Question I'm wrestling with:

If you knew you would die in 10 years, what would you do today?

Everyone has seen the shorter-term versions of this question:

• What would you do if today were your last day?
• What would you do if you knew you'd die in a year?

Frankly, I find those questions minimally impactful, as the answer usually involves dramatic change. If I knew I'd die tomorrow, I certainly wouldn't be writing this email right now. If I knew I'd die in a year, I'd probably be spending every single moment with my wife, son, family, and friends. That's not a particularly useful insight in terms of impacting my day-to-day actions.

The time horizon that works: 10 years.

10 years is long enough that you still have a lot of time left, but short enough that it's very quantifiable.

What changes would you make if you knew you wouldn't be around in 2034?

• What big thing would you finally pursue?
• What fears would melt away?
• What new fears would appear?
• Who would you remove from your life?
• Who would you spend more time with?

Spend some time thinking about it this weekend. My guess is this question will bring a few life changes to the surface that are worth making.

Quote on the artist within you:

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." - Pablo Picasso

There's an artist buried deep inside.

Never lose the artist within you.

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Framework to triumph through struggle:

Use the Difficulty

In this clip, actor Michael Caine talks about a defining moment from his life and career.

As a young actor, he was rehearsing a play scene when a chair got stuck in the door and blocked his path.

He told the other actor he couldn't get by the chair to enter the room in the scene.

The other actor's response:

"Use the difficulty...if it's a comedy, fall over it, if it's a drama, pick it up and smash it."

This idea—of using the difficulty—became a defining mantra for Michael Caine's life.

"There's never anything so bad that you cannot use that difficulty...if you can use it a quarter of one percent to your advantage, you're ahead, you didn't let it get you down."

This idea hit me hard...

How can you use the difficulty you're currently facing?

How can you embrace the struggle?

How can you find flow through the friction?

How can you sow the seeds of your light during the periods of darkness?

As with everything in life, control the controllable: The difficulty is already there, you can't control it. You can control how you react to it. You can control your response to it. You can control your attitude towards it.

Lesson: Difficulty is inevitable. Use it.

Tweet on the power of test and learn:

Loved this story about comedian Shane Gillis using an open mic night at a comedy club as a testing ground for new material.

Test and learn is a mentality that will take you far in life. Gather data, iterate, improve.

What are some low risk, high reward ways that you can test and learn?

Must read article for any entrepreneurs:

​The 30 Best Pieces of Advice for Entrepreneurs in 2023​

This is a monster piece from First Round (famous venture capital firm) with entrepreneurial advice from some of their best portfolio company founders.

Filled with actionable, tactical gems:

• Set goals by trying to tell a story
• Track your mood, not just your metrics
• Stay paranoid on the hunt for product market fit

Worth a read for any aspiring or current entrepreneur!