48 Minutes 38 Seconds

- You give yourself too much runway. Let's fix that this week. 😉

- Ai Tool of the Week  🤖

Welcome

Joe entered a 10k race near Chester a couple of months ago.

I remember him saying at the time it was a ‘fast’ race

And I thought

‘Chester sounds nice!!' - I’ll do it too’ - so I asked Bex to enter me.

Then last month he said:

‘The person that came last in 2025 ran it in 50 minutes 50 seconds’

I thought

‘Bloody hell that seems quick for last’

Then on Thursday on the way to work I took a look at the race so I could see the route and what was generally going on.

And a line in the middle of the web page said:

‘We cannot accept applications from runners who can’t run a sub 50 minute 10k due to the road closure restrictions’

Me: Ehhhhh?

I haven't run a sub 50 minute 10k since 2024.

And I definitely hadn't been training for one. 😅

But at this point I thought I can either duck out and feel a bit crap about it or I can give it all I’ve got….

Lets dig in 🚀

So I controlled every single thing I could between Thursday and Sunday morning.

Early nights. No alcohol. Eating well. Race head on.

And this morning I crossed the line in 48 minutes 38 seconds.

I was on the verge of keeling over but I did it.

And the last time I ran sub 50 minutes was 2 years ago.

I wouldn't have gone anywhere near that time this morning without that deadline.

Have you ever heard of Parkinson's Law?

Work expands to fill the time available for its completion.

In other words - give yourself a week to do something that should take two hours, and somehow it takes a week.

😬 Sound familiar?

Without that deadline this morning I definitely would have jogged round, finished somewhere around 53 minutes, and called it a lovely Sunday morning.

The deadline didn't just change my preparation - it changed my performance entirely.

And your week works exactly the same way.

Without a deadline, that proposal gets done "by end of week."

Without a constraint, that project gets done "when you get a chance."

Without a finish line - you jog when you could be running.

So before you close this email I want you to look at your week ahead and ask yourself honestly:

Where have I given myself too much runway?

What's the thing I've been jogging towards that actually needs a deadline attached to it this week?

Have I put a 60 minute focus session in to finish that marketing campaign?

To make those videos for youtube you let drag on.

Find your 50 minute deadline this week.

Then go run at it.

Set an alarm, put your phone on DND or in another room and make it happen.

You might just surprise yourself. 😉

You’ll get it done.

Always cheering you on.

Em x

Ai Tool of the Week 🤖

This week I want to talk about something I use every single day in my business now and if you're already using Claude (the AI I recommend constantly) - Chat GPT who??

This is going to make it SO much better.

It's called Claude Projects. And it's free.

Here's the problem it solves.

Every time you open a normal AI chat you're starting from scratch.

It doesn't know you, your business, your tone, your customers - nothing.

So you spend the first five minutes explaining yourself before you even get to the good bit.

Claude Projects fixes that completely.

You create a little workspace, add some background about your business, how you like to work, what you're trying to achieve - and from that point on, every single conversation starts already knowing all of that.

It's like the difference between briefing a brand new mini assistant every Monday morning and working with someone who just... gets it.

I use it for my content, drafting tricky emails, it helps me ideate my newsletter - and it saves me a ridiculous amount of time.

Go to claude.ai, hit Projects, and set one up. Takes ten minutes. Saves you hours.

You're welcome 😉

Focus on the Fun Stuff 🎙️

P.S. 🎙️ On this week's podcast I sat down with Chris Kenna - entrepreneur, military veteran, and founder of a £5.5 million diversity agency that was wiped out almost overnight by a US executive order.

Not because he failed. Because of a political decision he had no control over.

What he did next is EXTRAORDINARY.

If you've ever built something and worried about what happens when the ground shifts beneath you….. Have a listen here 🎧

▶️ Watch on YouTube | 🎧 Listen on Spotify | 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts

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