Implementing the 33% rule

The new way to work. Ben and Nicola hanging out by the pool with their laptops at JungleFish in Ubud, Bali.

In yesterday’s blog post, I introduced the 33% rule about where you should spend your time. This concept is definitely easier said than done though, so I figured I should give you a few tips of where to start implementing this idea into your life.

You are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with

Let’s start with that middle 33%, our peers. Have you heard of this phrase before? It’s definitely true and you want to grow your skills and your business with your peers. So position yourself to hang out with people who are on a similar journey to you.

Let’s take me for instance, I wanted more location independence. I definitely wasn’t going to find that sitting at my desk in NYC, so I joined the Nomad Cruise to meet other location independent people. Slowly and over time, I learned from these people about how they built their location independent life and started doing what they were doing. And now, for the most part, I have built that life for myself.

I also wanted to be a photographer and videographer, so I started hanging out with other photographers and videographers. If I wanted to be a photographer, it wouldn’t make a ton of sense for me to go spend all my time with say someone that works in finance.

So find people that are on a similar journey to you, be-friend them, and spend more time with them. You will grow faster together.

Start teaching

This one is actually way easier than it sounds. You can start teaching anyone anywhere. Let’s say you are going out for happy hour with friends, make one of your skills a topic of conversation for the evening.

My friends and I often go out and talk about software development, photography or making videos. Just over the course of the evening, I learn a ton from them.

One of the biggest improvements to my videos was learning how to use LUTs during editing. I actually had not even heard about how to do this until I was discussing it with my friend Christian Young over drinks in Bali, but that made such an impact on my videos that it changed the game. So he taught me something that I wouldn’t have thought of myself, all over a couple beers and a sunset.

This video would not look nearly as cinematic if it were not for a conversation over happy hour in Bali.

As you start to teach your friends skills, this desire to teach is going to grow, and you are going to be more and more excited about sharing your knowledge. I’m only at the beginning phases of this myself. But over the next year, I plan to teach others my skills by leading retreats, going to schools to teach workshops, and also holding events at Bushwick Photo Studio in Brooklyn, NY.

Reach out to that top 33% and offer to do free work for them

People totally under estimate the value of free work and question what they are getting out of it themselves. But free work is probably one of the biggest hacks I have ever implemented into my life.

The thing about free work is that it gives value to the person or company you are doing the free work for, and it builds your portfolio at the same. In return for that free work, you are getting access to people, things, and places you would have never been able get to before; and you are learning new things.

This is a whole topic by itself and I will get back to it soon, but Charlie Hoehn describes it perfectly in this Ted Talk below.

So get out there and start making changes! 2018 is going to be an amazing year.