Hey Reader,
Long before GPS existed, Polynesian navigators crossed thousands of miles of open ocean without maps. They followed the stars, currents, and winds - reading nature's clues to find their way.
This was called wayfaring.
And it might be exactly what you need in your life right now.
Unlike a road trip with a clear destination, life doesn't have a single endpoint. There's no "you have arrived" announcement.
Instead, we navigate by following clues and making our way forward with the tools we have.
Stanford University's Life Design Lab teaches that two particular clues matter most: engagement and energy.
Why Work Shouldn't Feel Like Work
Society has programmed us to believe work isn't supposed to be enjoyable.
My grandfather worked hard his entire life with the notion that retirement would be when he would get to enjoy his life.
A lot of people have this mindset: work hard now and enjoy life later.
In my grandfather's case, he didn't live long enough to do any of the things he'd planned.
And that's why I believe it's important that we live our lives in the NOW, not some arbitrary date in the future.
Tomorrow isn't promised.
Life design reframes this societal norm by asking: what if enjoyment itself is your most reliable career guide?
The average person spends 90,000-125,000 hours at work during their lifetime. That's roughly a third of your waking adult life.
Let that sink in.
If you don't enjoy what you're doing, work will literally drain the life out of you.
That's not to say you need to make a huge change, like quitting your job; life design can help you make the most out of your current circumstances.
You just need to follow the clues.
How to find your clues
To figure out where you're going when you don't know your destination, you'll need your compass and a wayfaring tool to help you look for clues.
The tool the Life Design Lab recommends is the Good Time Journal.
You'll need to choose a medium that works for you - a notebook, a folder to which you can add pages, or your favourite tech - and for a minimum of two weeks:
- Every day record your main activities and how energised and engaged in each you were.
- Write a weekly reflection where you identify insights, trends and surprises. Ideally, you're aiming to catch the moments where you're having a good time.
Flow: Play for Grown-Ups
Remember the dashboard tool from the beginning of our Life Design journey? One of the components was Play - and it's often the most elusive.
Flow is adult play. It's that state where you're so absorbed in what you're doing that time disappears. You're challenged but not overwhelmed; focused but not stressed.
A satisfying career involves lots of flow states. And a happy life has regular flow, both in and out of work.
Your journal should be aiming to identify during which activities you achieve a flow state, as well as those in which you felt engaged.
Energy Maps: Your Personal Navigation Tool
Notice how some days fly by while others drag, even though you're doing similar work?
This is where an Energy Map becomes invaluable.
Like product designers use journey maps to find friction points, you can map your energy to discover:
- Which activities consistently energise you
- Which tasks secretly drain your resources
- When your natural energy peaks and dips
- Hidden patterns you've never noticed before
As introverts, tracking your energy levels is especially important.
Our workplaces were designed for extroverts and work systems and environments can lead to burnout and mental health issues; tracking your energy helps you protect and maximise your vital resources.
And that becomes a competitive advantage.
The ultimate goal? Do more of what energises you and less of what depletes you.
For each activity listed in your journal, identify whether you were energised, drained or a little of both.
A Two Week Transformation
By working on your journal for just five minutes a day for two weeks, you should be able to have gathered sufficient data to be able to move forward.
And we can then move into the experimenting and prototyping stage of life design.
A Little Extra Help
It took me a little while to get my head around the Good Times Journal, not least because I'm not someone who particularly enjoys journalling.
I've created a companion guide to this tool using what has been helping me to make sense of it all - so that you can get the most out of the tool.
It includes:
- Printable daily activity log templates that take just 2 minutes to complete
- Weekly reflection prompts that reveal hidden patterns
- The AEIOU zoom-in framework used by Stanford design experts
- Real-life examples of career-changing insights discovered
- Step-by-step instructions for identifying your unique energy patterns
Imagine having a tool that combines the best of both worlds: a guided Energy Map Template that lets you chart your daily engagement and easy-to-follow tips for getting the most out of your journal.
My Companion Guide is designed to be your personal navigation tool.
With clear sections for daily logs, weekly reflections, and the AEIOU method for deeper insights, it will help you:
- Identify the moments and tasks that energise you.
- Reflect on recurring patterns and uncover hidden passions.
- Resequence your day by strategically scheduling energising tasks and mitigating drainers.
- Navigate your career and personal life with clarity and intention.
You will only need 5 minutes a day for two weeks to discover exactly where to focus your time and energy.
I haven't officially launched this tool yet. But I'm offering it exclusively to you at a pre-launch price of just £7.
This is a limited-time offer that ends on Friday, so grab it now!
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£7.00
Good Time Journal + Energy Map Companion Guide
In just 5 minutes daily over two weeks, this practical guide reveals your unique flow triggers using the powerful AEIOU... Read more |
In your corner always,
Sam 💛
