Want to feel AMAZING about your future? Here's my story.

Hey Decision Maker,

Let me tell you a story…

I’m 17, in my final year of high school.

We had to do a 4-minute speech in front of our English class for our final assessment. You can imagine it, I’m sure you had a similar experience in your school years.

I was sitting there with sweaty palms, overthinking if my note cards were the final version, if I’d practiced enough, if my hair looked good or not, if I had a sufficient breakfast etc. etc.

Dumb shit. But such is life for many teenagers.

I could always write pretty well, but when it came to delivering it in front of people (even if I didn’t care about them at all) I really struggled.

Now what happened? I got the speech done, no one died (as always). I got a decent mark but it could have been better if I just got out of my own head.

Fast forward to today…

I emceed two company-wide events in a space of 3 weeks. I even had people come up to me and tell me they thought I was a hired Emcee professional.

I got noticed by top management and it helped build new connections without having set out to do that.

You know how people say to ‘network’ for your career? It always just sounded complete bullshit to me.

What, I just go suck up to different people and go to wanky events to pretend to be important?

That IS bullshit. Instead, take genuine opportunities when they present themselves at work, and in life:

“Hey mate, could you help me out with this volunteering day?” YES, should I bring along any friends?

“Hi there, I’d love it if you could show me how you made that presentation?” SURE, & I’ll put together a full training for you.

“Yo! I love how consistent you are at the gym, could you give me some tips?” ABSOLUTELY, let’s do a session together!

You never know what will come from these opportunities BUT you DO know what will come from turning them down. NOTHING.

Fitness | 15 minutes a week is enough. Huh?

The biggest objection to working out and improving fitness is TIME. People say they don’t have enough time.

They get overwhelmed by the lifestyle change they think is required (in their head)

“Gee, I really don’t have time to spend 2 hours at the gym every day.”

What nonsense. Start small, there is NO excuse.

Just like my story, all it takes is the initial small commitment. Can you commit 2 minutes a day?

That’s FKN INSANE. Absolutely everybody can exercise for 15 minutes a week. So just do it.

Actionable step:

Do this simple 2-minute circuit at least once this week: bodyweight squats x 20, pushups x 10, planks x 20 seconds, repeat. If you already workout regularly, here’s your challenge: do this circuit 10 times in 10 minutes. It’s harder than you think!

Mindset | You must BELIEVE you can succeed

Whatever your goal is, whether it’s in your career or other aspects of your life, someone has achieved what you want.

You know how people say to get a mentor or a role model? It’s not about talking to them as a GOD and putting them on a pedestal.

It’s actually about the realisation that they are (usually) just like you. When you actually come face-to-face with them and learn their real story, they’re just like you - human.

This is the biggest mindset shift you can make. There is no special sauce other than the belief that you can achieve what others just like you already have.

I never saw myself as a public speaker, but now I have full belief that I can do it. I know that when something goes wrong or there’s an awkward pause, I can make up a funny comment on the spot.

At the first Company event I emceed I got to chat with the keynote speaker, a loud American guy called David Avrin. He’s been doing it for 20+ years and probably got paid more than $10,000 to be there and do a one-hour talk.

He came up to me after my first segment on stage and asked if I was a professional Emcee. He couldn’t tell. He was relatable and had the same thoughts and struggles I did.

Fuck your limiting beliefs, you can do it. You’re just as special as anyone else.

Actionable step: 

Post something RAW on social media. This could be filming your first YT video or a short IG reel. Make a post about your week’s struggles and successes on your personal Facebook profile. Whatever you can commit to. It should be a little bit scary. Wow, what if my mum, so-and-so sees this? GOOD. Do it.

Money | Don’t be afraid to leave work on time.

This requires nuance. Work hard but set your boundaries.

If you’re in a 9-5 like most of my readers, you NEED to learn to set boundaries at work as soon as possible.

You can’t complain your work consumes your life if you never speak up, or take ACTION.

I see many people at my current workplace complain they can’t take a holiday because they ‘have’ to do work and be online.

Or they can’t enjoy their Christmas holidays unless the whole company stops working as well.

Stupid.

I don’t have that problem. My team doesn’t have that problem. Why?

Set boundaries. When I’m on leave, my work apps are 100% off. Don’t contact me or expect a reply.

Done - if your company doesn’t have the resources or processes to compensate that’s 100% their problem.

If you find yourself staying late or waiting for others to leave first purely because you don’t want to be judged or think it will impact your future, you’re wrong.

What traits do managers have?

They have agency, authority and most importantly respect.

If you don’t set your boundaries and put your worth at work on others you have none of these three things.

It’s not beneficial in the long run in a healthy organisation.

Actionable step:

Confront one of these problems. Have a short talk with your manager and just bring the topic up. 99% of the time they’ll work with you on it because most of the time they’re just not aware of the problem. If they don’t, they’re a shit manager and you should start looking at other opportunities immediately.

Relationships | The difference between intentional dating and ‘forcing it’

Have you seen this meme before?

It’s funny because almost all areas of life actually work like this. Let me explain…

You know little about something. You just try the most obvious thing and it appears it doesn’t work.

So you go deeper. Trying more advanced techniques, strategies, 10-stage complex routines or hacks.

And you start getting results.

But most of the time, after a while you realise this isn’t what you actually wanted.

It’s what others told you you wanted.

Let’s apply this to dating.

When I broke up with my first girlfriend (of 5 years) in 2018, as sad as I was, I was still excited to try online dating (it was much newer back then).

One of the first questions I would ask women is “What are you looking for?”

It’s a logical question that men think is a good idea to ask a woman they fancy.

Now 50% of the time you’ll get a response like “Uhh not sure, waiting to see what happens, just going with the flow”

40% of the time you won’t get a response 😆

And 10% of the time you’ll get a purposeful response from someone who’s actually thought about it and is intentional about their future.

SO if you’re a guy just trying to get as many dates as possible or sleep with women, this is a terrible strategy.

So you go deeper.. and you learn what complicated strategies to implement.. and you get the shallow results you were looking for.

But is that what you actually wanted? After a while, you’ll realise, like I did, that this is not what you want.

So you go back to the original question “What are you looking for?”

And as long as you know truly what you’re after, this is the best question to ask, even if it disqualifies 90% of potential partners straightaway.

Actionable step:

Write down what you want in a partner. Pick 5 things and write them down.
If you have a partner, ask them where they want to be in 1 year, it’s low pressure but it will tell you a lot and get you thinking.

This newsletter was all about being intentional, whether that’s intentionally taking opportunities or choosing to believe you can achieve your goals.

If there’s one takeaway for you, it’s to be positive about your future, if you’re positive about your decisions. 

My challenge to you: decide to apply all of these steps over the next week.

If that’s not realistic, decide on one you can definitely apply and do that.

Let me know how you go,

Jack “create opportunities” Alderton

P.S. How did you go last week? What did you implement? Let me know by replying to the email. It would mean so much to me!