🧩 Life's a Game: Hofstadter's Law

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Embracing Hofstadter's Law

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Quick Spin:

The power of embracing Hofstadter's Law
4 Tools to ⬆️ Patience and ⬇️ Overwhelm
Office Hours turns 2!

♟️ MY TURN:

It was exactly 1 year ago that I found myself in a literary agent's office waiting to pitch my idea for a book that I’ve been writing for the year prior.

One year later……and the book just went to editing.

And it won’t be out until October 21, 2025.

If you have big goals, you have to embrace Hofstadter’s Law.

This law was created by Douglas Hofstadter, an American scholar and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He devised Hofstadter's Law to articulate the common underestimation biases in time management. Good ol’ Doug said it always takes longer than you think it’s going to take…even when you think it’s going to take a long time.

I knew a book was going to be a BIG endeavor.

I just didn’t know how long.

As many of you know, I coach over 100+ high achievers in my group coaching program called Office Hours (PS - Office Hours is turned 2 on October 15th and if you want to check it out click here I have 10 spots open for October!)

In coaching, we talk about the common traps in planning and success.

The people who are successful today just kept going.

You see this all the time as I scroll on social.

And you are not exempt from Hofstadter's Law.

If you want something big, you have to embrace the law and cultivate patience.

But how?

Keep reading.

♟️ YOUR TURN:

Today I’m going to share my 4 favorite tools that help me embrace the reality of life: things take longer than we want.

#1: Kit Kat Framework

When a project feels too big or overwhelming, break it down.

Step 1: Identify a big project
Step 2: Break it into 4 parts
Step 3: Take one part - try to tackle it.
Step 4: feel overwhelmed? Repeat steps 2-3.

Example: Perhaps you want to start a newsletter but feel overwhelmed.

Break it into 4 parts.

landing page
content strategy
template
welcome email

Now let’s say you take the landing page and feel overwhelmed by that. Break it into 4 parts.

copy
design
connections
images

Now let’s say you are overwhelmed with the copy….break it down again.

Hero copy
value props
UGC
FAQs

Eventually you get the project small enough where it feels manageable and you can build momentum.

Momentum > Completion……and eventually momentum will lead to completion.

#2: The Two-Do List

This is likely my most widely known and accepted tool: the TWO-DO list.

Pick two things from your kit-kat list above
Dedicate 2 hours of focused work time a day
Knock out those 2 items

Making progress on two important projects a day leads to 10 a week. (that’s more than most people get done in a month thanks to distractions, email and slack)

#3: The Shit Shift

Shit happens.

Projects get delayed.

An investor ghosts.

A snow storm hits on launch day forcing a delay in all shipments (my last company).

Each of these moments are a chance to reframe the situation.

I use these moments as a reminder of the fun of the game. I'm on the roller coaster of life. There are ups and downs.

This is all just part of the story you are writing.

I use the mantra “Another chapter for the book” to remind myself I’ve been through shit before, I’ve learned, I’ve gotten through it and I will (inevitably) go through shit again.

#4 Celebration Rituals

Recognize and celebrate small wins to maintain motivation.

If I waited until my book comes out to celebrate, I likely would have given up at 20,000 words.

Instead, I created a celebration ritual.

When I turned in a chapter, I went on a coffee date with my partner after he read it. We would talk about the chapter.
When I turned in the manuscript, we took the family on a trip!
When we submitted the names for testing, we celebrated!
When the book comes out, I'm having a party!

These celebration rituals reinforce that you are moving forward, even if the overall goal feels far off.

Acknowledging progress helps prevent burnout and keeps your focus on the journey rather than just the end result.

I show you exactly how to do this in Life’s a Game: The Masterclass. Click here to check that out.

To recap

Things will taken longer than expected (even if you expect it). Learn to embrace it with: