Tech algorithms run your online life.
What if there’s an algorithm similar to the one that powers your TikTok newsfeed that runs your life? And what if you can program it to work in your favor? There are ways.
Aldous Huxley says, “The brain is a reducing valve of consciousness.” The mind acts as an algorithm that determines what shows up in your life’s newsfeed. If left to run on auto-pilot, you’ll quickly find yourself believing the world is going to end or falling for fake news.
There’s a reason some crazies don’t believe in the global health crisis.
Their mind’s algorithm has been tampered with by life hackers, posing as helpful human beings, that are selfishly seeking to manipulate people for personal gain. Program your life’s algorithm to work in your favor like this.
“Where focus goes energy flows”
I find that anxiety, worry, and depression find me when I let random content enter my life. No matter how mentally tough you are, if you consume enough “America is dying” garbage you’ll start to believe it.
Doom is a weapon. Doom is how people can gain mass attention that earns them money. I’ll tell you the shortcut to fame and riches. You can deploy this strategy right now.
Pick any social media app and simply repeat the headlines from CNN. It’s one of the most popular business models in history and it’s guaranteed to work, because it taps into the negativity hard-coded into our minds by human evolution. You’ll tap into millions of people by being the next CNN, and accidentally ‘do evil.’
When doom runs your life’s algorithm you see the negative in everything. Someone won a contest? Must be a fraud. A new social media platform? They’ll fail. A friend quit their job? They’ll be begging for their job back. New car? Consumerism kills society. Bought a house? How dare they — the economy is going to sh*t, they’re screwed.
See what happens? There’s zero optimism left. Optimism is the foundation of creation. And creation is how we fix the things doomsayers talk about.
Any dumbo can repeat problems and make us believe we won’t solve them.
A true genius goes beyond problems and imagines a future in which solutions no one saw coming get invented. When you meet the next energy vampire that sucks the oxygen out of the room with their negativity, remember why. It’s because their life’s algorithm is programmed by daily overexposure to negativity.
Build a Zoom bookshelf
My business partner has a bookshelf behind him whenever we do a Zoom call. Multiple times we’ll be talking about a topic and he’ll swivel around and grab a book that demonstrates his point.
His bookshelf programs his life’s algorithm. In the room of his house where he does all his work, there are books everywhere that he can trip over (literally) when he’s in need of inspiration or a new idea.
A good book that improves your life isn’t supposed to be read once. No. A good book should be read multiple times over a lifetime. Why? A book reads differently each time, depending on what’s happening in your life.
I remember reading “Think And Grow Rich” right after a successful business venture, and then again right after a bad breakup. It was like reading two different books.
Books you trip over help to program your life’s algorithm.
Live in a social media algorithm bubble
Often friends will message me and say, “did you see what such and such person wrote on Twitter?” I’ll have no idea what they’re talking about and this is deliberate.
A social media algorithm programs your life’s algorithm.
I mute and unfollow bullsh*t. Life is hard enough. I don’t have time for undisciplined thinking that makes my world worse. You can do the same. Notice what comes into your email inbox and social media feeds. Is it helping you or taking advantage of you?
Follow people you disagree with
Wait, what? Hear me out. There are people who I strongly disagree with but are trying to improve society. Their thoughts program my mind with alternate possibilities. They seek to make me think rather than worship their point of view. I don’t agree with some of them, for example, when it comes to Bitcoin.
But on other topics I do. I try to have these folk sprinkled into my life’s algorithm, so I don’t become a victim of my own thoughts. A wild Mark Mason screaming at you once in a while is good for disrupting thought patterns.
Program thoughtful contrarians into your life’s algorithm.
Add hard things to your algorithm
My food algorithm is hyper-adjusted to prevent caloric disasters. I know that if there’s chocolate or sugary drinks around I’ll consume them. So, I don’t allow them into my pantry. Doesn’t mean they’re gone for good. I can still access junk food but I’ve made it much harder to get to.
I’m also prone to laziness. Some days I don’t move my body. I learned an old trick. Place your favorite gym outfit next to your bed. As soon as you wake up simply put in on. Then go and do your version of movement.
Repeat this process for 21 days and you have a habit. This works because the clothes next to your bed trigger a ritual. Once our life’s algorithm is used to a ritual it does it automatically.
Automatic thinking is powerful. It helps you avoid resistance and giving in to any excuses you try to come up with.
I try to program in hard things that make me fearful. For example, I’ll book myself to go to Toastmasters, where I know there’s a high chance I’ll have to give a speech. Just the proximity is enough for my life’s algorithm to do the rest of the work and defeat my fear.
Program the “magnet of opportunity” into your algorithm
Your life is a magnet. You attract people and things by what you put out.
Many opportunities I discover come from intentional serendipity. Here’s a strategy you can steal. Send one message per day with no agenda. I sent one today to the first person I ever interviewed as a writer.
I told him that my entire career started with the piece I wrote about his startup, that’s now a household name in America. The message spoke to how glad I was that his interview broke my writing virginity. And how it’s amazing the way life comes full circle.
What came back was an awesome reply and a chance to reconnect. Now we’re off talking about a new opportunity. You can go even further with this strategy and do a James Altucher. Add ten ideas at the bottom that the recipient might find helpful.
Messages with no hidden agenda program your life’s algorithm for future opportunities you’ll never see coming. Sprinkle in a little humility and a touch of kindness, and you’ve got a superpower.
Why all of this matters to you
Your life’s algorithm is controlled by your thoughts. Your thoughts are programmed by your inputs. The tiny thoughts you have turn into decisions that cut off other possibilities. Decisions then become actions. Actions shape your focus. And focus programs your life’s algorithm to create your future.
Rewire your life’s algorithm to work in your favor, by being intentional about what you subconsciously let program you. Doom causes faulty programming. Optimism hardcodes your brain for unlimited potential.
Join my email list with 50K+ people for more helpful insights.
