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Today's newsletter covers the three frameworks that I've used when it comes to making decisions. But first, a word from our sponsors...

Today's sponsor is Greco Gum

Today’s sponsor is a product I use often and have advocated for many times in the past. Greco Gum is a unique all natural gum made from the crystallized resin of the mastic tree, which only grows on one tiny island in Greece. It's been chewed for millennia because its powerful antimicrobial properties improve both gut health and oral health. It also happens to give your jawline a great workout, sculpting it so you become better looking. ​ That's a great benefit, but here's another one that MANY guys overlook: it makes you a better fighter. ​ I started chewing Greco Gum after I started sparring again. I know more about boxing now than I did when I was competing, and I wish I had been chewing it then. The workout your jaw gets from chewing the tough gum also makes you more resistant to getting dazed from taking a good punch. ​ That alone is worth it. Definitely get a tin of Greco Gum here. Learn more

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3 frameworks for making better decisions

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In a podcast interview this week, I was asked what rule or metric I use when making decisions. At first, the question gave me a little trouble, as I couldn't readily identify how—or even if—I thought about making decisions.

Then I thought about all the decisions I've made in my life that had a significant positive impact. I consider these events "watershed moments." Watershed moments are critical points of change that cause a major shift in the potential outcome of events.

These were events where I had a choice to make. All but the first choice was made as an adult, and my decision on where to attend high school was mine alone. Among those were:

• Where I went to high school
• Starting boxing at age 22
• Changing boxing trainers halfway through my amateur career
• Enlisting in the Army
• Getting sober
• Returning to school

I also thought about important decisions that affected the direction of my life but were not as defining.

The decisions I made in the first category, I'm either incapable of imagining an alternative life, or the life I picture is so fundamentally different that my life wouldn't look like it is now.

The difference between these choices and the life-defining watershed moments is that I can see how my life looks if I don't take the following actions. While it's impossible to know for sure, I can imagine a life where I didn't do the following.

• Writing about my life online
• Paying off debt to rebuild my credit
• Working to get my book deal
• Study physics in college

And lastly, there are the small decisions I make more frequently. They would affect the quality of my daily life but would not change its course or where I’m going. Those decisions are too numerous to list, and I’d forget most of them anyway.

Thinking about the significant decisions I've made and my approach to the lesser ones did reveal that I have a set of rules or metrics. They're so ingrained in my method of operation that I had trouble articulating when I was put on the spot about them.

However, I eventually answered, and that's the subject of today's newsletter. Here are my three frameworks for making decisions—with a bonus fourth. These metrics are responsible for everything positive in my life, regardless of the domain.

Furthermore, whenever I've found myself in an adverse or precarious situation, the reason is because I was not following these metrics.

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Interesting things I read this week

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​Seven Frames: This is an ebook by David Elikwu from https://theknowledge.io. I discovered this guy from a great article he wrote about the power of using Bayesian Statistics in decision-making. The ebook covers seven unique frameworks for making better decisions, none of which I'd heard of but I learned a lot from.

It's purely a coincidence of timing that my newsletter this week is about decision-making making, which is the cool thing I'm reading. Check it out. ​