gm frens!

Welcome to Ally’s Newsletter, a weekly publication where I curate the top ideas and experiments to design a creative, focused life.

This week, my husband and I have been talking about the many Big Life Decisions ahead of us - moving, going to funerals & weddings, digital nomading, intentionally designing our careers and more.

Life can be unpredictable, but when you have a vocabulary and ways of thinking around how to be intentional with the life you have, the decisions you can control have a lot more agency in them.

Below is an actionable exercise from Stanford professors who study lifestyle design.

It was a timely exercise for me and I hope for you too ✨ 

When we struggle to make a big life decision about what's next, it's often because we feel the pressure to live out our "best life."

It's the idea that choosing the wrong thing would lead to us living out a less optimal option.

This thinking is extremely harmful and untrue.

Each of us has multiple phases of life and therefore types of lives within us, and there is no one "best" answer as to how we live them out.

There’s this thing called the multiverse theory, and it takes this a step further and suggests that there are multiple parallel universes out there.

Multiple versions of us.

"If you could live out multiple lives, what would they look like?"

This is the question that Stanford lifestyle design professors Bill Burnett and Dave Evans ask their students.

How many different lives could you envision yourself living and feeling fulfilled? For the average person, the answer is around 7 totally different lives.

Regardless of whether you're wondering what career move to make next, what habits you want to build, or how you want to structure your finances, imagine at least 3 different ways the next 5 years could pan out.

Then, ask yourself, what are you testing and exploring in each alternative version of your life?

Why do this?

Research has shown that generating more ideas leads to better solutions. And in the case of lifestyle design, it's a tool that will help you gain inspiration for things you may want to explore in this one life that you have.

Let's get into it.

Life #1: What would life look like if you continued on the path you're on now and it turned out great?

This is you envisioning a full life with the things you're doing now or that big idea you've been thinking about chasing.

Think about all aspects of your life and write/draw it out.

What projects are you working on? Where are you living? Who are you living it with? What experiences are you having?

For me, Life #1 is that I continue working full-time in tech/product management for cool companies. I would continue to be in remote leadership positions working with fantastic teams. I'd be living in beautiful Denver with a couple kids by the mountains and an amazing group of friends. I would travel to Japan every year to see my family.

Example questions to test in Life #1:

1. What kind of tech products/companies would I be happy working at?

2. What is it like to settle down in Denver and have kids there?

3. Would I prefer to be an employee over an entrepreneur?

Life #2: What would you do if you couldn't do in Life #1?

Ask yourself the same question - what would the next 5 years of this life look like if everything turned out great?

Make sure you don't fall into the trap of imagining a different variation of Life #1. What other aspects of your life might be different in how you experience relationships, trips, finances, or a view on life?

Life #2 for me might look like me moving to NY, and quickly becoming a full-time writer/content creator/entrepreneur. I’d meet new people, learn from other entrepreneurs/creators and try a lot of new things. I’d build/sell a few of my own digital products that help others design a beautiful life.

As a result of living in NY, I may need to eventually move to a different place to raise kids or it may even delay starting a family. My husband and I may not be able to take as many international trips (something that brings us joy).

Example questions to test in Life #2:

1. What am I writing about or creating that resonates with an audience and my personal interests?

2. How am I meeting other creators that I genuinely get along with?

3. How might this impact my ability to start a family?

Life #3: What would you do if you knew no one would laugh?

This one's your hail mary. Let your imagination run wild. What would you if nothing could hold you back?

What does your Life #3 look like?

Effective lifestyle design starts with generating options.

What questions are you asking in this life in front of you? How might you experiment with testing those questions in a small way?

Before you decide the next step in your life, explore what's out there.

You're not deciding the rest of your life, just the next step.

You’ve got this 🫡 

If this mini-essay resonated with you in some way, hit reply and let your girl know! 🫶 

A few of you sent some replies last week and it was so cool to hear how it resonated with your lives. I appreciate you!

If you know someone who would enjoy these types of ideas, share it with them! Over 50% of my subscribers are from word-of-mouth referrals, and that’s the best way you can support this lil’ newsletter.

Until next time,

Ally