Internal Locus of Control
5 min
Name one variable you actually control
Write it on paper. The fact it's now visible is the win.
← The Friction Lab
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The Micro-Win Library
A growing library of tiny, physical experiments. Pick by your bottleneck. Ship one before the day ends.
Internal Locus of Control
15 min
Send one email you've been avoiding
Three sentences. The longer you write it, the more it lies.
Autobiographical Agency
10 min
Translate a failure into three metrics
Take one painful past project. Strip the story. Extract three cold optimization metrics.
Possibility Architecture
15 min
Draft three alternative paths
For your current primary plan, write three viable backup routes in under fifteen minutes.
Rapid Iteration
30 min
Ship a deliberately rough draft
Send a Google Doc with three typos to a trusted colleague to desensitize your perfectionism.
Sunk Cost Cutting
5 min
Delete one stale subscription
Find one tool, app, or recurring charge you haven't touched in 30 days. Cancel it now.
Sunk Cost Cutting
10 min
End one draining commitment
Send one short message ending a partnership, project, or thread that's been quietly costing you.
Inherent Vulnerability ID
20 min
Hold a premortem in writing
Assume your current project failed in 90 days. Write the autopsy. Mail it to yourself.
Scrappy Assembly
60 min
Ugly Prototype in one sitting
Build and publish a single-page, scrappy version of one idea without leaving your chair.
72-Hour Sprint
30 min
Pick the next 72 hours
Forget the quarter. List three tasks you can finish by the end of day three. Do task one now.
Constraint Mapping
20 min
Run the Gravity Map
Two columns: Gravity (fixed) and Rudder (yours). Move every active worry into one column. Triage from there.
Constraint Mapping
20 min
Renegotiate one reactive obligation
Find one commitment you never actually chose. Send a calm message changing or releasing it today.
Emotional Stamina
5 min
The Criticism Filter
Take the harshest comment in your inbox. Strip the emotional delivery. Score only the data underneath.
Objective Metric Mapping
15 min
Vanity audit
List the five metrics you check most. Cross out the ones that don't predict cash, churn, or capacity.
De-biasing
25 min
Devil's Advocate Audit
Write the most rigorous argument against your current largest bet. Strong enough that you'd respect it from a stranger.