Question to endure stagnation:

How will you respond when you find yourself in the valley?

Last week, I had an interesting conversation with a 27-year-old reader.

She made a comment that stuck in my mind:

"It's easy to stay motivated when you have momentum."

She's right:

• It's easy to push when things are working.
• It's easy to feel energized when you can see the results of your actions.
• It's easy to feel certain when progress is felt.

But in my experience, you have to endure long periods of perceived stagnation—what I call the Valley of Stagnation—in between those periods of momentum.

The Valley of Stagnation is the test:

• How will you respond when you find yourself there?
• What will you do when you can't feel your growth?
• What will your motivation look like when you see no progress?
• How will you react when your effort feels hopeless?

The next time you find yourself in the Valley, ground yourself in a few important truths:

1. Nothing bad ever came from diligent, focused effort. You may not achieve the thing you set out to achieve, but you will learn, you will improve, you will gain in some regard.
2. Choose your beliefs wisely. You attract what you put out. Confirmation bias in life: Whatever you believe about yourself, you will find evidence to confirm that belief. Believe you’re worthless—you’ll find evidence to confirm that. Believe you’re worthy—you’ll find evidence to confirm that. Belief can create your reality. You choose.
3. Embrace the cyclicality of life. In Ancient Indian traditions, there is a belief in a concept called the Wheel of Time (or "kalachakra") that says time goes through a natural three-part cycle of Creation, Destruction, and Rebirth. Every period of creation is followed by a period of destruction. Every period of destruction is followed by a rebirth and period of creation. The lesson: Always believe the valley is followed by a brilliant climb to a new summit.

If you center around these three truths, you will endure the pain of the Valley of Stagnation and find your way to the other side.

Quote on finding your triumph:

"Somewhere in the world there is a defeat for everyone. Some are destroyed by defeat, and some made small and mean by victory. Greatness lives in one who triumphs equally over defeat and victory." – John Steinbeck

You are not defined by the result.

You are defined by how you grow through it.

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Framework to find lasting happiness:

The Two Types of Happiness

There are two core types of happiness:

• Hedonic Happiness: Achieved through pleasure, enjoyment, or satisfaction.
• Eudaimonic Happiness: Achieved through purpose, meaning, or authenticity.

Hedonic Happiness is associated with the maximization of short-term pleasure. It is the happiness you feel when you seek instant gratification.

Eudaimonic Happiness, on the other hand, is associated with a focus on long-term, value-oriented living. It is the happiness you feel when you delay gratification.

Eudaimonic Happiness was first proposed by Aristotle, who argued that achieving durable, sustained happiness required people to live in accordance with their long-term values and focus on a higher-order purpose or meaning.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, which places self-actualization at the top of the pyramid, is based on a Eudaimonic view on happiness.

To be clear, both Hedonic and Eudaimonic Happiness have a necessary role in your life:

• The exclusive pursuit of Hedonic Happiness will lead to a short-term pleasure cycle that may not lend itself well to long-term goals, progress, or growth.
• The exclusive pursuit of Eudaimonic Happiness will lead to an ultra-long-term focus that may sacrifice all of the short-term pleasures and sweetness that provide daily bits of joy.

The goal: Find your personal balance point of Hedonic and Eudaimonic happiness.

Embrace certain short-term pleasures, but focus on building a life grounded in your long-term values and purpose.

Short passage of vital importance:

I recently came across this beautiful passage from The Journey to the West (a famous 16th century Chinese novel):

Do good a thousand days,
But the good is still insufficient;
Do evil for one day,
And that evil is already excessive.

It reminds me of one of my favorite quotes from Warren Buffett:

"It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you'll do things differently."

Every single day, you have to act in favor of the person you want to become. The work never stops. Every single day, chop wood, carry water.

List of "tiny tricks" to change your life:

​100 Tiny Tricks to Help With Everything​

This was a fun, quick-ish read. Lots of gems here.

A few favorites from the list:

• Turn off self-view on video calls. Underrated trick to actually focus on the people you're talking to instead of spending most of the time concerned with how you look.
• Turn off notifications. I turned off all notifications on my phone and it dramatically reduced my screen time. ​Pair this with grayscale mode​ for maximum efficacy.
• Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths between meetings. Pretty powerful reset that only takes a few seconds.
• Try coffee planking (do a plank while brewing coffee). I use ​my 5-5-5-30 morning routine​: When you wake up, do 5 push-ups, 5 squats, 5 lunges, and a 30-second plank. You can do it while making coffee or right when you get out of bed. It will jumpstart your energy to start the day.

Worth scanning the full list if you find yourself with a few idle minutes this weekend.