Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I caught myself hesitating before sending a message this week.
It wasn’t a hard decision.
Just unfamiliar.
It required me to be a little more direct than usual.
A little more decisive.
I rewrote the message twice.
Softened the language.
Added extra context I didn’t need.
Then I paused.
Because the hesitation wasn’t about the message.
It was about the version of me sending it.
We don’t just avoid hard things.
We avoid unfamiliar identities.
Acting like a leader. Speaking with clarity. Taking ownership.
Even when we know what to do, it can feel slightly out of character.
So we delay.
Or we shrink it back to something more comfortable.
That’s when I started thinking about this idea.
I call it Identity Preview.
Instead of waiting to “become” that version of yourself, you try it on in small moments.
You preview it.
Before it feels natural.
Write this down:
You don’t become first, then act. You act, then become.
This Week’s Action
Pick one identity you are growing into.
Not a title.
A way of showing up.
Examples:
a clear communicator
a focused operator
a calm leader
someone who follows through
Then ask:
What would this version of me do today?
Look for one small moment to act accordingly.
Send the direct message. Make the decision faster. Speak up in the meeting. Finish the task fully.
Keep it small.
This is a preview, not a transformation.
Why This Works
Most people think identity change is a result.
It’s not.
It’s a repetition.
You build identity the same way you build habits.
Through small, consistent actions.
Identity Preview lowers the barrier.
You are not trying to permanently change who you are.
You are just stepping into it briefly.
That makes it easier to start.
And once you act differently a few times, it stops feeling unfamiliar.
Try This
Use Identity Preview once per day this week.
In a moment that matters, pause and ask:
What would the next version of me do here?
Then do that.
Even if it feels slightly unnatural.
Especially if it does.
You’re not faking it.
You’re practicing it.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What identity am I growing into right now? Where did I hesitate this week? What would that version of me have done instead?
Write it down.
Then try it once tomorrow.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
You don’t have to wait to become someone new.
You can start showing up that way today.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
Keynote speaking for conferences and leadership events
Leadership development workshops for teams and managers
Team strategy sessions focused on alignment and execution
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Last Sunday, I kept thinking about something I hadn’t finished.
Not one big task.
Just a handful of small, open loops.
An email I hadn’t replied to. A decision I kept delaying. A few tasks sitting in the background.
Nothing urgent.
But none of it felt closed.
By the time Monday morning arrived, I already felt behind.
Not because I had too much to do.
Because I never actually finished the week before.
Most weeks don’t end.
They leak into the next one.
So I started trying something simple.
One hour.
Blocked before the week begins.
No catching up.
No distractions.
Just resetting.
I call it The Reset Hour.
A weekly reset routine to close loops, clear mental clutter, and start fresh.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
II was standing in my kitchen this week, staring into the refrigerator like it had suddenly become a complex life puzzle.
By 8:15 a.m., I had already spent energy choosing breakfast, deciding what to wear, checking which task to start first, and wondering whether I should answer emails now or later.
Most of us do this all day.
Not with dramatic life decisions.
With tiny, forgettable ones.
And those small choices add up.
I think of this as The Decision Diet.
A simple rule for reducing the number of unnecessary choices you make each day so your best energy is still available for what actually matters.
A good diet removes what drains you.
So does this one.
The goal is not to make life rigid.
It is to stop wasting attention on decisions that do not deserve it.
Write this down:
Save your decisions for what deserves your mind.
This Week’s Action
Pick three decisions you make repeatedly and simplify them.
Look for choices like:
what to eat for breakfast or lunch
what time to exercise
what task to start first
when to check email
what to wear on workdays
Then reduce the options.
You might create a default lunch.
Choose tomorrow’s clothes the night before.
Use a fixed start-up routine for the first 30 minutes of work.
Set two email windows instead of checking all day.
This is similar to the logic behind the 3-Win Day.
You decide a few important things once, on purpose, so you are not renegotiating them all day long.
Why This Works
Decision fatigue is sneaky.
You rarely feel it happening in real time.
You just feel oddly scattered by midafternoon.
Every small choice pulls a little from the same pool of attention you need for focus, patience, and judgment.
When you reduce low-value decisions, you create more room for higher-value ones.
You also lower friction.
And lower friction makes good habits easier to repeat.
Try This
Run a one-week Decision Diet.
For the next seven days, choose defaults for:
one meal
one part of your morning
one part of your workday
Keep it simple.
Do not optimize.
Repeat what works.
The test is not whether your system is perfect.
The test is whether it makes the day feel lighter.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
Which small decisions keep interrupting my day? What could become a default instead? Where am I spending energy without getting much back?
Write it down.
Then simplify one thing before tomorrow starts.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
A better week is often built from fewer choices, not better intentions.
Less friction.
More clarity.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
Keynote speaking for conferences and leadership events
Leadership development workshops for teams and managers
Team strategy sessions focused on alignment and execution
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I was talking with someone recently who had done the hard part.
They knew their three wins for the week.
They had good intentions. A clear plan. A calendar that looked reasonable on Sunday night.
But by Thursday, two of those wins were drifting.
Not because they were lazy.
Not because the goals were wrong.
Because little things kept getting in the way.
A meeting got dropped into the middle of a work block.
A task needed one more approval.
A document was buried in the wrong folder.
A simple email turned into a 40-minute detour.
This is the part people often miss.
Most weeks do not fall apart because of a lack of ambition.
They fall apart because of friction.
That is why this issue naturally follows the 3-Win series.
If the 3-Win Week helps you decide what matters, the Friction Sweep helps you protect it.
A Friction Sweep is a short check-in where you ask:
What is making this harder than it needs to be?
Not in theory.
In real life.
Noticing friction changes the game because it shifts your attention from effort to design.
Sometimes the problem is not discipline.
It is that the path has too many unnecessary steps.
Write this down:
The work is rarely the problem. The drag around the work usually is.
This Week’s Action
Take one of your current wins and do a quick Friction Sweep.
Ask:
What keeps delaying the start?
What keeps interrupting progress?
What tiny annoyance turns this into a bigger task?
What could I remove, automate, decide, or simplify?
Look for small points of resistance.
A missing template.
An unclear next step.
Too many tabs open.
A task that depends on someone else but has not been followed up.
The goal is not to rebuild your whole system.
Just reduce the drag.
Why This Works
Friction drains energy before the real work even begins.
When something feels harder to start, harder to continue, or harder to finish, your brain begins to avoid it.
Not because the task is impossible.
Because it feels expensive.
A Friction Sweep lowers the activation energy.
It makes progress feel lighter.
And when progress feels lighter, consistency becomes more likely.
Try This
At the end of your workday, pick one task that felt more difficult than it should have.
Then finish this sentence:
This would be easier if ________.
Keep your answer practical.
This would be easier if the file was pinned.
This would be easier if I blocked 30 minutes before meetings started.
This would be easier if I sent the request today instead of waiting.
Then make one small change.
That is the sweep.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What moved forward this week? What created unnecessary drag? What would make next week easier?
Write it down.
Then clear the path.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
You do not need more pressure.
You need less resistance.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
Keynote speaking for conferences and leadership events
Leadership development workshops for teams and managers
Team strategy sessions focused on alignment and execution
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Most weeks don’t end.
They just stop.
Friday arrives. Energy fades. Work pauses.
But the week never actually closes.
Instead, unfinished thoughts carry forward.
Monday arrives with the residue of tasks half-finished, progress half-acknowledged, and the quiet feeling that the week didn’t quite count.
For a long time, I focused on starting the week well.
Then I realized something mattered just as much:
Closing the week.
If your weeks sometimes blur together, this small ritual can change that.
I call it the 3-Win Review.
If you’ve read the newsletter before, you may recognize the pattern.
We started with the 3-Win Day. A simple way to identify the three things that matter most today.
Then came the 3-Win Week. A way to focus your effort on the few outcomes that actually move the week forward.
The 3-Win Review closes the loop.
Instead of trying to evaluate everything that happened during the week, you simply identify the three things that moved forward.
Not everything.
Just the wins that mattered.
Write this down:
Progress you don’t acknowledge feels like progress you never made.
This Week’s Action
At the end of the week, ask yourself three questions:
Which weekly win did I complete?
Which win moved forward, even if it didn’t finish?
What interfered with my focus?
Write the answers down.
You’re not analyzing the week.
You’re closing it intentionally.
Why This Works
Our brains track effort through recognition.
When effort goes unnamed, your brain assumes it was wasted.
That’s why many people finish the week feeling unproductive even when they moved important work forward.
The 3-Win Review fixes that.
It acknowledges progress, clarifies what moved, and helps you release the rest.
Instead of carrying unfinished mental loops into Monday, you start the next week clean.
Try This
Before you shut down work on Friday, open a blank note and write three lines:
Win #1 Win #2 Win #3
They don’t need to be dramatic.
Progress counts.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What were my three wins this week? What moved forward? What interrupted focus?
Write them down.
Then close the week.
If someone came to mind while reading this, feel free to send it their way.
You don’t need perfect weeks.
You need clean endings.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
Keynote speaking for conferences and leadership events
Leadership development workshops for teams and managers
Team strategy sessions focused on alignment and execution
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
The 3-Win Day works because it defines enough. Three meaningful wins and the day counts. That alone changes how productivity feels.
But I noticed something after using it for a while.
I could win the day and still feel scattered by Friday.
Productive, yes. Directional, not always.
That’s when I realized something simple.
Enough for today is not the same as enough for the week.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
For a long time, I measured productivity by volume. How many emails I cleared. How many tasks I checked off. How exhausted I felt by the end of the day. If I was tired, I must have done enough. That was the math.
The problem is volume is endless. There is always more to do. And when the scoreboard never resets, you never actually feel like you’re winning.
So I changed the measurement.
Most productivity systems fail for one simple reason: they don’t define “enough.”
When everything counts, nothing feels complete.
The 3-Win Day fixes that.
Instead of measuring your day by everything you touched, you measure it by three intentional wins.
Not ten. Not a perfect streak. Three.
This Week’s Action
Each morning, choose:
1 Work Win One meaningful professional task that moves something forward.
1 Personal Win Something that improves your life outside work. Health. Home. Learning. Admin.
1 Connection Win One action that strengthens a relationship. A text. A call. A conversation. A thank you.
That’s it.
If you hit those three, the day counts.
Everything else is a bonus.
Why This Works
Three wins force prioritization. You stop reacting to urgency and start choosing impact.
It also protects balance automatically. Work does not swallow the whole day because connection and personal life are built into the structure.
And psychologically, defined completion reduces anxiety. When you know what “done” looks like, your brain can relax.
Productivity without completion is just stress.
Mini Challenge
Tomorrow, write your 3 Wins on a sticky note or in your phone before 9am.
At the end of the day, don’t ask, “What did I miss?”
Ask, “Did I secure my three?”
Notice how that shifts your energy.
Bonus
If you want to level it up, review your week every Friday and count how many days you secured your three. Not for judgment. For awareness. Patterns reveal priorities.
You don’t need to win the entire day.
You need to win three meaningful moments inside it.
https://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Newsletter-Image-Number-Template-17.svg12001200Chris Mullenhttp://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Chris-Mullen-Logo.svgChris Mullen2026-02-22 08:48:022026-02-22 13:44:48🎯 The 3-Win Day
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I have a very specific talent. I can turn one simple idea into a fourteen step master plan in under ten minutes.
Color coded. Optimized. Slightly unrealistic.
It feels productive. It feels responsible. It also keeps me from starting.
After writing about momentum without pressure last week, I noticed something in myself. I was thinking about forward movement. Reflecting on it. Conceptualizing it. Very thoughtful. Very wise. Not actually moving.
So this week, I’m following a different rule.
When we feel the urge to move forward, our brain often reaches for control. It wants the map before the step. The system before the action. The clarity before the discomfort.
But clarity rarely arrives before motion. It shows up after the first step.
The First Step Rule is simple: When you feel stuck, don’t design the path. Take one obvious, physical action in the direction you care about.
Not the whole thing.
Not the perfect version.
Just the first visible move.
This Week’s Action
Choose one thing you’ve been circling.
Then ask: “What is the smallest physical action that begins this?”
Examples:
Open the document
Send the one email
Put on the shoes
Schedule the appointment
Write the first paragraph badly
Do only that step. Then stop if you want to.
The goal is not completion.
It’s initiation.
Why This Works:
Action reduces anxiety faster than planning. When you move your body toward something specific, your brain shifts from rumination to engagement. The fear shrinks because the unknown shrinks.
You don’t need confidence to start. You need movement. Confidence follows evidence.
One completed first step sends a powerful message: “I can begin.”
That message builds identity far more than any other strategy ever will.
Mini Challenge:
Today, take one first step within ten minutes of finishing this email.
No overthinking. No optimization. Just motion.
Notice how different it feels to act before you’re fully ready.
Bonus:
If you catch yourself planning instead of starting, smile at it.
Planning feels safe because it postpones vulnerability.
https://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Newsletter-Image-Number-Template-16.svg12001200Chris Mullenhttp://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Chris-Mullen-Logo.svgChris Mullen2026-02-15 07:31:232026-02-15 07:31:24🎯 The First Step Rule
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
If you’re feeling something a little strange right now, not fired up, not checked out, just gently ready, I want you to know you’re not behind.
You’re right on time for a different kind of momentum.
Lately, I’ve been noticing that feeling in myself too. After a year that began with losing my mom, I’m not looking to push myself too hard, because that doesn’t feel right, but standing completely still doesn’t feel right either. What I’m looking for is movement that feels safe. Honest Sustainable.
If you’re feeling something similar, not fired up, not checked out, just gently ready, this issue is for you.
Now, we tend to associate momentum with intensity. Big plans. Early mornings. A sudden personality shift. But real momentum, especially after grief or prolonged stress, works differently. It doesn’t come from hype. It comes from evidence. Small proof that you can move forward without everything unraveling.
Momentum isn’t about speed. It’s about direction you trust.
This Week’s Action
Choose one small forward action you can repeat for the next seven days.
Not forever. Just one week.
Your action should be:
Low effort
Slightly forward-facing
Impossible to fail dramatically
Examples:
Ten minutes a day on something meaningful
One daily reconnection or check-in
One avoided decision handled gently
One creative or thoughtful act with no outcome required
Stop while it still feels manageable. That’s how momentum stays kind.
Why This Works
After hard seasons, your nervous system is cautious for a reason. Repeated, low-stakes action shows your brain that movement does not equal danger. That consistency builds confidence faster than any big plan. Momentum becomes a side effect of showing up without overwhelm.
This is how action starts to feel safe again.
Mini Challenge:
At the end of the week, don’t ask: “Did I do enough?”
Ask instead: “Do I trust myself a little more than I did last week?”
That’s the real measure.
Bonus:
If a day goes sideways, you haven’t lost momentum.
Momentum is not about streaks.
It’s about return.
The moment you come back without self-judgment, you’re still moving forward.
You don’t need a breakthrough to begin again. You need one small action that proves you can move without pressure.
Let momentum grow at the pace your life can actually hold.
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Hey friends, by now, you’ve already done more than it might feel like.
You survived a hard season.
You gave yourself permission to move gently.
You chose an anchor instead of a full reset.
That’s real work. Quiet work.
The kind that doesn’t show up on productivity trackers but still changes things.
Before we add anything new, I want to offer something rare in January: space.
We’re taught that progress means stacking actions.
More habits. More plans. More intention.
But growth doesn’t always need more input.
Sometimes it needs time to settle. Like snow in a shaken globe, things don’t clarify until you stop shaking them.
If life feels quieter right now, that’s not a problem. That’s integration.
This Week’s Action
Do not add a new habit this week. Do not upgrade your routine. Do not optimize your anchor.
Instead, ask one question at the end of the day this week: “What felt even slightly easier today than it did two weeks ago?”
Your brain needs time to recognize safety and consistency. When you pause long enough to notice small improvements, you reinforce trust instead of urgency. This reduces the impulse to self-correct prematurely. Integration turns effort into stability.
This is how change becomes sustainable.
Mini Challenge:
Choose one thing you will not improve this week. Let it be imperfect on purpose.
Notice what that frees up.
REMEMBER: If you feel behind because you’re not “doing more,” remember this: rest and reflection are not detours. They are part of the path. You are not falling behind. You are letting your system catch up.
You don’t need to prove anything right now. What you’ve already done deserves space to land.
Let it breathe. Momentum doesn’t disappear in stillness.
It gathers quietly.
* Next week, we’ll gently talk about what momentum can look like without pressure.
https://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Newsletter-Image-Number-Template-14.svg12001200Chris Mullenhttp://chrismullen.org/wp-content/uploads/Chris-Mullen-Logo.svgChris Mullen2026-01-18 07:26:002026-01-21 06:27:31🎯 Let It Breathe
🎯 Identity Preview
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.9 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I caught myself hesitating before sending a message this week.
It wasn’t a hard decision.
Just unfamiliar.
It required me to be a little more direct than usual.
A little more decisive.
I rewrote the message twice.
Softened the language.
Added extra context I didn’t need.
Then I paused.
Because the hesitation wasn’t about the message.
It was about the version of me sending it.
We don’t just avoid hard things.
We avoid unfamiliar identities.
Acting like a leader.
Speaking with clarity.
Taking ownership.
Even when we know what to do, it can feel slightly out of character.
So we delay.
Or we shrink it back to something more comfortable.
That’s when I started thinking about this idea.
I call it Identity Preview.
Instead of waiting to “become” that version of yourself, you try it on in small moments.
You preview it.
Before it feels natural.
Write this down:
You don’t become first, then act. You act, then become.
This Week’s Action
Pick one identity you are growing into.
Not a title.
A way of showing up.
Examples:
Then ask:
What would this version of me do today?
Look for one small moment to act accordingly.
Send the direct message.
Make the decision faster.
Speak up in the meeting.
Finish the task fully.
Keep it small.
This is a preview, not a transformation.
Why This Works
Most people think identity change is a result.
It’s not.
It’s a repetition.
You build identity the same way you build habits.
Through small, consistent actions.
Identity Preview lowers the barrier.
You are not trying to permanently change who you are.
You are just stepping into it briefly.
That makes it easier to start.
And once you act differently a few times, it stops feeling unfamiliar.
Try This
Use Identity Preview once per day this week.
In a moment that matters, pause and ask:
What would the next version of me do here?
Then do that.
Even if it feels slightly unnatural.
Especially if it does.
You’re not faking it.
You’re practicing it.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What identity am I growing into right now?
Where did I hesitate this week?
What would that version of me have done instead?
Write it down.
Then try it once tomorrow.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
You don’t have to wait to become someone new.
You can start showing up that way today.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
🎯 The Reset Hour
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.8 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Last Sunday, I kept thinking about something I hadn’t finished.
Not one big task.
Just a handful of small, open loops.
An email I hadn’t replied to.
A decision I kept delaying.
A few tasks sitting in the background.
Nothing urgent.
But none of it felt closed.
By the time Monday morning arrived, I already felt behind.
Not because I had too much to do.
Because I never actually finished the week before.
Most weeks don’t end.
They leak into the next one.
So I started trying something simple.
One hour.
Blocked before the week begins.
No catching up.
No distractions.
Just resetting.
I call it The Reset Hour.
A weekly reset routine to close loops, clear mental clutter, and start fresh.
Write this down:
You don’t need more time. You need a clean reset.
This Week’s Action
Block one hour before your next week begins.
During that hour, do three things:
1. Close loops
2. Clear space
3. Set direction
Keep it simple.
This is not about doing more.
It is about finishing what’s open and starting clean.
Why This Works
Open loops create mental noise.
Even when you are not actively thinking about them, they pull at your attention.
A weekly reset routine gives your brain closure.
It separates one week from the next.
That shift matters.
You stop reacting to your week.
You start it with intention.
Try This
Schedule your Reset Hour at the same time each week.
Make it repeatable.
You can even stack it with something you already do.
Sunday afternoon.
Sunday evening.
Or the last hour of your workweek.
Add a small signal that the reset has started.
A clean desk.
A notebook.
A specific playlist.
Keep the structure the same each time.
Let it become automatic.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What is still open from this past week?
What would feel good to close today?
What would make next week feel clear and focused?
Write it down.
Then reset before the week begins.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
You don’t need perfect weeks.
You need clean endings.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
🎯 The Decision Diet
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.9 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
II was standing in my kitchen this week, staring into the refrigerator like it had suddenly become a complex life puzzle.
Not because there was nothing to eat.
Because there were too many options.
Eggs. Yogurt. Leftovers. Toast. Smoothie. Oatmeal.
None of these were hard decisions.
That was the point.
By 8:15 a.m., I had already spent energy choosing breakfast, deciding what to wear, checking which task to start first, and wondering whether I should answer emails now or later.
Most of us do this all day.
Not with dramatic life decisions.
With tiny, forgettable ones.
And those small choices add up.
I think of this as The Decision Diet.
A simple rule for reducing the number of unnecessary choices you make each day so your best energy is still available for what actually matters.
A good diet removes what drains you.
So does this one.
The goal is not to make life rigid.
It is to stop wasting attention on decisions that do not deserve it.
Write this down:
Save your decisions for what deserves your mind.
This Week’s Action
Pick three decisions you make repeatedly and simplify them.
Look for choices like:
Then reduce the options.
You might create a default lunch.
Choose tomorrow’s clothes the night before.
Use a fixed start-up routine for the first 30 minutes of work.
Set two email windows instead of checking all day.
This is similar to the logic behind the 3-Win Day.
You decide a few important things once, on purpose, so you are not renegotiating them all day long.
Why This Works
Decision fatigue is sneaky.
You rarely feel it happening in real time.
You just feel oddly scattered by midafternoon.
Every small choice pulls a little from the same pool of attention you need for focus, patience, and judgment.
When you reduce low-value decisions, you create more room for higher-value ones.
You also lower friction.
And lower friction makes good habits easier to repeat.
Try This
Run a one-week Decision Diet.
For the next seven days, choose defaults for:
Keep it simple.
Do not optimize.
Repeat what works.
The test is not whether your system is perfect.
The test is whether it makes the day feel lighter.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
Which small decisions keep interrupting my day?
What could become a default instead?
Where am I spending energy without getting much back?
Write it down.
Then simplify one thing before tomorrow starts.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
A better week is often built from fewer choices, not better intentions.
Less friction.
More clarity.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
🎯 The Friction Sweep
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.5 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I was talking with someone recently who had done the hard part.
They knew their three wins for the week.
They had good intentions.
A clear plan.
A calendar that looked reasonable on Sunday night.
But by Thursday, two of those wins were drifting.
Not because they were lazy.
Not because the goals were wrong.
Because little things kept getting in the way.
A meeting got dropped into the middle of a work block.
A task needed one more approval.
A document was buried in the wrong folder.
A simple email turned into a 40-minute detour.
This is the part people often miss.
Most weeks do not fall apart because of a lack of ambition.
They fall apart because of friction.
That is why this issue naturally follows the 3-Win series.
If the 3-Win Week helps you decide what matters, the Friction Sweep helps you protect it.
A Friction Sweep is a short check-in where you ask:
What is making this harder than it needs to be?
Not in theory.
In real life.
Noticing friction changes the game because it shifts your attention from effort to design.
Sometimes the problem is not discipline.
It is that the path has too many unnecessary steps.
Write this down:
The work is rarely the problem. The drag around the work usually is.
This Week’s Action
Take one of your current wins and do a quick Friction Sweep.
Ask:
Look for small points of resistance.
A missing template.
An unclear next step.
Too many tabs open.
A task that depends on someone else but has not been followed up.
The goal is not to rebuild your whole system.
Just reduce the drag.
Why This Works
Friction drains energy before the real work even begins.
When something feels harder to start, harder to continue, or harder to finish, your brain begins to avoid it.
Not because the task is impossible.
Because it feels expensive.
A Friction Sweep lowers the activation energy.
It makes progress feel lighter.
And when progress feels lighter, consistency becomes more likely.
Try This
At the end of your workday, pick one task that felt more difficult than it should have.
Then finish this sentence:
This would be easier if ________.
Keep your answer practical.
This would be easier if the file was pinned.
This would be easier if I blocked 30 minutes before meetings started.
This would be easier if I sent the request today instead of waiting.
Then make one small change.
That is the sweep.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What moved forward this week?
What created unnecessary drag?
What would make next week easier?
Write it down.
Then clear the path.
If this idea feels useful, feel free to pass it along to someone who might need it this week.
You do not need more pressure.
You need less resistance.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
🎯 The 3-Win Review
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.7 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Most weeks don’t end.
They just stop.
Friday arrives. Energy fades. Work pauses.
But the week never actually closes.
Instead, unfinished thoughts carry forward.
Monday arrives with the residue of tasks half-finished, progress half-acknowledged, and the quiet feeling that the week didn’t quite count.
For a long time, I focused on starting the week well.
Then I realized something mattered just as much:
Closing the week.
If your weeks sometimes blur together, this small ritual can change that.
I call it the 3-Win Review.
If you’ve read the newsletter before, you may recognize the pattern.
We started with the 3-Win Day.
A simple way to identify the three things that matter most today.
Then came the 3-Win Week.
A way to focus your effort on the few outcomes that actually move the week forward.
The 3-Win Review closes the loop.
Instead of trying to evaluate everything that happened during the week, you simply identify the three things that moved forward.
Not everything.
Just the wins that mattered.
Write this down:
Progress you don’t acknowledge feels like progress you never made.
This Week’s Action
At the end of the week, ask yourself three questions:
Write the answers down.
You’re not analyzing the week.
You’re closing it intentionally.
Why This Works
Our brains track effort through recognition.
When effort goes unnamed, your brain assumes it was wasted.
That’s why many people finish the week feeling unproductive even when they moved important work forward.
The 3-Win Review fixes that.
It acknowledges progress, clarifies what moved, and helps you release the rest.
Instead of carrying unfinished mental loops into Monday, you start the next week clean.
Try This
Before you shut down work on Friday, open a blank note and write three lines:
Win #1
Win #2
Win #3
They don’t need to be dramatic.
Progress counts.
Weekly Reflection
Before you move on from this email, pause for a moment.
Ask yourself:
What were my three wins this week?
What moved forward?
What interrupted focus?
Write them down.
Then close the week.
If someone came to mind while reading this, feel free to send it their way.
You don’t need perfect weeks.
You need clean endings.
See you next week — a little better at life.
______
Dr. Chris Mullen
Bring Better at Life to Your Organization
If these ideas resonate, this is also the work I bring into organizations and leadership teams.
I partner with organizations that want clearer thinking, stronger decision-making, and more sustainable performance.
Engagements typically include:
For senior leaders seeking deeper application, I also maintain a small executive coaching practice.
🎯 The 3-Win Week
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.7 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
The 3-Win Day works because it defines enough. Three meaningful wins and the day counts. That alone changes how productivity feels.
But I noticed something after using it for a while.
I could win the day and still feel scattered by Friday.
Productive, yes. Directional, not always.
That’s when I realized something simple.
Enough for today is not the same as enough for the week.
Daily wins create momentum. Weekly wins create direction.
Without a weekly lens, your days can drift toward whatever feels urgent. You secure your three. You check the box. But the week itself feels random.
The 3-Win Week doesn’t replace the 3-Win Day. It steadies it.
Think of it like this:
Your weekly wins are the headline.
Your daily wins are the paragraphs.
This Week’s Action
Before the week begins, choose:
1 Weekly Work Win
One outcome that would make the week feel professionally meaningful.
1 Weekly Personal Win
One outcome that improves your life outside work.
1 Weekly Connection Win
One relationship you want to invest in intentionally.
Notice the word outcome.
Not activity. Not effort. Outcome.
Example:
Weekly Work Win:
Submit the proposal draft.
Then your daily Work Wins become the steps:
Now your daily wins feed something larger.
You’re not just winning days. You’re building a week.
Why This Works:
Weekly framing reduces randomness.
Instead of asking, “What should I do today?” you ask, “Which weekly win does today support?”
That filter simplifies decisions. It protects focus. And when Friday arrives, you feel completion at a higher level.
Momentum feels better when it’s aligned.
Mini Challenge
This Sunday, block 10 quiet minutes.
Write your three weekly wins somewhere visible.
Then assign each one to a specific day. Not rigidly. Just intentionally.
Watch how your 3-Win Day suddenly feels sharper.
Bonus
If a weekly win feels too big to finish, that’s not failure. It’s feedback.
Shrink it next week. Calibration is part of the process.
You don’t need a complicated planning system.
You need clarity at two levels. What matters this week. And what matters today.
The 3-Win Day helps you finish the day.
The 3-Win Week helps you move your life.
Quietly. Consistently. On purpose.
See you next week — a little better at life.
🎯 The 3-Win Day
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.6 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
For a long time, I measured productivity by volume. How many emails I cleared. How many tasks I checked off. How exhausted I felt by the end of the day. If I was tired, I must have done enough. That was the math.
The problem is volume is endless. There is always more to do. And when the scoreboard never resets, you never actually feel like you’re winning.
So I changed the measurement.
Most productivity systems fail for one simple reason: they don’t define “enough.”
When everything counts, nothing feels complete.
The 3-Win Day fixes that.
Instead of measuring your day by everything you touched, you measure it by three intentional wins.
Not ten.
Not a perfect streak.
Three.
This Week’s Action
Each morning, choose:
1 Work Win
One meaningful professional task that moves something forward.
1 Personal Win
Something that improves your life outside work. Health. Home. Learning. Admin.
1 Connection Win
One action that strengthens a relationship. A text. A call. A conversation. A thank you.
That’s it.
If you hit those three, the day counts.
Everything else is a bonus.
Why This Works
Three wins force prioritization. You stop reacting to urgency and start choosing impact.
It also protects balance automatically. Work does not swallow the whole day because connection and personal life are built into the structure.
And psychologically, defined completion reduces anxiety. When you know what “done” looks like, your brain can relax.
Productivity without completion is just stress.
Mini Challenge
Tomorrow, write your 3 Wins on a sticky note or in your phone before 9am.
At the end of the day, don’t ask, “What did I miss?”
Ask, “Did I secure my three?”
Notice how that shifts your energy.
Bonus
If you want to level it up, review your week every Friday and count how many days you secured your three. Not for judgment. For awareness. Patterns reveal priorities.
You don’t need to win the entire day.
You need to win three meaningful moments inside it.
The 3-Win Day is not about doing less.
It’s about finishing what matters.
And finishing builds confidence.
See you next week — a little better at life.
🎯 The First Step Rule
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.4 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
I have a very specific talent. I can turn one simple idea into a fourteen step master plan in under ten minutes.
Color coded. Optimized. Slightly unrealistic.
It feels productive. It feels responsible. It also keeps me from starting.
After writing about momentum without pressure last week, I noticed something in myself. I was thinking about forward movement. Reflecting on it. Conceptualizing it. Very thoughtful. Very wise. Not actually moving.
So this week, I’m following a different rule.
When we feel the urge to move forward, our brain often reaches for control. It wants the map before the step. The system before the action. The clarity before the discomfort.
But clarity rarely arrives before motion. It shows up after the first step.
The First Step Rule is simple:
When you feel stuck, don’t design the path. Take one obvious, physical action in the direction you care about.
Not the whole thing.
Not the perfect version.
Just the first visible move.
This Week’s Action
Choose one thing you’ve been circling.
Then ask:
“What is the smallest physical action that begins this?”
Examples:
Do only that step. Then stop if you want to.
The goal is not completion.
It’s initiation.
Why This Works:
Action reduces anxiety faster than planning. When you move your body toward something specific, your brain shifts from rumination to engagement. The fear shrinks because the unknown shrinks.
You don’t need confidence to start. You need movement. Confidence follows evidence.
One completed first step sends a powerful message:
“I can begin.”
That message builds identity far more than any other strategy ever will.
Mini Challenge:
Today, take one first step within ten minutes of finishing this email.
No overthinking. No optimization. Just motion.
Notice how different it feels to act before you’re fully ready.
Bonus:
If you catch yourself planning instead of starting, smile at it.
Planning feels safe because it postpones vulnerability.
Starting feels exposed.
That exposure is where momentum actually lives.
You don’t need the whole blueprint.
You need the courage to begin imperfectly.
The First Step Rule keeps momentum human.
One visible action. One honest start.
That’s enough to change the direction of a week.
See you next week — a little better at life.
🎯 Momentum, Without Pressure
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.5 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
If you’re feeling something a little strange right now, not fired up, not checked out, just gently ready, I want you to know you’re not behind.
You’re right on time for a different kind of momentum.
Lately, I’ve been noticing that feeling in myself too. After a year that began with losing my mom, I’m not looking to push myself too hard, because that doesn’t feel right, but standing completely still doesn’t feel right either. What I’m looking for is movement that feels safe. Honest Sustainable.
If you’re feeling something similar, not fired up, not checked out, just gently ready, this issue is for you.
Now, we tend to associate momentum with intensity. Big plans. Early mornings. A sudden personality shift. But real momentum, especially after grief or prolonged stress, works differently. It doesn’t come from hype. It comes from evidence. Small proof that you can move forward without everything unraveling.
Momentum isn’t about speed. It’s about direction you trust.
This Week’s Action
Choose one small forward action you can repeat for the next seven days.
Not forever. Just one week.
Your action should be:
Examples:
Stop while it still feels manageable. That’s how momentum stays kind.
Why This Works
After hard seasons, your nervous system is cautious for a reason. Repeated, low-stakes action shows your brain that movement does not equal danger. That consistency builds confidence faster than any big plan. Momentum becomes a side effect of showing up without overwhelm.
This is how action starts to feel safe again.
Mini Challenge:
At the end of the week, don’t ask: “Did I do enough?”
Ask instead: “Do I trust myself a little more than I did last week?”
That’s the real measure.
Bonus:
If a day goes sideways, you haven’t lost momentum.
Momentum is not about streaks.
It’s about return.
The moment you come back without self-judgment, you’re still moving forward.
You don’t need a breakthrough to begin again. You need one small action that proves you can move without pressure.
Let momentum grow at the pace your life can actually hold.
Forward is still forward, even when it’s gentle.
See you next week — a little better at life.
🎯 Let It Breathe
Better at Life NewsletterRead time: 3.1 minutes
Welcome to Better at Life, the weekly newsletter where I share one simple, actionable idea you can put into practice today to build better habits, sharpen your mindset, and live with more intention.
Hey friends, by now, you’ve already done more than it might feel like.
You survived a hard season.
You gave yourself permission to move gently.
You chose an anchor instead of a full reset.
That’s real work. Quiet work.
The kind that doesn’t show up on productivity trackers but still changes things.
Before we add anything new, I want to offer something rare in January: space.
We’re taught that progress means stacking actions.
More habits. More plans. More intention.
But growth doesn’t always need more input.
Sometimes it needs time to settle. Like snow in a shaken globe, things don’t clarify until you stop shaking them.
If life feels quieter right now, that’s not a problem. That’s integration.
This Week’s Action
Do not add a new habit this week.
Do not upgrade your routine.
Do not optimize your anchor.
Instead, ask one question at the end of the day this week:
“What felt even slightly easier today than it did two weeks ago?”
That’s it.
Ease counts. Subtle shifts count. Noticing counts.
Why This Works:
Your brain needs time to recognize safety and consistency. When you pause long enough to notice small improvements, you reinforce trust instead of urgency. This reduces the impulse to self-correct prematurely. Integration turns effort into stability.
This is how change becomes sustainable.
Mini Challenge:
Choose one thing you will not improve this week.
Let it be imperfect on purpose.
Notice what that frees up.
REMEMBER: If you feel behind because you’re not “doing more,” remember this: rest and reflection are not detours. They are part of the path. You are not falling behind. You are letting your system catch up.
You don’t need to prove anything right now. What you’ve already done deserves space to land.
Let it breathe. Momentum doesn’t disappear in stillness.
It gathers quietly.
* Next week, we’ll gently talk about what momentum can look like without pressure.
See you next week — a little better at life.