How to work 10x more efficiently

In this newsletter, I will explain to you how to make the most out of your work.

We will discuss:

• Flow state;

• Passion and curiosity;

• Clarity and presence;

• Fulfillment;

FLOW STATE

You want to work hard, efficiently and to not feel tiered.

“How can I work hard and not feel tiered?”

It is possible, if you master the flow state.

The flow state is when you are completely absorbed in an activity, when your mind does not wander in the past or in the future. The only thing that matters is the task.

You can literally not stop working.

Brain waves are waves in the brain (obviously) and they are associated with different types of cognition. Gamma Waves seem to be closely related to the flow state. SO you can do more research into that if you think that the Flow State is a scam.

Also, I think the flow state was represented into more spiritual practicing. Learning about the flow state made me start studying the chakras (more about this in future newsletters). SO you can learn more about spirituality, to convince yourself that people tried to reach flow-like states since the beginning of humanity.

PASSION AND CURIOSITY

When I was in high school, I used to work a lot for Physics Olympiads. I even worked 14h in one day. And the best part: it was really enjoyable. I felt like having a fire inside me that gives me all the energy I needed to work.

In university, this stopped happening. I was solving the same problems over and over again, and I stopped enjoying everything. I felt like that fire was extinguished.

But then I did other things:

• I learned French and Italian;

• I learned how to code and to create AI agents;

• I did a very interesting internship in laser interferometry; (Physics stuff)

The fire started to burn once again. So I understood what are the things that I can do to work while not feeling like I am working:

• Find something that I like;

• Find something that I am really curious about;

So find something that you really want to explore and work on it.

But it will not be enjoyable all the time. You will encounter obstacles and things that will be too difficult for you. You have to overcome them by thinking of the parts that you like in your project. Thus, your project should consist of at least 50% things that you like. So you will have to learn skills and apply them. You will work at your limit. You discover new things and your skills progress, but you are not overwhelmed.

That is flow!

You have to stay on the red line here!

CLARITY, ORGANIZATION AND PRESENCE

Now you have to always know what you are working on.

The main idea in flow state is to passionately work on something while having no distractions.

You know the generic advice already:

• turn off your phone;

• don’t check emails while working;

• tell people not to interrupt you;

But the worst thing that can distract you from flow is actually your own mind.

You are usually thinking about the past or the future.

This is why it is very important to have a clear plan when you work on something.

You can practice:

• meditation;

• planning;

• stream of thought;

For meditation, don’t overcomplicate it. When a thought comes to mind, just acknowledge it and let it go. Then do this while you don’t meditate.

For planning, I really recommend Notion. The template that I attached is really useful to start planning your life.

You should also plan every project or product that you create.

Steam of Thought is an interesting concept. Every time a thought comes to mind, write it down somewhere (I recommend Notion as you can have it on all devices). This will help clear your mind and you don’t have to remember anything.

All of these habits will help you be present in the moment and focus on the tasks you have to do!

Short summary:

meditation + planning = clarity

clarity + execution = product

product = money

Flow gives you fulfillment

Why do people like jumping from planes, driving fast cars and other extreme sports?

Because they have to be in the moment and focus completely. Otherwise, they can get injured pretty badly. I guess experiences like this happened to you.

For me, they surely did while boxing, while going on roller coasters or other more extreme stuff.

But they can also happen when:

• going through a shocking event;

• having a deep conversation;

• a very happy moment;

These events make you really live in the moment. No distractions created by your mind.

And with what I described above we can apply all of these to our work.

I can tell for sure these experiences are usually the most enjoyable parts of life. So why not making work one of them.

Being PRESENT is what makes life enjoyable.

So this is FLOW: being totally PRESENT when you work.

I hope that I convinced you that finding your own way towards achieving flow state when you work is a goal that you should pursue.

Thanks for the read!

Andrei