Work methods

Principle 6 of 6 · Dan Koe

Ahead of 99% of people

Define what you don’t want and eliminate distractions.Then focus on mastering the fundamentals through trial and error.Build a system that prevents entropy.

Four steps, in order

  1. 1
    Create your anti-visionWhat you avoid · 30 min
  2. 2
    Disappear for six monthsWhat you cut · 6 months
  3. 3
    Master the fundamentalsWhat you repeat · daily
  4. 4
    Embrace trial and errorWhat you adjust · years

The ideas are Dan Koe’s, as they appear in the graphic.They are ideas to try, not medical or life advice.“Ahead of 99% of people” is the promise in the title: the graphic gives no number to back it up.

Step 1 · Anti-vision

Write down what you don’t want

Your anti-vision is a detailed picture of everything you don’t want in life.Contrasting it with what you fear or despise helps clarify what you truly desire.The exercise in the graphic: sit with a notebook for 30 minutes, then use the discomfort as fuel to define your actual vision.

An open notebook and a pen on a wooden table
A notebook and 30 minutes: the exercise from the graphic.David Schwarzenberg · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons

ExampleFive things to avoid, from the graphic.Press a card to flip it into its opposite.

Fuel for your vision
0

Step 2 · Disappear

Disappear for six months

For six months, cut out distractions and focus entirely on building the systems and routines that align with your vision.These are Dan Koe’s ideas from the graphic, not medical or life advice.

A small wooden cabin in the woods
A replica of Thoreau’s cabin at Walden Pond, the site of a famous retreat.John Phelan · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Column = week, cell = day, band = source.

0 hPer day
0 hIn total
0.08 h days

Illustrative model: each source takes 1 h a day, on all 182 days. The assumption is ours; the graphic gives no numbers.

“You don’t need to explain yourself: just commit fully to your goals without external validation.”

The key insight, as it appears in the graphic

Step 3 · Fundamentals

The fundamentals compound

The fundamentals are boring: writing daily, exercising consistently, practicing foundational skills in your craft.Like leveling up in a game, these small actions compound over time.Move the sliders and see how much adds up.

A graph with a blue straight line and a green exponential curve
Linear in blue, exponential in green: small repeated actions compound.Brigban · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
30 min
180 days
Rhythm
hours put in
90 hHours put in
11.38 h days
180Days practiced

Illustrative model: “5 of 7 days” means Monday to Friday.The graphic speaks of exponential growth. The arithmetic here is linear: 30 minutes a day stay 30 minutes a day.How good you get is not measured in hours.

Step 4 · Trial and error

Experiment and adjust

Think like a scientist: treat your life as a project that requires constant experimentation and adjustment.Success takes years of consistent effort and learning from failures, the graphic says.Decide what you keep and what you drop.

The scientific method as a loop, with arrows between observing, hypothesis and testing
The scientific method as a loop with no end: observe, hypothesize, test, adjust.ArchonMagnus · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Lab notebookExample

Your system0

    Lessons0

      2

      The experiments and results are examples we picked.Step 2 says six months, step 4 says years. The graphic doesn’t reconcile them, so we kept both.

      “Flip the switch inside of you: build a foundation that will carry you into the life you want.”

      Dan Koe, as quoted in the graphic