Everyone can become whoever they want

One of the best new (published in April 2021) books on time management, implementation of your plans, productivity. It is also good because it is very close to our time, our reality, it is read in one breath after the quarantine of 2020. Written easily and cool motivates to build and implement your plans.

Michael Alistair believes that everyone can become whoever they want. He believes that if readers adopt the rules of overproduction, they will also become living proof of these words. Productivity will increase significantly, but at the same time there will be time to enjoy life.

The difference between this book and many others is that Mikhail is not a billionaire from Silicon Valley, but our guy from Kursk. A successful Russian businessman shares how, in modern realities, you can use new tools and build yourself as a Personality.

For example, with the help of bots, Mikhail launched a free educational project “Self-Design” on social networks, in which participants, going through one task after another, develop a project of their own life for twenty-five years ahead.

For those who want to quickly find out what’s in his book, which will soon become a bestseller, read the summary below. It’s better to read the book in its entirety though. So, the juice of the book:

Chapter 1 Treat Your Destiny Like a Project with Tasks

If you do not work on your life as a business project with tasks, there is a risk of living it in vain.

Chapter 2

The more ambitious the goals, the greater the result. Where to start to dream big?

Analyze your emotions for the day. Scroll through the past events in your head and fix what pleased you today, what surprised you, and what disappointed you. So you will understand what turns you on and what upsets you.
Technique «The last day before death.» Try to understand what you want to be proud of, what to remember with a smile, and what you are afraid to regret when you have only a few hours left to live. How to spend your life in order to be satisfied with yourself on the day before death? What mark do you want to leave behind?
Technique — «Perfect day». Imagine that for the next five years everything goes well: you have achieved the maximum in all development vectors and now you wake up on one of the days of such an ideal life.

Chapter 3

Ideally, for each goal, watch at least ten videos on YouTube
Instagram can also help, where there are pages of surf camps in Bali, boxing schools in Thailand, helicopter clubs in New York and in general everything that your wild imagination can draw.
Make a selection of books.
Choose your mentors for each goal.

Chapter 4

The slogan of the book: «It is better to spend thirty hours planning your own life than wasted years.»

Let’s say you want to conquer Mont Blanc.

What is the specific measurable outcome of this goal?

In your case, this is climbing to the top.

What criteria will be the proof of achieving the goal?

For example, a photo with a flag on the highest point of Mont Blanc.

What specifically needs to be done to achieve this goal?

You need to find a guide, make an advance payment, book dates, find equipment, get a Schengen visa … It is to answer the question «What exactly needs to be done?» I recommend using mind maps, which we will discuss in the next chapter.

What processes need to be launched in order to implement everything planned in the previous paragraph?

To find a conductor, you need to start searching for it — find contacts on the Internet and contact at least five companies providing similar services, choose the best conditions.

What resources will we need?

For example, ledow.e. cats, special goggles, backpack and so on.

How long will it take?

As a rule, the expedition takes at least seven days. It may take time to get physically fit.

What will be the budget?

It is necessary to draw up an estimate, which will include the costs of preparing for your trip, transfer, accommodation, purchase or rental of equipment, payment of the guide, contingencies.

What are the possible risks?

You must be prepared for emergency situations: know what to do in case of bad weather; what medicines to have to cope with an attack of altitude sickness; how to properly group and fall on the ice.e. if they suddenly broke and began to slide along the mountain slope …

Chapter 5

Each goal is, as a rule, a separate project, which, in turn, consists of tasks. And such a tool as mental maps will help to correctly determine all the tasks for each of the projects.

Chapter 6. Keep track of tasks in project management systems

Sign up for an account with trello.com.
Create a Goal Management board.
Form the columns “Backlog (All goals)”, “Sprint (for 2 months)”, “Goals and tasks in work for the day”, “Implemented”.
Create a card for each goal on the board.
Add a photo of your dream to each goal.
In the «Description» fields, transfer the texts of the compiled strategies.
In the checklists, enter the tasks that you created using mind maps.

Chapter 7

Mikhail recommends developing at intervals of two months (sprint). For example, for two months you can intensively boxing to put the punch and learn how to dodge. As a rule, basic knowledge is enough to protect your girlfriend if necessary.

Chapter 8. Measure progress in numbers

Each goal must be «digitized». The figures allow you to compare the planned value and the actual value on a daily basis.

Chapter 9

Use online calendars Google Calendar or Yandex Calendar. Both systems are equally comfortable to work with.

Chapter 10

The author talks about the term «muda» from the methodology of lean manufacturing. So called something that consumes resources, but does not bring value.

What types of losses are relevant to you and what can be done to eliminate them?

1. Waste due to overprocessing

2. Losses due to unnecessary movements

3. Waste due to inventory

4. Unrealized potential

5. Losses due to defects

6. Losses due to excess transportation

7. Waste due to waiting

Chapter 11

Steve Jobs said absolutely correctly: «You need to work not twelve hours a day, but with your head.» How to prioritize? With the help of the following questions:

It can be done quickly, that is, the cost of their implementation will take no more than an hour.
Can be done without a budget.
You can delegate, for example, instruct an assistant.
From the implementation of the task there will be a powerful effect.
It is clear how to do it: no need to study additional information.

Chapter 12: Seek Automation Opportunities Anywhere, Anytime

In life, as in business, I try to automate any manual operation, no matter what the cost. Consider that in this way I buy invaluable time to communicate with people close to me.

Chapter 13

There is a study according to which a person is beautiful, as healthy and productive as possible only if he sleeps at least 7-8 hours. During sleep, growth hormone is produced, which helps to restore muscles and reduce belly fat.

Chapter 14

A few morning rituals can charge you for the whole day.

Visualization: I present five goals in as much detail as possible, as if everything has already happened and I have achieved them.

Physical activity: managed to identify a direct relationship between the number of successfully completed tasks and regular physical activity.

Breathing exercises

30 deep breaths. It is necessary to take a strong breath through the nose so that the lungs are completely filled, and the stomach is inflated, then exhale powerfully and sharply through the mouth, as if inflating a balloon. Perform 30 breaths and exhalations.
After the thirtieth exhalation, hold your breath for as long as possible.
Deep breath and hold. Take a deep breath and hold your breath for 15 seconds.

These three steps are one round. Three to four rounds of breathing practice should be done every day.

Gratitude Technique

Which two people are you most grateful for and for what specifically?
What two things in your life are you most grateful for and why?
What has been your own achievement that has had a qualitative impact on your standard of living?

Place Energy Technique

If I manage to run in the forest in the morning, I stop at the river bank, look at the water and the pine forest around. I imagine how nature fills me with energy, literally sweeps through my whole body like a whirlwind and charges me with inner strength.

Chapter 15

Try at least one day to work on the Pomodoro Method, concentrating on one task for 25 minutes. The Forest application can help with this.

Chapter 16

Think of a person you love or have loved before. Does he know how to enjoy life? The answer is obvious. After all, one who has a rich, interesting life, in which there are many adventures and emotions, can easily turn his head and infect with his energies. It’s easy to fall in love with this. And parting, as a rule, is experienced very painfully. So, in my opinion, in order not to be addicted in a relationship, you yourself must become an enjoy-person! Dot.

Chapter 17

Sometimes we eat something that does not give our body any benefit, and even much more than the norm. Thus, we overload our body, forcing it to work for wear and tear.

Don’t eat when you’re stressed: Enzymes that help digest food are not released when you’re stressed. By the way, the way you eat directly affects the quality of sleep, the importance of which we have already discussed in previous chapters.

Chapter 18

Do not delve into your past — it is absolutely useless. If you focus on the analysis of past events, it will not lead to anything good. You cannot change anything. Endless introspection does not solve the problem, but only exacerbates the state of hopelessness, which can destroy self-esteem and provoke depression. When people live in their past, constantly going over it in their heads, they tend to degrade.

In this book, we have already talked a lot about such a currency as the focus of attention. It is a valuable and very limited resource. There is no point in spending it on something that cannot be changed. Think about the present — for example, how to make today as productive as possible, how to spend the evening with loved ones in the best possible way. Think ahead: plan your goals, collect information on them, analyze the current two-month sprint. This way you will develop much faster.

Chapter 19

For each of your 50 goals, determine:

What will happen to you if you achieve it?
What happens if you cannot do this?
How will you know that you have achieved what you want?

Chapter 20: The Most Productive People Are Investors

Find a compound interest calculator online.
Make a personal financial plan: how much you will save each month and how much you want to reach.

Brief summary and parting words

The law of life is this: what we pay attention to grows. So try to reread your goals as often as possible, ideally every day. For each goal, consider the next step. Dream. Visualize what you want to achieve. Once a week, devote an hour to planning, summing up intermediate results.
Try not to rush about, do not change your goals unnecessarily.
Whatever your earnings, start saving money and investing it. This is the only way to financial success.
Do breathing exercises. Scroll gratitude in your head, keep your posture, exercise and eat right. Then you will be in an overproductive state forever.
Read business and fiction books as much as possible.
Gather information for each goal now. The more you know, the more you earn.
Look for mentors and completely copy all their actions.
Don’t become a fanatic who only talks and thinks about his goals. Not necessary. It is not necessary to discuss them with someone. The key idea is to enjoy life as often as possible and communicate with loved ones. It’s the most important. And goals along the way.
Don’t get distracted by «inappropriate» activities. Before making a difficult decision, try to understand whether it will help your goals or not. Don’t be afraid to say «no» to people.
Consolidate the right habits that will help you achieve everything you dream of.

You can buy the book at LitRes