How do I live a principled life?

[Rafael Gervásio]

Hey everyone!


I was writing a list of business principles that I could use to guide me in my entrepreneurship journey.

I wrote 12 points I feel really strongly about, and that I want to base my decision making off of.


The problem I’m having is:
- How do I keep all this stuff top of mind?

Like how do I make sure that when I’m making a business decision I’m following these principles?
How do I internalize them?


I have this problem not just in entrepreneurship, but life in general.

I also have a list of principles I want to live my whole life by.
And I’m also not sure how I should go about internalizing themand holding myself accountable to them.


With the business and life principles together, it’s probably a list over 30 points long.

Should I read them everyday?
Write about them?

How do I make sure I’m living my life (business and otherwise) according to these principles?


Thanks in advance for the help guys!

 

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[fastlane_dad]

Hey everyone!


I was writing a list of business principles that I could use to guide me in my entrepreneurship journey.

I wrote 12 points I feel really strongly about, and that I want to base my decision making off of.


The problem I’m having is:
- How do I keep all this stuff top of mind?

Like how do I make sure that when I’m making a business decision I’m following these principles?
How do I internalize them?


I have this problem not just in entrepreneurship, but life in general.

I also have a list of principles I want to live my whole life by.
And I’m also not sure how I should go about internalizing themand holding myself accountable to them.


With the business and life principles together, it’s probably a list over 30 points long.

Should I read them everyday?
Write about them?

How do I make sure I’m living my life (business and otherwise) according to these principles?


Thanks in advance for the help guys!

Not sure what you mean by any of this 'principles' talk.

Think about some goals (that are important to you), and then break them down to steps you can take daily to achieve them. If you are talking about life more general -- think about what civilization and society has been doing for hundreds of years, and typically a lot of that is a good compass to go by.

Work and setup your 5-10 to-dos each and every single day. Cross them out once they are done.

Also I'd advise thinking what is your ideal day -- because your DAY becomes your LIFE. Plan for and make a schedule for your ideal day.

Some great areas to ponder ...

-Working towards a family (significant other, marriage, kids) - responsibility beyond just yourself
-Working towards a schedule (work, fastlane business) - achieving financial freedom
-Working towards setting up an investment mindset, and calibrating your mind to deal with the ups and downs of the ride
-Working on friendships for certain part of the week - networking and having a social group around you (esp those that support you in your endeavors).
-Working on your health (working out, proper nutrition, proper sleep) - this really should be #1 place to start -- you can control all of these variables
-Working on learning (helping you solve your own problems through international reading, courses, watching and learning youtube, taking notes, implementing)
Working on fun (incorporating scheduled down time during your week) -- because what is life without fun?

How far along are you on all of these? This is a good place to start. You can branch out once you scratch some of these off your list.

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

Work and setup your 5-10 to-dos each and every single day. Cross them out once they are done.

Also I'd advise thinking what is your ideal day -- because your DAY becomes your LIFE. Plan for and make a schedule for your ideal day.

I do both of this already.
They’re super helpful btw.

How far along are you on all of these?

Work and setup your 5-10 to-dos each and every single day. Cross them out once they are done.

Also I'd advise thinking what is your ideal day -- because your DAY becomes your LIFE. Plan for and make a schedule for your ideal day.

I already do both those ones.
They’re super helpful.

Specially the 5 key daily actions.

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

How far along are you on all of these?

My main focus points from your list are financial freedom & learning. I don’t really pay much attention to the other ones right now.

I’m an 18 year old male for context.

 

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[Rafael Gervásio]

Not sure what you mean by any of this 'principles' talk.

In life, I was mentioning stuff like:

- Discipline
- Personal responsibility
- Focus
- Time & Attention are king
- Long term thinking
- Self belief
Etc…


For business specifically, I was mentioning things that are relevant to my current situation.
For example I came across this insight and I want to keep it top of mind:

“In the early stages of a business, make fast, bold decisions, and be okay with them being less than perfect. Otherwise, you will overthink every step, and you will stay stuck at “Stage Zero,” the state in which you want to start a business.

There’s no perfect product or “right” business to start. Instead, there’s simply a set of decisions you need to make. Once you make these decisions, you’ll have a good shot at success. But until you make these decisions, you’ll be stuck in analysis mode forever.”

That’s from a book called 12 months to $1M btw.


My question is, what’s the best way to keep this on my mind?
To make sure I’m acting according to this insight?

 

[Primeperiwinkle]

Do you know anything about plants? They absorb nutrients through soil, they store some of it in sugar form, and later they make flowers.

Absorption:

Create a commonplace notebook with your principles written down on the first page. Make a weekly habit of adding quotes to your notebook that correspond to those principles.
Read a fun, engaging or challenging NOVEL that ppl have commented as “This book touched my heart” at least once a month. A good one for American English speaking people is Piranesi. Another excellent novel, for English speaking ppl who are sick to death of American protagonists is Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri.

Both of those have characters which will inspire you. Make sure to add any quotes from those books into your commonplace notebook.

Eliminate entertainment that does not reflect your values.

Storage:

Don’t tell anyone your business plans. Don’t make “plans” for five years from now. Just find something to do today to and do it. When you’re done don’t tell anyone. Just keep your head down and make shit happen. Don’t tell anybody your plans until you’ve actually made over 10k.

Adjust your schedule do that you’re spending the majority of your day getting stuff done. Trim the fat. Once you’ve gotten stuff done you’ll relax better.

Aim for storage as often as possible but at least once a week try..

Flowering:

Congratulations, you’ve gotten a system down, you’ve built integrity to keep your promises to yourself. You’ve realized that your own self-discipline actually does result in profit and progress.

NOW you can tell ppl. Or you can affect other people by actions/communication/influence. But do it with style. Make it pretty. You’re flowering. The honeybees will show interest. This will eventually be something you do every week. Imagine being able to give to charity every week AND buy yourself something lovely, handmade, imported, or valuable.

But before that pretty thing you gave/did/explained is 24 hrs old you have to start back at Absorption. Do it better. Repeat repeat, repeat.. etc.

In my life this looks like Storage/Work Mon-Fri. Saturday is for art/flowering: writing, baking, shopping, making weird stuff with art. Sundays are for absorption.

Sunday is for music and rest, basking in the sun and drinking tea and reading my novel or commonplace notebook. It’s purposefully a calm day that reenergizes me for the week ahead.

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

Do you know anything about plants? They absorb nutrients through soil, they store some of it in sugar form, and later they make flowers.

Absorption:

Create a commonplace notebook with your principles written down on the first page. Make a weekly habit of adding quotes to your notebook that correspond to those principles.
Read a fun, engaging or challenging NOVEL that ppl have commented as “This book touched my heart” at least once a month. A good one for American English speaking people is Piranesi. Another excellent novel, for English speaking ppl who are sick to death of American protagonists is Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri.

Both of those have characters which will inspire you. Make sure to add any quotes from those books into your commonplace notebook.

Eliminate entertainment that does not reflect your values.

Storage:

Don’t tell anyone your business plans. Don’t make “plans” for five years from now. Just find something to do today to and do it. When you’re done don’t tell anyone. Just keep your head down and make shit happen. Don’t tell anybody your plans until you’ve actually made over 10k.

Adjust your schedule do that you’re spending the majority of your day getting stuff done. Trim the fat. Once you’ve gotten stuff done you’ll relax better.

Aim for storage as often as possible but at least once a week try..

Flowering:

Congratulations, you’ve gotten a system down, you’ve built integrity to keep your promises to yourself. You’ve realized that your own self-discipline actually does result in profit and progress.

NOW you can tell ppl. Or you can affect other people by actions/communication/influence. But do it with style. Make it pretty. You’re flowering. The honeybees will show interest. This will eventually be something you do every week. Imagine being able to give to charity every week AND buy yourself something lovely, handmade, imported, or valuable.

But before that pretty thing you gave/did/explained is 24 hrs old you have to start back at Absorption. Do it better. Repeat repeat, repeat.. etc.

In my life this looks like Storage/Work Mon-Fri. Saturday is for art/flowering: writing, baking, shopping, making weird stuff with art. Sundays are for absorption.

Sunday is for music and rest, basking in the sun and drinking tea and reading my novel or commonplace notebook. It’s purposefully a calm day that reenergizes me for the week ahead.

Thanks a lot!

Really good insights. I will act on them.
Just added “Piranesi” to my reading list.

The notebook of quotes that correspond to principles is also an awesome idea.

The way you split your week like that is really interesting.


Btw, I’m usually used to reading non-fiction books.

I’ve always just kinda of assumed the fiction/novel books had less insights in them, since they weren’t written specifically as a means to solve a problem.

I’m curious, why do you recommend novel’s specifically?
Do you think they can be as valuable as non-fiction books?

 

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[fastlane_dad]

My question is, what’s the best way to keep this on my mind?
To make sure I’m acting according to this insight?

The best way is to start taking action and then iterating. Figuring out how to make $3 then $5. Then growing it from there.

Have you picked any areas to pursue in business? Is there anywhere you can add value currently? Is there anything you can charge for? Have you ever sold anything? Are there any products / software / books etc that you can improve on? Do you hold any specific knowledge?

 

[Primeperiwinkle]

Thanks a lot!

Really good insights. I will act on them.
Just added “Piranesi” to my reading list.

The notebook of quotes that correspond to principles is also an awesome idea.

The way you split your week like that is really interesting.


Btw, I’m usually used to reading non-fiction books.

I’ve always just kinda of assumed the fiction/novel books had less insights in them, since they weren’t written specifically as a means to solve a problem.

I’m curious, why do you recommend novel’s specifically?
Do you think they can be as valuable as non-fiction books?

Stories affect us more than facts. The best self-help or nonfiction books use true stories to explain their points but they leave out mystery and ideal emotions most of the time. Autobiographies reveal the emotions of great leaders so those type of books inspire us more because, since those ppl really lived and died we share in the possibility of greatness. They did it, so that means we can too.

But novels reach parts of who we are that plain facts or obvious teaching can’t. How often do we reject teachers who constantly moralize? “Well son, this story means that blah blah blah”.

English teachers piss all over everything when they do that. The best way to Understand great literature is to experience it and get what it gives you, not analyze it to death.

It’s like the difference between a portrait drawn with no shadows (it looks childish, incomplete) and a portrait with shadows and grey areas. The hidden mysterious complicated meanings reveal truth in a more meaningful way than a list can, sometimes.

When you read an excellent novel you can’t say “oh I know this metaphor means exactly this and the steps to completing it are 1, 2, 3” You wonder. You grow curious. Your heart senses something different.

It’s like meeting a person and recognizing that they have beauty, value that you didn’t expect. Because there’s mystery you grow curious. Your curiosity builds attention. Your attention builds focus and strength. You pursue the ideas longer. You meditate on which ideals might be hidden.

You become a person focused on something outside yourself that holds the very principles you love. Ultimately, you’re meditating on the principles longer and letting them change you.

The alternative to reading novels is listening o people tell their stories. That’s why we love Ig and Facebook and tiktok. We live and breathe story. We get energy from emotions that are stirred up by story.

I added it because I know you’ll get great advice about the other stuff but most men have novels ruined for them in school and then go the rest of their life missing that beauty. They seek it in other ways that are usually less healthy.

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

The best way is to start taking action and then iterating. Figuring out how to make $3 then $5. Then growing it from there.

Have you picked any areas to pursue in business? Is there anywhere you can add value currently? Is there anything you can charge for? Have you ever sold anything? Are there any products / software / books etc that you can improve on? Do you hold any specific knowledge?

I’ve tried and failed at multiple businesses. 6+ at this point. I decided to get rich way back when I was 15.
Mj’s TMF changed my life at 16.

The only thing I’ve successfully done this far, is start, buy, and sell Instagram theme pages.
I currently own one with 100k+ followers. @cats.venue on Instagram.
That page is easily worth $1k+. I bought it for $180.

This far I’ve probably made over $1k with Instagram pages.
I’ve re-invested all of it trying to start more scalable and profitable businesses.

Most of the business I’ve started in the past were dropshipping stores. I failed at multiple of them.

On one of them though, I managed to get influencers to promote my product. I was selling cat sleeping bags.
The posts with my product got over 30k likes together. I was so excited.

Setting up the whole website + the ads was a bit over $200. A ton of money for me at the time.

I only managed to get one sale. For $39.99.
That store was a massive disappointment for me. I thought I would make a ton of sales with all that instagram reach.

Looking back there were a lot of mistakes I made there:
1. Poor copywriting (I would of done much better now at selling the product)
2. Poor perceived value. The product really wasn’t that great. I’m sure the cat owners had seen tons like it before.
3. Poor direct response marketing. I could of given each influencer coupon codes to give their followers. That would have increased sales. At this point, I had read books like “Scientific advertising” and “No be direct response marketing” and “ca$hvertising”. I should of applied what I read, but I didn’t.


In September this year I joined university. My identity is one of an “entrepreneur”, but was either that or getting a job.
By being in university I get to keep more time for myself than with a job. That’s why I chose it.
I’m studying data science. Not that it matters tbh.


I’ve read and digested a ton of knowledge on business in the past few years.
In my business ventures, one problem I identified was that I didn’t apply what I’d read.
Never. It was super frustrating.


So I’ve decided to write a guide book for myself. I’m going to take the most important concepts I’ve read about, and compile the meat of them into a like 80-100 page book on everything I know on how to start a business.

Then I’ll start step 1 of the guidebook.


Here’s the outline of the book btw:

Step 1 | Who — Who will you serve?​

• Passion — And why it can help identify who you’ll serve
• The big 3 Markets
• Becoming obsessed with your target custumer

Step 2 | What — What will you sell them?​

• Pain points & gaps — What a product actually is
• Identifying pain points & gaps — A step-by-guide to doing market research
• Offer — Making offers so good, people would feel stupid saying no to.
• Branding — How launching multiple products for your target customer is key to business success

Step 3 | How — How will you sell it?​

• Selling — The principles behind selling
• Usp & Key selling propositions — How to sell your product
• Advertising Chanel’s & Testing — How to run ads & get a massive source of traffic

Principles - Guidance for success​

• Control
• Entry
• NEED
• Time
• Scale

The goal is to compile the best stuff I’ve learned about business into a step by step guidebook.



Wow. That was a lot.
Now you know a little about me.

Btw, if you’ve taken the time to read all of that, thank you so much for spending your time and attention trying to help.
You’re very much appreciated!

 

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[Rafael Gervásio]

Stories affect us more than facts. The best self-help or nonfiction books use true stories to explain their points but they leave out mystery and ideal emotions most of the time. Autobiographies reveal the emotions of great leaders so those type of books inspire us more because, since those ppl really lived and died we share in the possibility of greatness. They did it, so that means we can too.

But novels reach parts of who we are that plain facts or obvious teaching can’t. How often do we reject teachers who constantly moralize? “Well son, this story means that blah blah blah”.

English teachers piss all over everything when they do that. The best way to “Understand” great literature is to experience it and get what it gives you, not analyze it to death.

It’s like the difference between a portrait drawn with no shadows (it looks childish, incomplete) and a portrait with shadows and grey areas. The hidden mysterious complicated meanings reveal truth in a more meaningful way than a list can, sometimes.

When you read an excellent novel you can’t say “oh I know this metaphor means exactly this and the steps to completing it are 1, 2, 3” You wonder. You grow curious. Your heart senses something different.

It’s like meeting a person and recognizing that they have beauty, value that you didn’t expect. Because there’s mystery you grow curious. Your curiosity builds attention. Your attention builds focus and strength. You pursue the ideas longer. You meditate on which ideals might be hidden.

You become a person focused on something outside yourself that holds the very principles you love. Ultimately, you’re meditating on the principles longer and letting them change you.

The alternative to reading novels is listening o people tell their stories. That’s why we love Ig and Facebook and tiktok. We live and breathe story. We get energy from emotions that are stirred up by story.

I added it because I know you’ll get great advice about the other stuff but most men have novels ruined for them in school and then go the rest of their life missing that beauty. They seek it in other ways that are usually less healthy.

I never thought about it that way. I’ve always just seen them before as entertainment. Like Netflix, TV, YouTube, etc…
Mostly like a waste of time.


I’ll start reading more novels then. I want to test it out.

Aside from the ones you’ve already mentioned above, do you have any specific ones you’d recommend for someone who’s new to the genre?

 

[NeoDialectic]

- How do I keep all this stuff top of mind?

Like how do I make sure that when I’m making a business decision I’m following these principles?
How do I internalize them?

You are asking how to keep all these principles in mind. Reading the principles and remembering them is the overwhelmingly easy part. Living by them is the hard part. So really think about that and then reconsider your question.

I suggest you choose which principle is most important for you to adopt and focus on that one first. One better decision at a time. When that is internalized, move on to the next one.

Based on your tone and language, I see you may have exposed yourself to a lot of pop "business" advice (books/blogs/youtubes/etc..) and are very motivated to become what they idolize. My advice is to not treat yourself like a dictator's subject that you can terrorize into compliance. Motivation is fleeting. That is why you know the principles and yet find yourself not living up to them and procrastinating. You will do great for the 3 minutes of motivation you are feeling and then quit when that motivation naturally fades. Instead, commit to improving yourself one step at a time every single day. Not much to remember there, right? Then like compound interest, your small daily investments accrue to a man that lives by his ten principles (and naturally succeeds in business or anything else he does!). It's a long road. But luckily, you got a lot of time!

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

I suggest you choose which principle is most important for you to adopt and focus on that one first. One better decision at a time. When that is internalized, move on to the next one.

That’s actually very helpful.

I’ve chosen the first main principle I want to focus on is “Time & Attention are king”.

It’s not that I procrastinate much. Very rarely actually. I always schedule my day and follow the schedule.
I’m also not a motivation type of guy. I have a very big dislike of motivational videos. It makes you dependent on a feeling to get work done.

But I do feel sometimes I work on things that aren’t really what’s needed right now.
They’re not the main thing. They’re kinda of action fakes.

I’ll make an effort for the next days/weeks, to just focus on that one principle.
Manage your time and attention well.
I’ll hold myself accountable to that.

Once I feel that I consistently follow that principle day in and day out, I’ll move on the another one.


Thanks for the help

 

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[Primeperiwinkle]

I never thought about it that way. I’ve always just seen them before as entertainment. Like Netflix, TV, YouTube, etc…
Mostly like a waste of time.


I’ll start reading more novels then. I want to test it out.

Aside from the ones you’ve already mentioned above, do you have any specific ones you’d recommend for someone who’s new to the genre?

To anyone new to reading literature I’d say, try a 2:1 ratio of old books to new books.

What I mean is that any book written prior to 1960ish is old. Anything after 1970 is new.

Older stuff has a different worldview - they include right and wrong, life is worth having, death as a journey, heroism, and responsibility.
Newer books often have more - you are defined by sex, victimhood is highlighted, etc.

Of course that’s not true for every book but it’s something to consider.

I’m just telling you so you can be on the lookout for what lens an author saw the world with. Depending on the era, the lens can change pretty drastically.

Not knowing you at all.. I’m going to try and make a list that covers a lot of stuff. These are all really powerful and I tried to list them in a way that wouldn’t put sad after sad. So for instance, Austelitz is hauntingly emotional but Once and Future King is more joyful. Almost all of these books have a deeply GOOD male protagonist.

Austerlitz by WG Sebald
The Once and Future King by TH White
Brave New World by Huxley
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Watership Down by Richard Adams (hint: this is a how to book on leadership most people don’t realize that though)
The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis
Anthem by Ayn Rand
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Solzhenitsyn
Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
Father and I Were Ranchers (also known as Little Britches) by Ralph Moody
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Ben Hur by Lew Wallace
Dragon Seed by Pearl S Buck
Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas
The Chosen by Chaim Potok

I hope those help!

 

[Rafael Gervásio]

To anyone new to reading literature I’d say, try a 2:1 ratio of old books to new books.

What I mean is that any book written prior to 1960ish is old. Anything after 1970 is new.

Older stuff has a different worldview - they include right and wrong, life is worth having, death as a journey, heroism, and responsibility.
Newer books often have more - you are defined by sex, victimhood is highlighted, etc.

Of course that’s not true for every book but it’s something to consider.

I’m just telling you so you can be on the lookout for what lens an author saw the world with. Depending on the era, the lens can change pretty drastically.

Not knowing you at all.. I’m going to try and make a list that covers a lot of stuff. These are all really powerful and I tried to list them in a way that wouldn’t put sad after sad. So for instance, Austelitz is hauntingly emotional but Once and Future King is more joyful. Almost all of these books have a deeply GOOD male protagonist.

Austerlitz by WG Sebald
The Once and Future King by TH White
Brave New World by Huxley
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Watership Down by Richard Adams (hint: this is a how to book on leadership most people don’t realize that though)
The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis
Anthem by Ayn Rand
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Solzhenitsyn
Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
Father and I Were Ranchers (also known as Little Britches) by Ralph Moody
The Road by Cormac McCarthy
Ben Hur by Lew Wallace
Dragon Seed by Pearl S Buck
Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas
The Chosen by Chaim Potok

I hope those help!

Thanks a lot!

I’ll probably get started with “The Hobbit“