My main goal in life is to achieve the financial freedom I need to look after my loved ones.
To build the life we want, we must pay the price of discipline, otherwise, we will never achieve our highest ambitions.
Efficiency: The Driver of High Ambition
Sacrifice is the starting point towards achievement. However, sometimes our enemy is inefficiency. We might have two important areas of our lives competing for our attention. The three most common areas with which we usually struggle are health, relationships, and finances.
Having more than one meaningful goal is possible, but we need an efficient system to achieve them.
In my case, what I have struggled with the most is growing my business while also going to the gym. I have been doing both for several years, but I know I am not being as efficient as I could be, and there is guilt on both sides.
When I am working too much, I go to the gym too late, and when I spend too long at the gym, I feel I should be working harder on the business.
The 'Why' Behind Every Ambition
To solve our conflicting goals, first, we need to bring clarity to why they matter to us. Sometimes, we may realize they don't matter as much as we initially thought.
In my case, my business goals matter to me because this is the way in which I can achieve financial freedom. With this, I want to provide for my future kids, as well as my parents and girlfriend. I want to move all of my loved ones to a safer country and give everyone I love a better life.
I consider muscle building a meaningful personal goal. I've always been skinny. I decided to change this 2 years ago after finally realizing that the way I present myself to the world matters.
The gym is a way to prove to myself that I have the discipline and consistency needed to make my future self proud. A strong body is a strong mind.
The Art of Balancing Major Goals
The question that has been troubling me is:
Can I achieve both goals, financial freedom as well as significant muscle gain?
Recently, I have heard advice from one of my digital mentors suggesting that I should focus solely on my business as the gym is too time-consuming. He said it's better to focus on building muscle once I am already financially free.
This advice has me conflicted, considering that the entire gym process takes up almost three hours of my weekdays, negatively affecting my ability to work.
However, I have already postponed going to the gym my whole life. I am 27, and I know that in the future it will be even more challenging to achieve this goal as I get older, especially with the added responsibilities of future children and increased financial pressure.
I don't think it's wise for me to postpone my muscle-building goal, but I certainly want financial freedom to be a higher priority.
So, it has become my daily obsession to figure out how to use my time more efficiently.
Doing Better Work in Less Time
Now I'm exploring ways in which I can use my time more efficiently. The goal is to accomplish more meaningful work in less time, which should free up enough time so that I can keep going to the gym.
This led me to Rian Doris, an entrepreneur and YouTuber who has researched the science of the flow state.
The flow state is a highly productive, efficient, and focused state of work. Rian suggests that workdays lasting 8+ hours are actually detrimental to achieving the flow state. This is because our attention becomes fragmented and unfocused.
Instead, we can place a constraint on the amount of time we work to increase efficiency. He recommends working for 4 hours per day in order to access flow more often and achieve more progress in our work.
If I can structure my days to achieve 4 hours of efficient work, I can continue my gym routine without feeling guilty about the time it takes.
Contradicting Advice
The problem with working fewer hours is that it heavily contradicts the philosophy of others whom I admire. For instance, Patrick Bet David, another entrepreneur and YouTuber, says that working only 8 hours per day is part-time entrepreneurship. Although he is a genius, he is also crazy, as he is one of those guys who works 16-hour workdays. I can't even imagine what he would say about my plan to work only 4 hours.
I don't want to think of myself as unambitious or lazy in my business. As much as I value the opinions of my digital mentors, the advice I'm constantly exposed to is extremely contradicting. The only logical solution is to experiment with different solutions and, over time, determine what works best in helping me achieve my individual goals.
Trying New Methods for Better Outcomes
I'll try Rian's advice on 4-hour workdays. If I can structure my days to achieve more work in less time, I'll be able to continue my gym routine guilt-free.
I'm looking deeper into Rian's incredible research on the flow state. The more I learn about it, the more hopeful I feel to unlock the efficiency I seek to reach my financial goals, while also giving me the time needed to meet my fitness goals.
If you are interested in learning more about my journey, make sure to follow me on Twitter for awesome updates and insights.
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