The Self Developers Playbook
5 strategies that helped me work on my goals faster
2024 was a big year for me. I got serious (ish) about writing. I struggled with consistency but made over $100 on Medium, which has been a big win. I know it’s a small drop in the ocean of ‘WiFi money’, but it’s a starting line that I’m very grateful to be at.
2025 will be even bigger, simply because the goals I have set for myself are scaring me so much that I wonder if I should rethink them. I won’t…and you shouldn’t either. If I set small goals, I’ll procrastinate and put them off because they’ll seem so insignificant. When I set massive goals and put myself in uncomfortable situations, I will need to use massive action, pursuit, and creativity to figure it out. I will be much more likely to reach my goals and direct the course of my life.
After years of binging through self-development books and videos, I’ve narrowed down the five most crucial aspects I think are crucial for growth that sticks by.
#1. Organize Your Clutter
A messy mind leads to a messy life. And I don’t just mean a scatter of things, I mean a physical and mental disorientations that breaks your flow, and distracts you from your main goal.
More than our habits, most of us are governed by our environment. When I am surrounded by party-goers, people who gorge on junk food, plain talkers (or lazy activists, as I like to call them), or people with a victim mentality, it pulls me down. I can see and feel the energy shift. I then start to sell myself short and allow myself to be lazy and give excuses for the very things that matter most to me.
Your environment will set you back, but it will also set you forward. I started becoming the architect of my environment. If it wasn’t a hell yes, it was a hell no.
The best way I could be in control of my environment was to ruthlessly say no to any party, event or person who didn’t align with my future self. It was really hard and I struggled drawing boundaries. Soon, I realized that people don’t really care, and if they do, they spend too much time thinking about others.
#2. You are responsible for EVERYTHING in your life
Every part of your current life is your choice. Your work, your friends, your partner, your environment, and your health. You may think you feel stuck, but if you introspect deeply, this feeling comes from what you’ve been conditioned to believe by society. What you should be having rather than what you really want.
It’s a trap- and a really big one. One that will take a lot of strength, courage and determination to break out of. I realized that if I was serious about achieving the life of my dreams, I had to be ready to make a lot of difficult choices and push through times where I felt I had no more to give.
It’s not easy to carve out thirty minutes to write, train or study when you’re completely spent. But it’s those thirty minutes everyday, compounded over a few months, which puts you ahead of the curve.
If I am responsible for my mess, then I am also responsible for cleaning it up.
#3. Ideas are worth exploring
If I had a $100,000 worth idea in my head, and I never did anything about it, then it will remain an idea, and I will remain a fool.
Human beings are creative beings. We love fluidity. As cushy as jobs may be on the outside, the seldom nurture creativity. That’s okay. Most jobs are not meant to nurture it.
Everything that you use and love comes from an idea. Your mobile phone, laptop, car and even basics like a bed, clothes and shelter. If these ideas hadn’t been explored, where would civilization be?
I believe that exploring ideas keeps you young and alive. It doesn’t have to be in the pursuit of money, but it does have to be something you act upon and work on being better at. Want to build a robot? Do it. Want to learn a professional sport? Do it.
I have a 9–5 job, and I desperately want an out. I also know that I need to sustain myself in some way or another, so I’m trying out multiple ideas. I don’t know which one will stick, but if I try I’ll know which one won’t. I’d rather try and know than never try and never know.
#4. Spend your money wisely
I was watching a video by Ramit Sethi, a finance expert who teaches people how to grow and invest their money. He talks about spending money lavishly on the things you truly enjoy and being as frugal as you can with things that matter little to you.
It’s either a ‘hell yes’ or a ‘hell no’.
For me, this includes the freedom to treat myself to an occasional barista coffee, buy books, book experiences around nature, and cut back on expenses that come from shopping, eating out, and partying.
By allowing myself to spend on what aligns with me, I’ve saved myself so much money and given myself a lot more happiness. Money will come and money will go. If you are going to spend a portion of it on leisure anyway, why not make it worthwhile?
When you work hard to earn money, the last thing you want to be doing is spending it on things that give you the ick. Money is energy, and the more you feed the energy that makes you feel abundant, powerful, and happy, the more it will return to you tenfold.
Invest your money, save your money, and spend your money. Be selective with all three.
#5. The three rules of essentialism
According to Greg McKeown, a New York Times bestseller, essentialism has three elements to it:
- Explore
- Eliminate
- Execute
Explore and identify what is essential for your growth and success in your day, year, and life. Find your strengths, superpowers, environment, and routine to help you scale. For me, this included studying and writing in the field I was pursuing, training to build muscle, and diversifying my income.
Eliminate and delete all the ‘non-essential’s. For me, this included scrolling, late nights with big groups, and poor management of errands.
Delete all unnecessary tasks to make the process of growth as seamless for you as possible. Get rid of everything getting in the way of the essentials and do what matters the most.
Once you arrive at finding what’s essential and deleting what’s non essential, you need to create systems.
A system is a habit that you start building into an organized routine. I know that systems can be hard, but instead of committing sixty minutes to your goals, start by committing ten.
Ten minutes of training a day.
Ten minutes of writing.
Ten minutes of studying.
I’ve found it to be much easier to build on these habits consistently by promising yourself less but inevitably showing up for more.
Even when you fall out of habit, it’s easier to get back on track.
Today was day 1 for me. What is it for you?
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