We live our lives zoomed in. We are on the ground, in the moment, every single day.

This creates two core challenges:

1. Struggle feels bigger than it really is.
2. Growth feels smaller than it really is.

The solution: Zoom out. When in doubt, zoom out.

The 10,000 foot view provides perspective—on the manageable nature of your struggles and the impressive nature of your growth.

The end of the calendar year is a perfect time to zoom out, reflect, and prepare.

I sent over 100 newsletters in 2022—two per week, every single week. Today marks the last one of 2022, so in an effort to zoom out, I'm going to do something a little bit different.

The Friday Five Best of 2022: 5 quotes, 5 life lessons, 5 life hacks, 5 mind-blowing facts, and 5 newsletter pieces...

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5 Quotes:

"The purpose of today’s training is to defeat yesterday’s understanding." — Miyamoto Musashi

“To bear trials with a calm mind robs misfortune of its strength and burden.” — Seneca

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” — Marilyn Monroe

“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” — Lao Tzu

"He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of nature." — Socrates

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5 Life Lessons:

Your entire life can change with one year of focused daily effort. Most people overestimate what they can do in a day and underestimate what they can do in a year. If you show up every single day, there are no limits to what you can achieve.

If you think something nice about someone, always tell them right then. It's a shame that we often wait until a person's funeral to say all of the nice things we thought about them. The next time you have a positive thought about someone—no matter how small or insignificant it may be—tell them right then.

Hug your loved ones like it might be the last time you see them. You never know when it will be.

Regret is way more painful than failure. When in doubt, act.

Never let the quest for MORE distract from the beauty of ENOUGH. Pursue growth, but never forget the beauty in simplicity.

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5 Life Hacks:

Write down three things you’re grateful for every single night before you go to bed. Say one of them out loud every single morning when you wake up.

In your 20s and 30s, do a few things that you'll be excited to tell your kids about someday. Go on an adventure, train for some wild event, get your hands dirty on a crazy project, whatever. Create a few stories worth telling.

Make a rule to never think twice about investments in yourself. Books, quality food, fitness, and personal development all fit into this bucket. These investments pay dividends for a long time. Think about material purchases instead—wait 48 hours to complete an order to see if you still want it.

Take yourself out for a meal alone once each month. Carry a notebook and pen, bring your favorite book, and leave your phone in your bag. Let your mind run free. Flex that boredom muscle. It’s insanely freeing—a meditative experience.

Tell your partner one thing you appreciate about them every single day. As time passes in any relationship, it becomes easy to take the good for granted. Don't fall into this trap. Highlight the good!

(Note: You can download a free e-book of my favorite life hacks here)

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5 Mind-Blowing Facts:

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft passed Pluto in 2015 within one minute of what it predicted when it launched in 2006. 3 billion miles, 99.99998% accurate.

We have 3 trillion trees on earth and 2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe. So every time you see three trees, they represent two observable galaxies.

If you folded a piece of paper 42 times, it would be thick enough to reach the moon.

If you cut the Earth into one-meter sided cubes and arranged them in a line, it would stretch the entire length of the Milky Way Galaxy.

If you shrink the earth to the size of a cueball, it will be smoother than the cueball. Earth’s diameter is ~8,000 miles. Everest is about 6 miles above sea level and deepest part of the ocean is about 7 miles deep, both less than 1/1000 of the diameter of the whole. A pool ball diameter is 5.7 cm. So any bumps or pits on pool ball Earth would be <57 microns (less than the width of human hair).

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5 Newsletter Pieces:

​It's Later Than You Think: On the harsh truth of time and the need to cherish every second we have with our loved ones.

​Lessons from David Foster Wallace's "This is Water": Life lessons from the most impactful commencement speech of all time.

​The Personal Annual Review: 7 simple questions to review your year and change your life. Free PDF version available here.

​How to Change Your Life in One Year: The magic of continuous improvement and how to build it into your life.

​The Power of Anti-Goals: A novel approach to avoid winning the battle but losing the war.

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Goodbye 2022, Hello 2023!

2022 was a transformative year in my life. Any professional accomplishments pale in comparison to a single personal one: My wife and I welcomed our son Roman to the world. It's amazing that such a tiny human can bring such enormous joy, but he manages to do it.

I am so thankful to each and every one of you for gifting me with your precious time and attention. I hope that I have been able to bring value to your life in return.

In the year ahead, you can expect more of the same from me—actionable ideas to help you build a high-performing, healthy, wealthy life.

I have ambitious goals for 2023—growing this newsletter to reach 500,000 readers around the world is at the top of that list. But as the numbers grow, I'll never forget the real ones who have been there from the start.

THANK YOU!

With love and best wishes for a healthy, joyful 2023,

Sahil

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