Tuesday's Rule #1

Starting From Scratch

In 2024, I'm going to try something new with my writing. 

Instead of the longer-form, sporadic posts in 2023 and before, I want to focus on consistent posting. In all likelihood, that means shorter, punchier posts.

This means, as a subscriber (thanks for that!), "Tuesday's Rule" is going to be landing in your inbox every Tuesday morning. 

On 21st June 2021, I started an iPhone note called "Rules for Life". Since then, I've avidly collected moments and quotes from podcasts, interviews, blogs, tweets, and any other sources that seem like good things to hold on to when thinking about how to live an intentional life.

This collection will be the basis for my weekly posts. 

Just one "life rule" that I've collected, each week. A rule or a lesson that I'm trying to implement or one that I've heard somewhere, am curious about and have decided is worth sharing. 

All are intended to be thought-provoking, and a few I hope prove to be helpful to you personally.

Anyway, the first one is here: 

To Live an Intentional Life, Start From a Zero-Base

For the first rule, I would have loved to have shared something with a more pithy, memorable name. But I feel like this is a bedrock for so many other rules I've collected. It's also prescient for this time of the year, specifically the setting of New Year's resolutions.

Whatever your thoughts on New Year's resolutions, there is something incredibly meaningful in the concept of a fresh start. 

Even if New Year's resolutions are only followed for a few weeks, or days even, I think there is value in them as a rare opportunity to step back, think through, write down and crystallise priorities and intentions. 

In life, I've found that it is so easy to roll forward, day by day, week by week, without intention.

Having a process or framework to set these intentions and avoid living a life defined by what we have been doing or, worse, what others want us to do, is so important.

The concept of zero-based budgeting (ZBB) in finance/business is straightforward.

When preparing an annual budget, instead of using what was spent in the previous year as the starting point, you start from scratch. 

Every item of spending has to be justified individually, and as opposed to more traditional budgeting, nothing is automatically included.

In other words, it means no inefficiencies are carried over. It ensures that everything planned aligns with the latest thinking, strategically aligned to the organisation's goals.

However, for various reasons, it is rarely practical for organisations. Companies employ people, have multi-year contracts and have leases on offices, which means they cannot start from zero when looking ahead and planning spending.

Given our own personal commitments and responsibilities, we likely can't start entirely from zero when planning ahead, either.

But this rule - ‘zero-based budgeting for life’ - encourages us to try where we can. 

The most obvious example of application to our personal lives would be in our own financial planning. One way to guarantee spending more efficiently is by starting from a zero base. Remove all of those subscriptions and only add back the ones you really need. Re-address how much you spend on certain items. Build up a budget based on what you really need.

But that's a pretty surface-level example.

Imagine doing that with all the things you do in your life.

Living with intention is the act of living in a way where your actions and decisions are aligned with your personal values, goals, and beliefs, and involves making conscious decisions rather than living on autopilot or being swayed by external pressure. 

Planning from a zero-base enables you to set those intentions, starting from a position that is genuinely important to you.

Rather than setting resolutions because you've seen them on social media or because your friends are setting them, consciously thinking about what you genuinely want to achieve out of them first is generally a good idea. 

Last year, when I went to visit my old school to speak to a group of 16-year-olds, I told them something along the lines of the:

"Life has a way of pulling us in different directions. You'll find currents of influence everywhere – from peers, family, and society. They're not always wrong and typically well-intended, but they shouldn't be the only navigators of your journey."

This rule is about setting your own course and gives us a framework for doing so. If nothing else, it's made me think about the things that are genuinely important to me.

I like this rule because whilst it seems so obvious, it's something we could all do with reminding ourselves of. Using this time of year to re-visit everything we do, gives us a chance to remind ourselves of what makes us happy, and what we do ‘because we’ve always done it’ rather than the value it brings us.

If it allows us to remove one thing that doesn’t add value, or add one thing that allows us to start living a more personal, intentional life, then in my mind, it’s worthwhile, whatever your views on New Years resolutions.

Happy New Year. I hope 2024 is your best yet.