I’ve just come back from my quarterly retreat in the bush. Every three months I head down to a spot my family have got just past Apollo Bay. No electricity, no phone, no internet … just the bush, the ocean, a cooking shelter and a couple of huts. Heaven.

One of the things I do there is reflect on my work practices (as well as reflecting on everything else). I’ll generally tweak something about one of my work rituals – how I plan my week, how I start my day, et cetera.

And thinking about this process (which is kind of meta, I know), I’ve concluded there are three steps to having the best week possible:

Design your ideal week. I think it’s important to have a template of what you’re aiming for. Without that you’ll just be responding to what’s in front of you or to other people’s agendas.
Stack the deck in your favour. Whatever you can do to give yourself the best chance of success, do that. James Clear talks about reducing friction for the habits you want to establish and increasing friction for those you don’t. I agree – the less you are relying on discipline, the better.
Choose the gap. Finally, recognise there is always going to be a gap between the reality and your ideal week. Do the best you can, and rather than resisting the gap, accept that’s that is the nature of this game. And if you can, consciously choose to live there.

Have a great week :)