The Done Manifesto

Done is better than perfect.

1. There are three states of being. Not knowing, action and completion.
2. Accept that everything is a draft. It helps to get it done.
3. There is no editing stage.
4. Pretending you know what you're doing is almost the same as knowing what you are doing, so just accept that you know what you're doing even if you don't and do it.
5. Banish procrastination. If you wait more than a week to get an idea done, abandon it.
6. The point of being done is not to finish but to get other things done.
7. Once you're done you can throw it away.
8. Laugh at perfection. It's boring and keeps you from being done.
9. People without dirty hands are wrong. Doing something makes you right.
10. Failure counts as done. So do mistakes.
11. Destruction is a variant of done.
12. If you have an idea and publish it on the internet, that counts as a ghost of done.
13. Done is the engine of more.

    Get it Done

    Task Triage

• Do it
• Delegate it
• Defer it
• Delete it
• Done! Being efficient is a given, but effectively working on the right things is what makes the difference. You commit to every hour for the next 100 hours.

  How To Master Your Goals With The Ulysses Pact

  Use the "Ulysses Pact" or commitment device to help achieve difficult goals that you tend to procrastinate on. Based on the Greek myth of Ulysses tying himself to the ship's mast to resist the sirens' songs. The commitment device works by putting something you value at stake (money, time, etc.) or creating an obligation that makes it harder to procrastinate on the goal. Set up a commitment board to track your goals and pacts, prioritize which goals to focus on first, decide on commitment devices, and lay out the action steps.

1. A commitment device binds you to a future course of action by locking in actions in the present when you're thinking rationally about the goal.
2. Commitment devices work by introducing incentives/stakes, making it more effortful to say no, and involving accountability.
3. Try different commitment devices (e.g. paying in advance, publicly committing) to find what motivates you best.
4. Create a commitment board to visualize and track your goals and pacts.
5. Break big goals down into step-by-step action checklists and set deadlines.
6. Prioritize a few critical goals to commit to rather than overwhelming yourself.
7. Consider involving an accountability partner if that motivates you.

   Further Reading

• How To Master Your Goals With The Ulysses Pact

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