You are a product of your environment. If you want to eat healthier, but your counter is covered in cookies, you will eventually eat a cookie. If you want to do deep work, but your phone is sitting next to your keyboard, you will eventually check your phone. Willpower is a losing game; Environment Design is a winning one. Today, we are going to audit your physical and digital spaces to ensure they are working for you, not against you.
Your environment sends constant "cues" to your brain. High-performance design is about Friction. You want to decrease friction for the habits you want to keep and increase friction for the habits you want to break. If you want to work out in the morning, putting your shoes by the door decreases friction. If you want to stop watching so much TV, taking the batteries out of the remote increases friction. Today, we are playing "Architect" with your surroundings.
In Your Guidebook complete the Environmental Audit on Page 39.
The Physical Space: Is your desk a place of focus or a pile of clutter? What one change would make you want to sit there?
The Digital Space: Look at your phone's home screen. Are the apps there helping your North Star or distracting you?
The Sensory Cues: What do you hear, smell, and see when you are in "Design Mode"?
BONUS | The 10-Minute Reset: Perform a "Digital Declutter." Delete 5 apps you don't use and move all social media apps off your home screen into a folder on the last page of your phone. Make "scrolling" a conscious choice rather than an accidental reflex.
