My bad day minimum

I'm not great at mind, body or spirit. I just made a deal with myself about the floor.

I'm planking right now.

The podcast I'm listening to just hit an ad break. That's my 60 second timer.

This is my small workout. The one I do on days I can't get to the gym. And somewhere in the middle of it, this idea wouldn't leave me alone. So here it is.

I'm not the guru

I usually post like I've got it all figured out. The storytelling expert. The guy on the hill.

That's not true.

I'm a reluctant hero. I'm trying to build a creative agency and take care of my family at the same time. Most days it feels like a lot.

So here's something real that's been helping.

The contract

I made a contract with myself.

I split my life into three parts. Mind. Body. Spirit.

For each one I set a minimum. Not a goal. A floor. Something I can hit on the worst day.

The day I'm depressed. Or angry. Or sad. Or just out of gas. The day I don't have time. The day other stuff has to come first.

I don't have to be perfect in every part of my life every day. I just have to hit my minimums.

Body

My standard is three strength days a week.

When I can't get to the gym, my minimum is this:

That's it.

If I hit that, I took one step forward. I didn't stand still. I didn't slide back.

And I get to say fuck you to my mood. To the doubt. To the little voice feeling sorry for itself.

I don't need to think about it. I just do it.

Mind

For me, mind is the business.

I picked one product. For one type of client. Through one channel. Cold outreach.

No shiny objects. No new offers every month. No chasing five kinds of clients at once.

My minimum, every single day:

I'm far from perfect at it. But if I hit that, I know I moved the needle.

Spirit

This one's hard to write.

To me, spirit is family, friends and community.

I don't have a minimum for it yet.

I'm struggling here. Body and mind have taken over. Mind because I have to provide. Body because I need to stay healthy for my kids.

And if those two buckets are empty, I can't be present enough to fill the third one.

So for now it's a blank. I'd rather tell you that than fake it.

The mountain

Here's why this works for me.

When you look at the top of the mountain, it looks impossible.

Gym five days a week. Two hours a day. The body you want. Calls with dream clients every day.

You look at that, and the doubt shows up. So you don't start.

The minimum is a switchback. A small turn in the trail. You only have to get to the next one.

Then you look back at the old you. The one full of doubt. And you go, huh. That wasn't so bad.

The next step gets easier. And on a bad day, the floor is still there. You don't think. You just do it.

Your turn

Pick your three parts of life. Write the smallest thing you'd do on your worst day for each one.

One line each.

If you're stuck on one, leave it blank. I did.