Hey, Alberto here!

Welcome to my first newsletter.

I want to share my story of breaking free from living an uncertain life and embracing it.

If you've ever felt stuck or lacked purpose, this message is for you.

Breaking Away

When I entered college to study accounting, I was introverted and didn't step out of my comfort zone. It was here I realized I was merely going through the motions, lacking goals and a sense of impact.

But everything changed when I discovered productivity videos on YouTube. Thomas Frank, Tiago Forte, Ali Abdaal, you name them. They sparked a desire to make the most of my time and work. I eagerly soaked up their advice on scheduling, apps, and goal setting.

The deeper I dove into the world of productivity, the clearer my worldview became. It was like leading a double life—being a good student in public and an adventurer with a plan in private.

Yet, I still wondered what exactly was the plan.

Throughout my three years in college, I saw no real change. Even when I got a job at the university, I was once again going through the motions.

Graduation during the pandemic became a turning point. During a time of uncertainty for everyone, it felt right to go beyond the expected path of becoming an accountant. Inspired by the creators I admired, I knew I too can become a digital creator myself.

I can start a YouTube channel.

I was going to start.

Then the doubt came.

And soon the excuses followed.

2 years later, I was working as a delivery driver and engaging in church leadership. But I was back to lacking a drive and goals.

I went back to waiting for the right time to start. Rejections in the job market further added to the feeling of going nowhere.

Complacency soon became desperation. I gave up once and that was one too many.

I soon stumbled upon a video by Ali Abdaal called, "How To Build A Life You Love" (more about it afterwards). It introduced me to the concept of the Odyssey plan, approaching life as an experiment and embracing small quests.

I took a moment to visualize my life five years from then as a creator, giving me assurance that even if I failed, I'd still learn valuable lessons.

Despite the uncertainty in starting at YouTube, I found inspiration from Dan Koe, who built a brand through writing. I got behind writing after seeing it as a way to communicate intangible ideas effectively. After diving into his content, subscribing to newsletters, and taking a writing course, I decided to explore a different platform - Twitter.

It's been four months since I joined Twitter, and I'm loving the journey. I've learned so much from showing up daily, engaging with a community, and connecting with other beginners like me.

And now I'm writing my first newsletter & starting a graphic design service, to build a future where I can create & help others.

Each day brings new challenges, requiring adaptation and growth. Implementing what I've learned over the past five years has offered a fresh perspective, and I'm finding confidence and joy in living my dream.

And it all started when I veered away from the path set by others and took my first steps outside of it.

Thank you for reading and showing your support. I hope you'll join me as I continue to share my journey through the digital space.

No matter where you're at, it's never too late to seek a different path and see where it goes. It's better to live a life without any regrets. Which I'll share more of what helped me to do that below in the Weekly Findings.

Weekly Findings

Welcome to the Weekly Findings!

Here is a curation of videos, books, or other forms of information that have helped me & will help you. To start things off, here are 2 works that led me to start this path & 1 this week showing importance of values.

How To Build A Life You Love - Ali Abdaal

As promised, here is the video that changed my outlook in living a life that I love.

Ali Abdaal is a former medical student become creator entrepreneur. Using productivity tools & insights, his videos aid anyone wanting to expand their life.

This video shares 3 steps to begin creating a life that you enjoy.

1. Identify

2. Experiment

3. Iterate

The entire process presents life as a science experiment. You start off with identifying any problems you would like to solve for - career change, begin dating, etc. Once you come up with the solutions, act on them and see the results. You'll either attempt another one or continue if it worked the first time.

To start, Abdaal gives out the idea of doing the Odyssey Plan, a series of questions to help you see 3 possible paths of your life in the next 5 years. Here they are:

• 5 years from now, what does my life look like?

• 5 years from now, what does my life look like if I were to take a different path?

• 5 years from now, what does my life look like if I didn't have to worry about money or societal expectations?

Afterwards, you'd choose the one you prefer the most & begin doing the action steps. These questions helped me out to see what it was like to be a creator and my other areas in life.

This is a reminder to not overcomplicate life as countless decisions and infinite paths. Your own life has its own paths and decisions. You still have time to explore them. You can see where they go and change path if you like.

The key is to actually build towards a life you enjoy & learning along the way.

Steal Like An Artist - Austin Kleon

Being honest, I was contemplating whether to start off with this one or another book written by Kleon, “Show Your Work.” I decided on this one, out of the 3 book series, since it's the first & sets the foundation of being creative.

This book shows that seeking originality & living the artist life is not practical nor realistic. Kleon instead presents inspiration & practicing other works is the path to creativity. 

An illustration that helps is to see how a creator was inspired by another creator. Then to see how the 2nd creator was inspired by another creator. And so on it goes. You are then presented with a tree of inspiration, seeing multiple works throughout generations of creators making their way to the present.

Gone are the days of originality, now is the age of stealing other works. But that's not the actual end.

The book doesn't condone plagiarism. The book encourages for any creator to witness other works & use them to further their own creative works.

A music artists learns a certain style that they enjoy. They enjoy works that are different from that style. By recreating both and making the connections, they may create a style that is their own. This holds true for artistry, cooking, writing, video, and etc.

What sets you apart from other creators is yourself. After recreating works you enjoy, mix them with your own interests, experiences, and values. It may not be original, but it'll be your own work.

How do I know this? Because that's how I'm feeling writing this newsletter.

I've only moved on to what the second book says, which I'll share next time.

5 Pillars of Wealth - fmarciano

Building wealth is difficult & taxing, that's why you have to find joy while doing it.

I've met countless of creators & seen the amazing value they put out. Fabiano, who specializes in building wealth, has put together an amazing thread.

He shares to enjoy building wealth you first must invest in your foundation; the foundation being the 5 Pillars of Wealth.

1. Faith

2. Family

3. Fun

4. Finance

5. Fitness

In each pillar, he elaborates what they are and what actions will help you build each pillar - giving appreciation, prioritize hobbies, & drinking water.

It combines what a majority already important (family and faith) with what is important to living long (finance and fitness) and enjoying it (fun).

The thread presents a good life as the foundation & reason to building wealth. It's to remember what you're storing up your temporary treasures for and to not sacrifice your eternal treasures to become wealthy.

And Fabio gives in the end how you to can start incorporating this into your journey.

• Write down one habit in each areas

• Commit to doing it throughout 6 months

The key is to get started throughout the first days, record the results and any improvements, & be motivated by them to continue.

Then you'll see, in your own eyes, what you were building for.

Thanks for reading the Weekly Findings. I believe these will change your perspective and help you on your path as it did for me. There's plenty more to come so stick around to find out.

May you have a blessed day!