Hey, Eric here with 30 by 40 Design Workshop, it's a few weeks into the new year, happy
New Year to you.
Everyone is talking about goal-setting this time of year it seems and me, well I've been
avoiding it.
I think it's because I've realized that the process I used to do in January of each year,
it just wasn't helping me achieve things anymore.
Do you do this too: set off into the new year full of ambition and lofty goals only to lose
sight of them by the second week of February when you get bogged down in all the minutia
of day-to-day life?
Well, this year I'm trying something different.
Milton Glaser, the legendary graphic designer, used to give an assignment to all his students
when he taught at SVA, he would ask them to fast forward five years into the future and
to imagine their ideal day and then write it down in detail.
What were they wearing, who were their friends, what did they have for breakfast?
Everything that day entailed.
And then, he asked that each student keep and reread it at least once a year.
Now, aside from the pure fantasy of it, the genius of this assignment was that it forced
his students to declare exactly what they wanted.
Writing it down made that day real, and in a way self-fulfilling.
This notion of designing an ideal day is really compelling to me.
Rather than asking a question like, “What am I hoping to accomplish in my life or my
business this year?”
a question like, “What am I going to do today?” is much more impactful because the
big questions ignore the reality that happiness is found in the now, what we do today.
A year is comprised of 365 today's.
This year I'm asking just four questions to shape the year ahead.
What, when I'm doing it, doesn't feel like work?
Now, I won't share everything on my list but here's a few I've come up with.
See if any of these resonate with you.
Following this, I want to know: what do I avoid?
What feels like a drag?
What feels like work?
Again, this is a partial list but here's a few I wrote down.
So now I've delineated what's calling me into the studio each day, the things I default
to doing, and the things I'd rather not be doing.
Now, I'd be a fool to think that I'll never have to spend time on tasks that make me unhappy,
but I'd also be a fool to spend time setting goals that require I regularly do things that
undermine my own happiness.
And this brings me to the third question.
What would this look like if it were easy?
What systems can I put in place to allow me to do more of those things that nourish my
creativity and happiness and less of the things that don't?
This all feels attainable and possible when I break it down this way because it's all
a matter of scheduling.
Making time for the things that matter to me naturally crowds out the things that don't.
I've also included a list of the things that I want to actively say no to and I think that's
important.
And this brings me to my last question.
Failing is where I learn the most.
If I'm not putting myself in a position to fail it means I'm not learning new things.
Again I won't share all of these but here's a few on my list.
When you know what you want, declare it.
I want to be an architect, a photographer, a filmmaker, an educator, or whatever that
is for you.
And then, fill your days doing that.
Go get paid by someone to do that thing and then when the next opportunity calls you tell
them, “Hey, I just did this for so-and-so” and then you've done two, and pretty soon
ten, and then you're the person who does that thing for a living, and your ideal day becomes
your every day.
Quite honestly, I don't know if this is the right approach for you or for me, it's an
experiment.
Rather than accepting what everyone else is doing as dogma, design a system that supports
the kind of life you want to live.
This, is simply a framework for being happy and when I'm happy I know I can make more
things and life is just better.
Doing it this way takes the pressure off of having to do 10 things on a goals list poorly,
it gives me the space to do one thing really well.
Now, I do still keep my success metrics at the top of my weekly schedule but I've added
to them something which I think perfectly sets the direction for this year and beyond
and I'll share that with you in the next video.
And, it pairs perfectly with a book that I think should be in every architect’s library.
Now, if you want a sneak peek at that be sure to follow me on Instagram and stay tuned.
In the meantime, tell me in the comments: do you set goals for yourself?
What are your January rituals for planning the year ahead?
Be sure to smash that like button below, it's the best way of telling me that what I'm doing
is helping you and we'll see you again next time.
Cheers my friends.