Weekly Wisdom #321 - How to stay motivated

Progress Indicators, Job Opportunity, Money Books, the WRAP Method & E-Ink Monitors

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Happy Monday!

I'm sure this is exacerbated by our dopamine-fueled world, but it always surprises me how motivating it is when I see some small example of progress.

This can come from almost anywhere: mundane things like washing the first dish in the pile, to finding some small metric that shows improvement, even if it's tiny.

Often these things seem dumb at first: views on your new business website, for example, which might be a handful at first, but slowly grow over time. Views may not matter much when it comes to building an actual business, but it's motivating to see that metric grow.

It's the same reason why focusing on steps is a great idea if you're trying to lose weight or get healthier. You can start with something easy, like 1000, and then add a hundred the next day. And you can keep adding a hundred for a long, long time before that metric no longer works.

Once you hit 10,000, maybe you start focusing on how long your streak of consecutive days is, or increasing your elevation.

The point is, most of us are accustomed to getting small, rewarding dopamine hits throughout the day.

The best way to use those for good: find little indicators of progress towards your goals.

Have a great week!

Graham

Quick Note

My friends over at threesixfive are hiring for a Creative Producer role in Halifax, Nova Scotia. If you know someone that would fit, please reach out! Here's their description of the role:

We're looking for someone to work shoulder‑to‑shoulder with the company’s leadership driving project management and execution. It’s a rare chance to grow with a lean, innovative, fast‑paced team that’s driven by human values.

Check out the full job ad here and share it with anyone in your network who’d love to dive in!

Links

📚 Book Notes: Just Keep Buying & The Psychology of Money - If you've followed the stock market the past few months, you'll know it's been a roller-coaster ride.

These two books are two of the best I've ever read on money and investing, and they're both worth a read in these especially turbulent times.

📖 The WRAP Method - I thought this framework from Matt Ragland was useful. He uses it for annual reviews, but it can work well for a weekly/monthly review, a review of anything really. The framework is:

Wins: what went well?

Results: how did you do compared to your goals?

Alignment: did what you do align with your values and long-term vision?

Pivot/Plan: what needs to change or continue?

💻 Daylight DC-1 - I stumbled on this device after a tweet from Nat Eliason, who has been using it to write outdoors.

Essentially, it's an e-reader with a much faster refresh rate than usual, meaning it looks like e-ink, but works for computer tasks.

Very cool! If I ever manage to get an outdoor work setup going at some point, I'll be revisiting this.

Tweet of the Week

Consistency wins!

Charles Miller-->

@charlesmiller_7

The time will pass anyway, put it to use

8:49 AM • Jun 2, 2025

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