1. Writing every day

For a long while, I have been interested in people committed to their craft. Day in day out they turn up.

There’s something quite special about that.

I sometimes find myself in somewhat of a helpless state, not sure what I can do, what purpose I’m serving.

Yet recently I’ve been recognising it is the daily routines that we find ourselves distinguished from one another. It exposes our mindset, where, and who we want to be.

I definitely fall short in most things in life but simply the process of sitting at my desk each day is something I recognise as something that will make me proud.

I think this is because it simply defies what is ‘normal’ these days.

Technology, media, and society are so fast we can’t keep track of it all. This culture promotes immediacy over anything. The result being we have is an inability to sit still, stay focused and remain consistent with what we say we will do. I recognise it in me all the time- “It gets boring. It gets hard. It requires effort.” - quality sacrificed for speed.

I don’t like myself when I get comfortable.

The idle, self-loathing, perfectionist.

Objectively, though turning up each day you are indisputably contributing to bettering yourself for the long term.

So here I venture on to fight the demons telling me I am not good enough. Doing my bit each day.

If anything just using as it a reflective time for me and tackling the world and its enormity.

I also want to be able to reveal a new sense of honesty and authenticity. When you do something for a short time it’s easy to put on a facade of how others do it.

Daily practice does not allow for duplicates.

So I also hope this process refines who I am and exposes who I am.

For those who’ve also read my previous work, I hope to lean more into this considered, reflective writing style instead of the copy and paste self-help spiel I find myself sometimes writing about. There’s plenty of other more talented and qualified people who can tell you how to be more productive with your life.

Writing every day is first and foremost is for me. I have to be able to fall in love with the process, to be honest with myself, to move towards the person I want to be. Saying this doesn’t negate the fact that I hope it helps and inspires you.

Why not join me for at least 30 days?

See what change in yourself occurs.

Don’t wait for lightning to occur, nor for billion-dollar ideas to strike you down. Work on whatever you care about daily… or don’t.

See you tomorrow.

How to improve your 5km times

My personal story of going from a PB of 20:09 to 18:21

So a little context on me. I have been running on and off for the last decade. Being part of competitive basketball teams as well as very into my Parkruns; I’ve always made sure to have somewhat of a base level of fitness. However, it wasn’t until the start of lockdown that I actively devoted a lot more time, dedication, and hard work to improve my running ability.

I personally believe running has so much complexity despite it being so simple at the same time. This time around I knew in myself I felt fitter, I was running more and I believe my form was there but I needed to break that mental barrier that was stopping me from accepting that feeling of progression. That to me was getting a new 5km PB.

Being stuck at around the 20-minute mark for around 2 years had been tough and had been a big reason why I never really focussed on it. I thought I would never succeed but when I dialed in on my running I learned a lot and the PB soon followed. Here’s what I did to achieve that 18:21 time.

You just have to fall in love with the sport

It is very easy to become overwhelmed with all the gear, compare your stats on Strava, and be discouraged when you get injured or make little progress. I often find myself in this rut.

However, when on this mission for the 5km time I did some introspection and worked out what parts of running I really loved. So for me, it was going to new places, being with people, and setting myself lots of challenges. Coupling that with lots of Youtube running content I kept myself very inspired to get out there.

You can’t just run once a week

Running once a week is simply not enough. The best way to improve your times more than anything is to just increase the amount of time running. There is a strong correlation between the distance covered each week and your speed. Just getting out more will dramatically increase your PB if you're currently only running once a week.

Often getting more runs in is tricky for people and there will always be exceptions to the rule where you can run fast despite not running in the week. But when I got an 18 minute 5km I was averaging around 3–4 runs and 30–40km.

Interval training

Going from just doing a ‘normal run’ interval training will seem quite weird but I found it provided the most noticeable change in my speed.

For those who don’t know what it is, interval training is essentially doing a specific distance (usually something short like 600 or 800m) then having a set time to pause, and then repeating the distance. These are usually hard efforts so going at your fastest pace or goal PB pace.

So intervals I love doing and recommend for 5kms is maybe 8x800m with 90-second break between every interval. 6x1000m is good too. The beauty of intervals is they are a very tangible way of measuring progress. So one week you can be having your interval break as 90 seconds then the next at 60. It’s often the hardest workout but the most rewarding.

Long runs

These sorts of runs are also your bread and butter to your training. Despite training for 5km it is actually really helpful to get a long run in. Once a week is plenty and it doesn’t have to be fast but having consistent longer workouts will improve your aerobic base.

This is essentially you training your endurance, your cardiovascular and respiratory function alongside building up your heart and lung strength. All very good things. Personally, when training 5km I don’t find anything more than 15km that useful but you can personally experiment.

Look after your body

When going after a goal such as a PB you are pushing your body to something it hasn’t done before therefore you need to be in peak condition. This involves looking after yourself beyond the running.

Diet and sleep are things people often neglect but are so important. Make sure to fuel yourself well and hydrate often. I personally used to struggle a lot with drinking water but literally forced myself to get better and as a result, feel a lot healthier overall. The good thing about diets is that for running you can generally eat whatever you want due to how much exercise you do, however, as a rule of thumb I personally would always stay away from processed and sugary stuff. We all know what is healthy and not so yeah make a diet that works for you. Same to be said with sleep- we all know staying up till 2 isn’t healthy. Get the right amount of hours for you and keep it consistent.

Another big thing I have recently gotten into is how I recover. So this involves stretching more, strength and conditioning, and slow runs. Although not a necessity these all help prevent injury.

Personally, I make sure to have at least a few easy runs each week, I warm-up and cool down properly and use equipment to aid recovery. Stuff like a balance board, a foam roller, and resistance bands. All very affordable and brilliant tools. I highly recommend it.

Race day

Whether you are simply doing a Parkrun, a run around your park, or an actual official race I find that an event always helps when wanting to get a new PB.

I got mine when I had a few friends run with me and pace me for my time. We decided beforehand that this was the day. We scouted the right route, we all got hyped and then we ran it. Having other people to help you definitely makes it easier.

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At the end of the day running for a time isn’t the be-all and end-all, so if you don’t manage to achieve your PB that’s okay. But it’s always good to strive for new goals; maybe that's distance, doing off-road running, or being pacers for friends. Whatever the case I wish you the best of luck on that journey, keep running!

Youtube Marketing

Yep it can be used in ways other than satisfying your cat meme addiction

Did you know Youtube is the second largest search engine in the world?

It is also digital real estate, can continuously be viewed and is evergreen.

‘What does this all mean for us today though?’ It means from a marketing standpoint Youtube is easily the best option for any business or creator out there. You can of course make excuses; ‘It’s too saturated’, ‘I don’t have a fancy camera’, ‘I’m camera shy’- whatever the case, in life there are two sorts of people:

those who think and those who do

When starting on this Youtube journey it’s important to remember the 3 H.P.I (High-Performance Influencer) points:

№1: Virality

Within each niche, there will be a formula that enables one to become more viral, a topic that gets more views, a certain look that people really like. Learn these and you’ll save yourself plenty of time and a lot of trial and error trying to work it out yourself.

“It’s good to learn from your mistakes. It’s better to learn from other people’s mistakes”- Warren Buffet

№2: Confidence

The beauty of Youtube is that you don’t have to be perfect. If anything people appreciate more than anything authenticity. Plus there’s something called editing software these days. With a few cuts, you’ll find yourself speaking concisely and coming across very confident.

№3: Automation

Oprah once said:

“If i can just focus on one thing- being the face of the brand- and my team takes care of the rest, I will beat all of my competition”

What does this tell you? The way to success isn’t through juggling lots of different things and simpling managing your time better. No, it’s delegation. When you work out where your skill set lies, outsource your work. This allows the development of your craft and a better, more automated process.

Similarly in a marketing sense as a business, you simply don’t have the time. You see all these claims that Youtube will bring lots of revenue and clients, and although this is true, it cannot be at the cost of your core role as an organisation.

Youtube is a tool at the end of the day and it’s key to remember that. Through working on your craft and learning the market to achieve Virality, building your confidence through practice, and learning delegation, and deepening your skills it all becomes automated.

Only then Youtube can become your best friend; will you crack the code?