# ‘What did you do today?’
Sometimes I’m a liar. Not to people, but to myself. Adam Smith wrote that /man wants to be loved and to be lovely/. I interpret that to mean that we want people to see us well and to see ourselves well. Sometimes that means buying, sometimes that means doing, and sometimes that means finding the truth.
In Ryder Carroll’s Bullet Journal book he advices to log and track the things we do to find if what matters lines up with what we do. How close are those overlapping circles?
Ideally, in our Adam Smithian way, those circles overlap completely. We see ourselves as efficient and helpful and caring. Whatever our values are, they match whatever our actions may be.
Well, that’s what we remember. My memory, if we’re keep in the literary realm, is less Sherlock Holmes and more like Loki, the movie version. My memory does what’s best for me, not what happened. This is why tracking helps. Apps and words are the clues for our inner Sherlock to take over our inner Loki. Carroll encourages users to write down a Topic for each page and then start adding to that list.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat down to make yet another list, only to realize that it simply won’t add anything meaningful to my life…that pause has helped me refine my aims, keeping the content of my Bullet Journal focused and relevant.”
Carroll goes on to write, “Topic by Topic, pause by pause, we’re honing our ability to focus on what matters.” Each time someone uses a Bullet Journal to Rapid Log or an App to check in they’re providing evidence that the two circles overlap more than not.
Sometimes I’m a liar. Without a number or a Rapid Log or an App tracking what I do my inner Loki comes out to say, /No, no. Your fast started at six, not eight. You ran at a good pace yesterday, so go easy today. You called enough people to talk about that topic and it’s awkward and hard and challenging sometimes so give yourself a break./ That’s what Loki does.
Apps are one way to do it. Being daily is another.
There are lots of things that are easy to do everyday. When I asked Twitter (https://twitter.com/mikedariano/status/1153272485577658369?s=21)
what people’s best habits were all the responses were daily. I’d guess part of the reason is because those are the easiest to track. Did you do this yet today?
I use an app because I am a liar. At 11:00 the app notifies me to update my Way of Life journal with the phrase “Discipline equals Freedom.” That’s from Jocko Willink who works out everyday. Daily habits require two things; history and honesty. Jocko has worked out his entire life. My daily habits are the ones that have been around the longest. Being honest is a little harder.
On a podcast Q&A Jocko was asked what he does when he’s injured or sick or traveling all day. Sometimes his exercise is just a walk or stretching. Many times, according to his Instagram account, it’s pushups in a hotel room. Jocko’s honest. His Loki talks little because his Sherlock takes over. Today’s conditions are best for this and as the facts change so will the results.
Values should lead to Actions and Actions should reflect Values. Sometimes they do and our circles are tight. Sometimes they don’t. When our circles look more like the front and rear wheels on a car we need to start seeing our world more like Sherlock and hearing less Loki.
