会发现，达成目标的几率会大大提升。
00:12:27最后，第三步，
00:12:30当你找出了障碍和解决方法后，
00:12:32通常需要进行所谓的“工作”去执行它。
00:12:33想出商业点子需要花功夫去思考，
00:12:34寻找客户需要花精力去研究，
00:12:37写博士论文也需要持续地投入。任何有价值的事都需要付出。
00:12:39这时我们又会遇到新的问题：
00:12:40阻碍你去干活的因素又有哪些？
00:12:41原因可能有很多，但我辅导过的大多数人
00:12:43面临的头号阻碍就是：时间。
00:12:44“我很忙啊，我还有别的事，”
00:12:46“有工作、有孩子、有家庭、要还房贷等等。”
00:12:49等下班回到家，精力也耗尽了，
00:12:52各种琐事和障碍层出不穷。
00:12:54这依然是一个识别并移除障碍的过程。
00:12:55而我发现最有效的秘诀极其简单：
00:12:58选定你的目标，比如“搞定副业”，
00:13:00然后下一步，
00:13:03每周在日历上给自己拨出专属的时间块。
00:13:06这并不难，在日历上固定出
00:13:08专门用于处理那个目标的时段。
00:13:10这正是我们在副业学院要求学员做的事。
00:13:11每周他们都要填一张表，
00:13:13写下本周打算为副业投入多少小时。
00:13:15填好数字后，接下来的要求就是：
00:13:17请在日历上勾选出这些时段，并截图发给我们。
00:13:19这时候大家通常会感到压力，
00:13:22但我们必须强制（或者说强烈建议）他们这样做。
00:13:23通过截图这种问责机制，
00:13:24奇迹发生了——无数学生反馈，
00:13:26仅仅是“把任务放进日历”这个动作，就改变了局面。
00:13:27有人在第一个月就实现了数千美元的销售额，
00:13:29就因为他们划定了时间。这些事即使不加入课程也能做，
00:13:30但付费学习、拥有导师问责，
00:13:32时刻有人盯着你把时间块填进日历，
00:13:33确实能极大提高执行力。
00:13:36当然还有精力、专注力、孩子打扰等其他因素，
00:13:38但最根本的一步，是先预留出这段时间。
00:13:40我的教练 Eric，在我写《轻松高效》时，
00:13:43我的目标是写完这本书，
00:13:45我每周需要投入 15 小时。
00:13:47在辅导课上，他会直接让我打开日历，
00:13:49展示我到底把哪几个时段留给了写作。
00:13:51一旦你这么做了，就没有借口了，
00:13:52因为你已经为这件事创造了一个“时间容器”。
00:13:55至于到了那个时间点我是专注还是分心，
00:13:56是否需要屏蔽某些 App，那是下一步要移除的障碍。
00:13:58如果写作时总是被手机分心，
00:14:01那就把手机放客厅，开启勿扰或应用锁。
00:14:03这些都是可以解决的细节问题，
00:14:05但前提是你得先在日历上“宣誓主权”。
00:14:08我发现那些“空有抱负但懒散”的人，
00:14:09他们的日历上根本看不到
00:14:10那些为所谓“重要目标”留出的时间块。
00:14:12我的一位前团队成员 Tintin，他想做 YouTube 频道，
00:14:15所以每周一和周二下班后的 6 点到 9 点，
00:14:17他都会雷打不动地把它划给 YouTube。
00:14:20不管是在拍摄、写脚本还是剪辑，
00:14:22这 6 小时是神圣不可侵犯的。
00:14:24正因如此，Tintin 成功做大了频道，
00:14:26现在他教别人做 YouTube，年收入 25 万美元。
00:14:27非常棒。但如果他当初没有
00:14:29在周一、周二晚上划出那一块，
00:14:31让日历反映出他的优先级，那一切都不会发生。
00:14:33他可能还在做咨询顾问，或者还在为我打工，
00:14:35而不会拥有自己的事业。
00:14:37时间管理法——在每周日历上强制预留时段，
00:14:39这正是区分行动派和空谈家的关键。
00:14:40所以，看完这个视频后，看看你的日历，
00:14:43你为自己口中渴望的目标投入了多少固定时段？
00:14:44如果没有，现在就开始动手拨出时间。
00:14:45你会发现，相比之前总想“等有空再做”却永远没空的状态，
00:14:48你的进步速度会非常惊人。
00:14:50我们都很忙，都没时间，
00:14:51而真正能达成目标的人，是那些懂得“开辟”时间、
00:14:53并坚守日历时段去执行的人。
00:14:57如果你想深入了解如何在百忙之中找时间，
00:14:58我准备了另一个视频，介绍我的“168 小时时间分析表”。
00:15:00它可以帮你弄清时间去向，并为你真正在乎的事留出余地。
00:15:02感谢收看，我们下个视频见！
00:15:04actually a lot of the factors that are blocking them
00:15:07from doing the thing are actually under their control.
00:15:10And so the trick here is you just ignore the ones
00:15:14that are not under your control.
00:15:15There is a phrase from Jocko's book,
00:15:17amazing book, "Discipline Equals Freedom,"
00:15:19which is ignore and outperform.
00:15:24A blocker is I'm really worried about
00:15:26what people will think of me
00:15:27if I start posting content on LinkedIn.
00:15:28Is that under your control?
00:15:30Is what other people think of you under your control?
00:15:32Not really, maybe somewhat, but really, but not really.
00:15:35So in that context, you ignore and outperform.
00:15:36Just ignore the fact that that obstacle is there
00:15:39and you work for it and you outperform it,
00:15:41unless it's literally like a thing
00:15:42that's gonna stop you from, you know,
00:15:43like being four foot nine and playing in the NBA,
00:15:45which is probably not that for your particular goal.
00:15:47You just ignore and outperform.
00:15:48You ignore the category of blockers
00:15:50that are not under your control.
00:15:51This is difficult for people to do.
00:15:53It's so easy for people to just blame stuff
00:15:55that is outside of their control, right?
00:15:57It's so easy for you to think that like,
00:15:58oh man, the reason I haven't started my first business
00:16:00is because dot, dot, dot, the economy or the environment
00:16:03or the weather or the government
00:16:04or insert whatever other thing you wanna blame
00:16:07that's outside of your control.
00:16:08It's too easy to do that.
00:16:09It's also not very helpful.
00:16:10When you do that, those are the people
00:16:12that end up having lots of goals
00:16:13and then never actually taking action
00:16:14because they are focusing on systemic blockers
00:16:17that are outside of their control.
00:16:18So we basically just ignore those things.
00:16:20Great, now we have blockers that are within our control.
00:16:22And then once we have identified those blockers,
00:16:25we just make a plan to get rid of the blockers.
00:16:28It's really not that hard.
00:16:29I'm like, okay, I don't have any business ideas.
00:16:30Okay, have I tried asking Chad GPT?
00:16:33Probably not.
00:16:34I don't know how to find customers.
00:16:35Okay, have I watched YouTube videos about it?
00:16:37Have I read Alex Formosi's book, "100 Million Dollar Leads,"
00:16:39which is literally a book about how to find customers?
00:16:41Like, have I done the sensible things
00:16:43that would help remove this particular thing as a blocker?
00:16:45And this is one of the key things that you learn
00:16:47as an entrepreneur when you're building a business,
00:16:49that there are always blockers, right?
00:16:50Like, I wanna grow a business
00:16:51to $10 million a year in revenue.
00:16:53There are certain blockers that are getting in our way
00:16:55as to why we're not already there.
00:16:56One of those blockers is that we didn't have
00:16:57an expensive enough product to sell.
00:16:58Another blocker is that we didn't have enough customers.
00:17:00But like, all of these are solvable problems, right?
00:17:03They're not completely outside of my control.
00:17:05They're either fully in my control
00:17:06or somewhat within my control.
00:17:08And as long as someone else has figured out
00:17:10the solution to that problem, that means a solution exists.
00:17:13And now it's just a job of me to be an investigator.
00:17:16This is like a magnifying glass.
00:17:19I'm gonna be an investigator
00:17:20and I'm gonna find the answer to that particular problem.
00:17:22And generally I find the people that are,
00:17:25the people that end up becoming the productivity masters
00:17:27are the ones who are able to take action
00:17:29to basically identify and remove blockers.
00:17:34The best CEOs, the people in businesses
00:17:39who get paid insane amounts of money
00:17:41are very good at simply identifying and removing blockers.
00:17:45The people that become productivity masters
00:17:47who are ambitious and also take action to achieve their goals.
00:17:50The people I know who are financially free,
00:17:51who are living dream lives where they've got
00:17:52financial freedom, time freedom, creative freedom.
00:17:54A lot of their core skillset
00:17:56is in identifying and removing blockers.
00:17:58And what I find from the people that have lots of goals
00:18:00and don't take any action towards getting them,
00:18:02the people who are dreamers,
00:18:02the people who are ambitious but undisciplined,
00:18:04the people who are ambitious but lazy,
00:18:06is that it's very easy to have a goal.
00:18:07It's very easy to have a vision.
00:18:09But the hard part is in identifying and removing blockers.
00:18:11And if you think of it as, okay,
00:18:14what are the blockers?
00:18:15And then how do I identify and remove them?
00:18:17I find that for me, that is a really, really helpful way
00:18:20of like tangibly improving my chances
00:18:22of achieving a particular goal.
00:18:24And then finally, step number three
00:18:27is once you have identified the blocker
00:18:29and you have identified how to remove it,
00:18:32it will usually require something called work
00:18:35to sit down and do.
00:18:36It takes work to sit down and come up with a business idea
00:18:38for your lifestyle business.
00:18:39It takes work to figure out
00:18:41how to find customers for your thing.
00:18:42It takes work to complete your PhD dissertation or whatever.
00:18:46Everything worth doing requires some work.
00:18:49And then we get into the thing of like,
00:18:50okay, but like what are all the blockers
00:18:52that are stopping you from doing the work?
00:18:53And there's lots of them,
00:18:54but the single biggest one for most people that I speak to
00:18:58and coach through this process is time.
00:19:01I'm just busy, man.
00:19:02I've got other things going on.
00:19:03I've got job, I've got kids, got family,
00:19:05got mortgage to pay, et cetera, et cetera.
00:19:06By the time I get home from work and I have the energy,
00:19:09et cetera, et cetera,
00:19:10there's all sorts of problems that come up,
00:19:11all sorts of blockers.
00:19:12Again, it's a case of identifying and removing blockers.
00:19:15But the key one that I found for most people is that,
00:19:17and the simplest hack is literally just,
00:19:20you pick your goal, right?
00:19:22Let's say in this context,
00:19:23it's like my side hustle business
00:19:27or my side hustle lifestyle business.
00:19:29That's sort of like your goal, right?
00:19:30And then the next thing that you do
00:19:32is you basically just block time in calendar every week.
00:19:36Not that hard.
00:19:41It's not that hard to stick a few time blocks
00:19:43in your calendar every single week
00:19:44for you to work on that particular goal.
00:19:45This is literally what we do for students
00:19:47in our Lifestyle Business Academy.
00:19:48Every single week, we have a form that they have to fill in.
00:19:50And that form asks them,
00:19:51how many hours do you intend to work
00:19:54on your business this week?
00:19:55And they put a number.
00:19:57And then the next question is, great,
00:19:58please block those hours in your calendar
00:20:01and send us a screenshot.
00:20:02And then everyone's like, ah.
00:20:04And we force them, force, like, you know,
00:20:07we strongly encourage them
00:20:09to block the time out in their calendar.
00:20:11And they send a screenshot to us
00:20:12because it's kind of like an accountability system
00:20:14as an accountability mechanism.
00:20:15And by Jove, like the amount of students we have
00:20:18that are like, man, just sticking the thing in my calendar
00:20:22has been absolutely game-changing.
00:20:24We've had people who in the first month
00:20:25have made thousands of dollars in sales.
00:20:27They stuck the thing in their calendar.
00:20:29And it's simple ass stuff that they could have done
00:20:32even if they weren't in our program.
00:20:33But there's something about paying money
00:20:34to be part of an online business school
00:20:36and having a coach, having accountability,
00:20:38who's literally just asking you
00:20:39to stick the fucking time block in your calendar
00:20:41every single week that makes people do the work.
00:20:44There are all sorts of other factors, right?
00:20:45Energy levels and distraction levels and focus levels
00:20:48and like whether the kids knock on the door at a given time.
00:20:51But the most basic ass version of this
00:20:54is just making the time in the first place.
00:20:56One of my coaches, Eric,
00:20:57when back when I was working on my book,
00:20:59feel good productivity, had a goal of write the book.
00:21:02And the action I needed to take
00:21:03was spend like 15 hours a week on writing the book.
00:21:07And in my CEO coaching sessions with Eric,
00:21:10he would literally ask me to bring up my calendar
00:21:12and show him where I was blocking the time out
00:21:15to work on my book.
00:21:16And when you do that, there's just no excuses, right?
00:21:18Because you create the container of time
00:21:20for the thing to happen.
00:21:21And then when the container of time comes around,
00:21:22whether or not I sit down to focus or get distracted
00:21:25or like block apps and stuff,
00:21:27all of that then, again, identifying and removing blockers.
00:21:29If I realize, man, I get distracted from my phone
00:21:31every time I sit down to write,
00:21:33I just stick my phone in a different room,
00:21:34stick on do not disturb or block the apps.
00:21:35Like those are solvable problems.
00:21:37But the first thing we have to do
00:21:39is make the time in the calendar to actually do the thing.
00:21:42What I find with people who are ambitious but lazy,
00:21:44people who are ambitious but undisciplined,
00:21:46if you look at their calendar,
00:21:48you do not see the time blocks that have been blocked out
00:21:51for the thing that they supposedly care about.
00:21:53One of my former team members and friends, Tintin,
00:21:55he cared about growing his YouTube channel.
00:21:57And so every Monday and Tuesday evening
00:21:59from six to 9 p.m. after work,
00:22:01he blocked out to work on his YouTube channel.
00:22:04It didn't really matter what he was doing,
00:22:05whether he was filming or writing or editing
00:22:06or whatever the thing was.
00:22:07But there were six hours in his week
00:22:12that were blocked out every single week
00:22:13to work on the YouTube channel.
00:22:14And Tintin was able to work on his YouTube channel
00:22:16and now has business where he's making
00:22:17a quarter of a million a year
00:22:18teaching people how to do YouTube.
00:22:19It's great.
00:22:20But if he hadn't had that time blocked
00:22:22the Monday and Tuesday evening,
00:22:23where it's like the calendar block reflected his priority,
00:22:26if he hadn't had that blocked, nothing would have happened.
00:22:29And he would have still been, I don't know,
00:22:30working in his management consulting job
00:22:31or like maybe still even working for me,
00:22:33but not having his own business.
00:22:35So Ali, why did you wanna hire me?
00:22:36I didn't wanna hire you.
00:22:38Oh, probably.
00:22:39The time block method.
00:22:41Shoving a block of time in your calendar every single week.
00:22:43Honestly, this is the thing that separates people
00:22:45who do the stuff from the people that don't do the stuff.
00:22:47So right now, if you're at this point in the video,
00:22:49have a look at your calendar.
00:22:50To what extent do you have blocks of time
00:22:52that are dedicated to pursuing the goal that you say you want?
00:22:55If not, it's easy enough.
00:22:57Start blocking time in the calendar for it every week.
00:22:59And you will find that you will make
00:23:01an insane amount of progress compared to
00:23:03when you were just trying to squeeze the time in
00:23:06whenever there's time, because there's never any time.
00:23:08We're all busy, none of us have time in our lives.
00:23:10The people that actually achieve the goals
00:23:12that they set their mind to are the ones who carve out time,
00:23:14who protect the time in their calendar
00:23:16to work on those things and to make them happen.
00:23:18And if you're interested in a video
00:23:19that goes deeper into how to find the time,
00:23:21if you're very busy and if you have a lot going on,
00:23:23if you wanna find the time for whatever you're doing,
00:23:25there's a video over here where I introduce you
00:23:27to my 168 hours spreadsheet.
00:23:29And that spreadsheet will totally help you figure out
00:23:31where your time is going and also be able to carve out time
00:23:33for the stuff that matters to you.
00:23:34So thank you for watching and I'll see you
00:23:35in that video right over there.