Last month, I shared an Instagram reel that received more than 5,000 views.
1-in-60 Rule:
One degree off course, after 60 miles, will result in straying off course by one nautical mile.
The lake you planned to fly over could turn out to be a mountain.
I was a military drone pilot in my past life.
So, aviation principle like this gets my attention.
Imagine flying right into a mountain.
Instead of a beautiful lake you set out to overfly.
Classic (nightmare story-line) for Air Crash Investigation or a Netflix movie, isn’t it.
Well, the reality is.
We all run the risk of smacking into that — figurative mountain.
Every 1° astray from our desired trajectory puts us at risk of ruining our lives.
Little by little. We deviate. At some point, course correction becomes impossible.
1° little vice
1° negative self-talk
1°tolerated bad habit
Leads us 1° further away from that beautiful lake
1° closer to that f*cking mountain
This letter is about calibrating your inner Autopilot System.
So you don’t fly into f*cking mountains.
(P.S.: We all are — captains of our life)
We all have that one friend.
Who lives by the mantra — "a little sin won’t hurt".
Or perhaps, you are that friend.
Subscribing to the false illusion that little vices are okay.
When in fact. It’s such silly excuses that put your goals and higher self in jeopardy.
You let things slide a bit, every now and then.
You consume motivational content, but you never act.
You make yourself promises to change, but it never happens.
You create a list of goals and dreams, but never believed they were attainable.
You let the wind push you around, never intentional about setting the course.
Remember the chemistry experiment you used to do in the science lab?
Adding solution A into solution B (blue) — carefully, one drop at a time.
Add eventually, after that (final drop) — everything turns colourless.
Your vices, bad habits, and negative self-talk share the same chemical trait.
They change you. Little by little.
Until unknowingly — you become unrecognisable.
You lose the ‘self’.
Your construct of the ‘I’ and ‘Self’ becomes — chaotic and conflicted.
You drift further and further away — from the desired higher version of you.
You pilot your life into that figurative mountain — knowingly and unknowingly.
Awaken now, droiding pilot.
Stop hallucinating your way into the mindset that:
‘a little is fine’
‘i can course correct later’
‘that mountain is way far out’
Let me introduce to you.
The 8th wonder of the world.
Compounding interest (effect).
I term it — The impartial friend.
The catalyst that multiplies whatever you feed.
Bad habits —> Poor results
Good habits —> Great results
The impartial friend takes no interest in choosing sides.
Albert Einstein sums this up perfectly.
Those who understands it, earns it.
Those who doesn’t, pays it.
Now that you’ve been introduced to — Compounding Effect (the impartial friend).
Apply that understanding to the 1-in-60 Rule.
Your 1° habit(s) can set you on the right course.
Elevating you to your higher self.
Equally. It has the power to.
Tip you over. Alter your trajectory. So drastically.
You lose full control. Heading straight for the f*cking mountain.
Your 1° habit(s). Compounded over time. Determines if you eventually:
Overfly that beautiful lake; or
Smack right into the f*cking mountain.
Good 1° habit(s) compounded over time elevate you to your higher self.
Bad 1° habit(s) compounded over time leads you towards disastrous outcomes.
I hear you ask — “but how long”.
The experts conclude that - 66 days (on average) is what it takes for new behaviours to become automatic.
The average folks out there take 66 days.
If you’re reading this newsletter. You are better than average.
I have full confidence that you are at least 10% greater than the rest.
So, 60 days — that’s your magic number.
60 days is what it takes.
To calibrate your autopilot - right on course.
1° for 60 days.
Alright TOPGUN.
Get your notepad and knee board ready.
We are going to take everything we’ve learned above and ground it with practical steps. Start taking notes.
Sit with your thoughts and think about:
Your goals and anti-goals
Ask yourself what are your values
What kind of life you want to live
What kind of life you don’t want to live
Make clear the 'why’ behind them
Identify the potential hurdles
Create systems for goals and habits
Then, pen it all down (physically or electronically).
(I have a free vision board to help you with this exercise)
Pick one habit / system from your vision board.
This is the 1° that you would be practicing for the next 60 days.
(It can be a new habit you want to start, or a bad habit you want to stop).
Meditate for 5 mins. Take a cold shower. Walk 10k steps. Workout for 30mins.
Learn 1 new thing. Stop mindless scrolling. No alcohol. No sugar.
No negative self-talk. Stop comparing.
[Just throwing out some ideas here].
Don’t try to be too ambitious here.
Here me out. Just stick with 1 (for now).
The mind quickly becomes overwhelmed, and ensued by anxiety when you introduce too much change at once.
You can always come back to program more 1° into your autopilot later.
Pen down the 1° (habit / system) that you have committed yourself to.
Write it in a journal (physical or digital).
Here’s what you need:
The 1°
The why
A checkbox
Write it down. Don’t just let it live in your head.
Documenting it serves as a — binding contract.
Between you and the higher version of you.
No backing out now.
[I’m working on a notion template to help you with this. Keep a look out for that.]
The thing is.
Each time you check something off a list.
You get a little (motivational jolt) of good dopamine released in your brain.
Leverage this.
Create a reinforcing loop that satisfy your inner craving for gratification.
At the same time, keep you motivated to repeat that 1° (habit / system).
Come back to your journal at the end of each day.
Check it off. Put the tick in that box.
Reward yourself with that — good dopamine.
In aviation terms, back bearing is the measurement of horizontal angle observed from an aircraft to a point over which it has passed.
For us, back bearing is the measurement of incremental change observed between your present self and your previous self — 60 days ago self.
By now.
After 60 days of consistent practice of the 1° (habit / system).
Your autopilot system would have been programmed to — Automatically perform the 1°.
Go back to the journal. Write these down:
How am I feeling?
(empowered/ in control/ calm)What changes have I experienced?
(better rest quality/ improved focus/ gained muscles)What happens if I stop this 1° tomorrow?
(chaos/ anxiety/ stagnation/ weight gain/ addiction/ guilt)What mountain(s) have I avoided?
(ruining relationships/ financial distress/ health issues/ depression)How much closer am I to my higher self?
(eliminated anxiety/ closer to self-actualisation/ cleared away bad debt)
Use this exercise to reinforce your commitment.
Towards continuing the 1° (habit / system).
You now have permission to embark on the next 1° — 60 days new habit streak.
Go back to the vision board. Repeat Step 2 -5.
From my own experience, once you find yourself in the state of flow.
One that arises from consistent practice of a good habit
(or restraint from the temptation of a poor habit).
You become — unstoppable.
(Like the aircraft speeding down the runway at full throttle)
Fuelled by the immense sense of satisfaction — from sticking it through.
Remember this feeling.
- End of tutorial -
Now, use this guide to program the 1°s into your subconscious (autopilot system).
Safe flight, fair weather, and blue skies (always).
Alfred
Here are some resources to help you along the way:
If you’ve made it this far, you’re amazing.
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