Zamai Banje

Tag: Self-awareness (page 9 of 16)

Physical Wealth: Invest in your Health Today
June 8, 2025

Physical Wealth: Invest in your Health Today

Physical Wealth means working hard to keep your body healthy and strong.

When you take care of your body, it helps you grow in other ways too. It also shows you that you have the power to pursue and make good choices in your life.

This pursuit is grounded in consistent daily actions related to movement, nutrition, and recovery. It’s investing in your present self to become your highest self.

Physical Wealth

Your body is the only house you’ll ever truly inhabit.

So, treating it with care through consistent investment and maintenance is crucial for it to last and serve you well for many years.

P.S.: This is still a review from Sahil’s book – 5 Types of Wealth: A Transformative Guide to Design Your Dream Life.

The Three Pillars of Physical Wealth

Achieving physical wealth doesn’t require complex routines; rather, it requires grounding yourself in three core pillars: Movement, nutrition, and recovery.

Achieving these pillars unlocks “easy mode” in the game of life, allowing you to build a vital present and prepare for a better future.

The First Pillar is Movement.

This involves daily body movement through a combination of cardiovascular exercise and resistance training, along with activities to promote stability and flexibility.

Exercise is the most potent tool for enhancing your health span and preventing cognitive and physical decline.

Within movement, there are three primary subcategories:

  1. Cardiovascular Training: Strengthens the heart and blood vessels. It includes:
      • Aerobic: Low intensity (like hiking, biking, jogging) using oxygen to sustain activity, ideal for beginners and often referred to as zone 2 training, where you can hold a conversation.
      • Anaerobic: High intensity, using stored sugars for energy (like sprints, heavy lifting), typically involving short bursts with recovery periods, sometimes referred to as zone 5 training. Anaerobic training is more uncomfortable and recommended after establishing consistency in aerobic activities.
    2. Strength: Use resistance (weights, bands) to build muscle, power, and strength. This is essential for a healthy and enjoyable life.
    3. Stability and Flexibility: Stability is the cornerstone for delivering strength and performance safely and efficiently.

There are three levels for the Movement pillar:

  1. Level 1: Move your body for at least thirty minutes daily.
  2. Level 2: Move your body for at least thirty minutes daily, plus two to three specific cardiovascular training sessions and one to two resistance-training sessions per week.
  3. Level 3: Move your body for at least thirty minutes per day, plus three or more cardiovascular training sessions per week (at least 120 minutes of aerobic and 20 minutes of anaerobic training) and at least three resistance-training sessions weekly incorporating stability and flexibility training.

The Second Pillar is Nutrition

Focus on consuming primarily whole, unprocessed foods to meet major nutrient needs and supplementing as necessary for micronutrients.

Building this pillar doesn’t require extreme regimens but is based on four core principles:

  1. Overall Caloric Intake: Determines body weight and muscle development. Caloric surplus leads to weight gain, deficit to weight loss, and balance to weight stability.
  2. Macronutrients: The major nutrients your body needs are:

Proteins: Building blocks for muscle growth and tissue repair. Prioritise protein intake and aim for a solid source at every meal. Also, target around 0.8 grams per pound of body weight.

Carbohydrates: A primary energy source.

Fats: Energy source supporting cell growth and organ health.

More importantly, focus on the cleanliness of your macronutrient sources. Prioritise whole, unprocessed foods with minimal ingredients.

  1. Micronutrients: Essential vitamins and minerals needed in smaller quantities for healthy body functioning and disease prevention. These must be consumed through diet or supplements.
  2. Hydration: Despite our need for water, many are chronically dehydrated.

The recommended baseline is thirteen cups per day for men and nine cups for women, which should be increased based on activity levels.

There are three levels for the Nutrition pillar:

  1. Level 1: Eat whole, unprocessed foods 80 percent of the time (roughly seventeen out of twenty-one meals per week, assuming three meals per day).
  2. Level 2: Eat whole, unprocessed foods 90 percent of the time. Prioritise daily protein intake (around 0.8 grams per pound of body weight) and overall macronutrient consumption and ensure adequate fluid intake.
  3. Level 3: Eat whole, unprocessed foods 95 percent of the time. Prioritise daily protein intake and overall macronutrient consumption, supplement with key micronutrients as needed for a well-rounded profile and get the recommended amounts of fluid.

The Third Pillar of Physical Wealth is Recovery

Prioritise high-quality, consistent sleep and other recovery-promoting activities.

Sleep is called “nature’s miracle drug” and is often underappreciated. Core strategies for high-quality sleep include:

Amount: Seven to eight hours per night, with a consistent schedule for sleep and wake times.

Environment: A dark, quiet, and cool sleep setting.

Routine: A relaxing evening routine to promote the release of sleep signals. Viewing morning sunlight (5-10 minutes on clear days, 15-20 minutes on overcast days) and low-angle afternoon sunlight helps regulate cortisol and the circadian rhythm.

The three levels for the Recovery pillar are:

  1. Level 1: Seven to eight hours of sleep per night.
  2. Level 2: Seven to eight hours of sleep in an optimised sleep environment (dark, cool, quiet).
  3. Level 3: Seven to eight hours of sleep in an optimised sleep environment, with a fixed sleeping time window and morning/afternoon sunlight exposure to regulate circadian rhythm and improve sleep quality.

Start at Level 1 for each pillar as a baseline for a healthy life in the present and future, then define your goals and work your way up through the levels.

The Three Pillars of Phyiscal Wealth

Now, here are six proven systems for building Physical Wealth:

1. The Physical Wealth Thirty-Day Challenge

This is a jump-start through disciplined daily practices for one month, covering Movement, Nutrition, and Recovery.

It offers three levels (Bronze, Silver, Gold) with increasing intensity.  Track your progress and find an accountability partner.

Bronze: Move 30 minutes daily, eat whole unprocessed foods 80% of the time, sleep 7 hours nightly.

Silver: Execute a weekday morning routine, move 45 minutes daily, eat whole unprocessed foods 90% of the time, increase protein intake (0.8g/lb), sleep 7-8 hours nightly with fixed weekday times.

Gold: Drink 16 oz water upon waking, execute a weekday morning routine, move 60 minutes daily (including 3+ strength sessions/week), eat whole unprocessed foods 95% of the time, hit full macronutrient targets, sleep 8 hours nightly with fixed times, complete one additional recovery method daily.

2. A Science-Backed Morning Routine

Focus on implementing these principles in the first hour of your day for increased energy, focus, and productivity.

The five core principles are:

  1. Wake up: Maintain a consistent wake time (weekdays and weekends, within 30-60 minutes of weekday time).
  2. Hydrate: Drink sixteen ounces of water upon rising (consider adding lemon, electrolytes, or greens powder).
  3. Move: Engage in 30-60 minutes of daily activity (strength, mobility, stretches, or whatever you enjoy).
  4. Get Outside: Expose yourself to natural morning light (ideally during movement) for increased focus, mood improvement, and vitamin D.
  5. Focus: Prioritise and work on your most important tasks for the day.

3. The Movement Plan: A Level 3 Training Plan That Works

This is a template for a training week once you reach Level 3 in movement.

It involves three full-body strength workouts, two sixty-minute aerobic cardio workouts, and one twenty-minute anaerobic cardio workout per week, with a day of rest/light recovery.

The Movement Plan

4. How to Become a Pro Sleeper: Eight Rules for Sleep

Here are basic, science-backed rules for optimal sleep performance:

  1. Keep a regular sleep schedule.
  2. View morning sunlight.
  3. Control your sleep environment (cool, dark).
  4. Avoid food and excessive liquids right before bed.
  5. Avoid caffeine in the afternoons (within eight hours of bedtime).
  6. Cut back on alcohol.
  7. Create a wind-down routine (dim lights, avoid work devices, relax).
  8. Avoid screens before bed (especially in the sleep environment).

5. How to Promote Calm: Science-Backed Breathing Protocols:

Use breathing techniques to manage stress and promote the low-stress recovery state.

An example is the Yerkes-Dodson Law (optimal stress for performance, low stress for recovery) which provides three techniques:

  1. The 4-7-8 Method: Breathing in for 4 seconds, holding for 7, exhaling for 8 (repeat 2-3 times), particularly effective for falling asleep.
  2. The Lion’s Breath: Inhale deeply, stick your tongue out, exhale forcefully with a “Ha!” sound (repeat 2-3 times).
  3. The Physiological Sigh: Two quick inhales through the nose followed by a long exhale through the mouth (repeat 2-3 times), effective for immediate stress reduction.

Stress is a necessary part of life, and learning to harness it to operate in optimal stress for important tasks and low stress for recovery is key to performing at your best.

6. The Common-Sense Diet: Principles and Foods

Here’s a set of eight simple principles for high-quality nutrition:

    1. Eat well most of the time (80-90%), saving indulgences for loved foods.
    2. Prioritise single-ingredient, whole, unprocessed foods.
    3. Stop eating before you’re full (aim for 80% satiety).
    4. Avoid foods that make you feel and perform poorly.
    5. Drink plenty of water, but limit alcohol.
    6. Include whole vegetables, fruits, or both at every meal.
    7. Find a meal frequency that suits your life and avoid dogmatic approaches.
    8. Don’t let your diet prevent you from enjoying life experiences.

The Common Sense Diet

What It Truly Means to Build Physical Wealth

Ultimately, building Physical Wealth is about making investments today that will pay dividends for the rest of your life.

You are Player 1 in your Physical Wealth video game, starting at Level 1 and progressing as you define your goals. Avoiding anti-goals like neglecting fitness, daily movement, and sleep deprivation is crucial.

By implementing these principles and systems outlined, you can build a life of robust Physical Wealth, allowing you to live vitally in the present and prepare for a healthier and more fulfilling future, perhaps even dancing at your eightieth birthday party.

I hope this helps.

Godspeed and Cheers.

Zamai.

Whenever you’re ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

  1. Become Your Highest Self: Every Sunday, I share actionable tips from successful people on how to master money, mindset and meaning. (Please confirm your subscription via mail so the newsletter goes straight into your inbox)
  2. Fast Track Book: Stay relevant, master new skills, and be ready for whatever life throws at you.  This is the complete roadmap to speed up your learning process and expand the opportunities available to you. (Available on Amazon)
  3. Personal Wealth Maximizer: Take control of your finances and build financial freedom. The Personal Wealth Maximizer give you the exact knowledge and tools to break free from money struggles and build financial confidence.
June 1, 2025

Mental Wealth: What You Had as a Kid That You Need Back Now

Your mental wealth started with being curious about the world around you, just like when you were a little child asking “why” about everything.

As you are older now, having mental wealth means you have a clear purpose that gives your life meaning.  You keep learning and growing daily, and make time to think and rest your mind. It’s about staying true to who you are instead of just copying what everyone else does.

When you build mental wealth, you create a rich, interesting life filled with learning, growing, and following your dreams.

Curiosity is the foundation of Mental Wealth

Mental Wealth is built on a foundation of curiosity, leading to fulfilment, growth, and purpose.

While innate in childhood, curiosity declines in adulthood due to the demands of life. But reconnecting with your childlike curiosity through “mental time travel” can provide perspective and evaluate your current state of Mental Wealth.

Why is it important to build Mental Wealth?

Living a life of Mental Wealth is an important fight against the forces of “stasis” and “normalcy” that encourage settling and blending in.

Most people are stuck in one place, doing the same boring things every day without trying anything new or different. And they want everyone to act the same way and not stand out. Choosing to build your Mental Wealth means fighting against this by always learning and being creative.

Maintaining your distinctiveness is key to realising full potential and living a “texture-rich existence.”

Your goal is to become a better version of yourself instead of just going along with what everyone else is doing. It’s about choosing to grow and explore new possibilities rather than staying in the same safe but boring routine.

Mental Wealth is ultimately defined as living according to your purpose. It’s believing in your capacity for growth and creating space for reflection and recharge.

Three Key Pillars of Mental Wealth

The First Key Pillar is Purpose.

Have a clear vision that creates meaning and aligns decisions. This involves defining a unique identity and contributing to something larger than yourself, whether through work or other activities.

The Second Key Pillar is Growth

Your Mental Wealth is highly dependent on a continuous hunger for progress and change.

Believe in your dynamic potential for development in intelligence, ability, and character. Growth is the pursuit of improvement in a world often seeking ease.

The last Key Pillar is Space.

Space is the intentional creation of stillness and solitude for thinking, resetting, and recharging. This allows for listening to your inner voice and gaining new insights. Space is “rocket fuel for the mind.”

Be Careful of these Anti Goals to Mental Wealth

How to Build Mental Wealth

To build Mental Wealth, here is a guide to ten high-leverage systems:

Quick Mental Wealth Hacks You Wish You Knew at Twenty-Two:

  • Prioritize solitude.
  • Write everything down.
  • Reread impactful books annually.
  • Take yourself out for solitary meals.
  • Focus on substance over presentation.
  • Focus deeply on one creative project at a time.
  • Dedicate thirty minutes daily to improve a skill for thirty days
  • Practice daily gratitude (list three things you are grateful for and say one aloud)

The Power of Ikigai (Pillar: Purpose):

This Japanese concept helps define your purpose by finding the intersection of three areas:

  • What you love (activities that create joy).
  • What you are good at (activities that feel effortless).
  • What the world needs (activities relevant to your current context – self, family, community, or the world).

List activities for each area to begin exploring your unique ikigai. Because purpose is personal and doesn’t need to be professionally tied or outwardly impressive.

The Pursuit Map (Pillar: Purpose)

The Pursuit Map uses a two-by-two matrix to help align how time is spent with what brings energy and utilizes skills efficiently.

The matrix has “competency level” (low to high) on the x-axis and “energy” (draining to creating) on the y-axis.

  1. Zone of Genius: High competency and energy-creating. This is the ideal area for most time investment.
  2. Zone of Hobby: Low competency but energy-creating. This is where new pursuits often start and can evolve into the Zone of Genius.
  3. Zone of Danger: High competency but energy-draining. This is risky as positive feedback might encourage spending more time here despite the energy drain.

Your goal is to maximise time in the Zone of Genius, spend remaining time in the Zone of Hobby, and minimise time in the Zone of Danger. Then communicate this map with teams or managers, or for solo practitioners, being honest about activities and outsourcing those in the Zone of Danger.

Following your energy is key to a more purposeful and fulfilling life.

The Pursuit Map - Mental Wealth

The Feynman Technique (Pillar: Growth)

This learning model promotes deep understanding by leveraging teaching and simplicity through four steps:

  1. Set the stage: Write down everything known about a topic.
  2. Teach: Explain the topic to someone with no prior knowledge, using simple language and avoiding jargon (or pretend to teach a child).
  3. Assess and study: Reflect on the teaching performance, identify gaps, and revisit source material.
  4. Organize, convey, and review: Structure the simplified understanding into a narrative, share it, refine, and review.

Feynman technique is effective because it forces distillation and clear explanation, revealing areas where understanding is lacking. It’s a method used by successful thinkers and entrepreneurs.

The Spaced-Repetition Method (Pillar: Growth):

Spaced repetition uses cognitive science to improve information retention by revisiting new information at increasing intervals.

For example, do your repetitions starting one hour after initial consumption and progressively increasing the time between reviews to transfer information from short-term to long-term memory.

The Socratic Method (Pillars: Growth and Space):

This is a method of critical thinking through structured questioning to expose assumptions and vet logic.

The process involves:

  1. Starting with open-ended questions to identify the core problem.
  2. Proposing current ideas or hypotheses.
  3. Probing these ideas with progressive questions to challenge assumptions (“Why do you think this?”, “How do you know it’s true?”, “How would you know if you were wrong?”).
  4. Evaluating evidence and considering potential alternatives (“What alternative viewpoints exist?”, “Why might they be superior?”).
  5. Zooming out to reflect on the initial thinking and any systemic errors discovered.

The method is recommended for high-stakes decisions to think differently and identify the most advantageous path.

Think Differently - Mental Wealth

The Think Day (Pillars: Growth and Space):

Dedicate one day each month to step away from daily demands and focus solely on reading, learning, journaling, and thinking.

Key elements of the think day include secluding yourself (mentally or physically), setting an out-of-office, shutting off devices, and using tools like a journal, books, a secluded location, and thinking prompts (e.g., “If I repeated my current typical day for one hundred days, would my life be better or worse?”).

The benefits are restoring energy, noticing missed things, being more deliberate, focusing on high-leverage opportunities, and moving “slow to move fast.”

The Power Walk (Pillar: Space)

Walking is a simple and free tool for creating space.

Incorporate short walks between tasks or meetings. Use longer, passive, tech-free walks (thirty to sixty minutes) where the mind is free to wander.

Bringing a notebook to capture ideas during longer walks is recommended because walking with your thoughts is an “ultra-powerful space-creating tool.”

The Personal Power-Down Ritual (Pillar: Space)

This is a fixed sequence of actions to mentally and physically end the professional day and create space for personal life. It includes three elements:

  1. Complete final tasks: A quick check of emails, messages, and open projects.
  2. Prepare for tomorrow: Identify focus priorities and do prep work.
  3. Initiate power-down: Create a mental trigger or phrase to signify the end of the work day. Implementing a power-down ritual helps build clear boundaries between work and personal life.

The 1-1-1 Journaling Method (Pillar: Space)

This simple journaling practice aims to create space and improve mental health by writing down three points each evening:

  1. One win from the day (for appreciating progress).
  2. One point of tension, anxiety, or stress (to get it out of the mind and onto paper).
  3. One point of gratitude (to reflect on important things).

Its simplicity makes it an easy way to start a journaling habit.

The Journaling Method from Sahil Bloom

What It Truly Means to Build Mental Wealth

Mental wealth helps you become the best version of yourself by keeping your mind strong and healthy.

When you know your purpose, keep learning new things, and give yourself space to think, you make better choices and live a more meaningful life. This pursuit is a necessary and rewarding “fight” for your distinctiveness and fulfilment.

Mental wealth is one of the keys that unlock your highest self and helps you and me live a life that feels exciting and full of possibilities.

Use it wisely.

I hope this helps you as much as I enjoyed doing this review.

Godspeed and Cheers.

Zamai.

.

Whenever you’re ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

  1. Become Your Highest Self: Every Sunday, I share actionable tips from successful people on how to master money, mindset and meaning. Please confirm your subscription via email so the newsletter goes straight into your inbox.
  2. Fast Track Book: Stay relevant, master new skills, and be ready for whatever life throws at you.  This is the complete roadmap to speed up your learning process and expand the opportunities available to you. Available on Amazon.
  3. Personal Wealth Maximizer: Take control of your finances and build financial freedom. The Personal Wealth Maximizer give you the exact knowledge and tools to break free from money struggles and build financial confidence.

 

May 25, 2025

Financial Freedom: At What Point Will Your Money Be Enough?

What does it even mean to have financial freedom?

Being financially free means having enough money, so you don’t have to worry about paying for the things you need.

Imagine having a bank account that’s so loaded that you can use it to buy food, pay for your house, and get the things you want without stressing about running out of money.

This is what financial freedom means.

When you’re financially free, you can choose how you spend your time instead of working to pay bills. You might still work because you enjoy your job, but don’t have to work to survive.

Being financially free helps you live a happier and less stressful life.

When you don’t have to worry about money all the time, you can focus on the things that matter to you, like spending time with family and friends or doing hobbies you love.

For me, attaining financial freedom means living freely with close friends and family around. I will be able to spend weeks watching anime (maybe One Piece at a stretch) without my conscience judging me. I will also have enough money to go to the concerts of my favourite music artists anywhere in the world.

Defining what financial freedom means to you is important.

The 7 Levels of Financial Freedom

The truth is that financial freedom comes in stages or levels.

Understanding these levels is like climbing stairs. You must reach each step before you can get to the next one. When you know how much money you need to be financially free, you can always adjust and see if you’re doing better.

Level 1: Clarity

Know exactly how much money you spend every month.

Write down what you pay for rent, food, black tax, data subscriptions, and everything else. Find out how much you currently spend monthly. Then write out your ideal monthly expenses.

This level is important because you can’t get better with money if you don’t know how you’re spending it. It’s like trying to lose weight without knowing what you eat.

In this level, figure out where you are and where you want to go.

Level 2: Self-Sufficiency

This is when you earn enough money to cover your expenses on your own.

At this level, you have saved up enough money to pay for one whole month of expenses. If you spend 20,000 Naira every month, you have 20,000 Naira saved up.

This is important because it means you can survive for one month if something bad happens, like losing your job. You won’t panic right away because you have a little cushion.

To achieve this level, you have saved your monthly expenses.

Level 3: Breathing Room

In this level, you escape living from salary to salary.

Now you have enough money saved to pay your bills for 3 to 5 months. Using the same example, you’d have 60,000 to 100,000 naira saved up.

 

This level gives you time to breathe and think if you lose your job or when your business is down. You don’t have to take the first job you find because you have time to look for something better.

The path is clear here – Save 3 to 5 times your monthly expenses to complete Level 3.

Level 4: Stability

This is when you have six months of living expenses saved and your debts repaid.

You have expenses saved up for the next 180 days. This means you can go half a year without working and still pay all your bills.

This level makes you feel secure. Most emergencies or job losses get fixed within six months, so you’re protected from most problems that might happen.

To achieve this level, you have saved 6 times your monthly expenses.

Level 5: Flexibility

In this level, you have two years of living expenses invested.

At this level, you have saved up twenty-four months’ worth of expenses. That’s a lot of money! It means you can live for two whole years without working.

This gives you amazing freedom. You can quit your job to start a business, go back to school, or take care of a sick family member without worrying about money.

Remember again – you need your monthly expenses saved 24 times to be financially flexible.

Level 6: Financial Independence

This is when you can live off the income generated by your investments till the day you die.

You have so much money invested that it makes enough profit to pay for your living expenses forever. You never have to work for money again if you don’t want to.

This is the dream level you must aim for. You can choose to work because you love your job, not because you need the money.

I love this level because work becomes optional at this point.

Level 7: Abundant Wealth

Here, you have more money than you’ll ever need.

Your money is too much at this level. You can buy almost anything you want and help lots of other people, too.

At this level, money isn’t something you think about anymore. Simply focus completely on doing things that make you happy and help make the world better.

I also talk about how to identify your skills and keep moving up these levels of financial freedom in Personal Wealth Maximizer.​ Check it out if you are truly ready to start your journey in being financially free.

The Seven Levels of Financial Freedom

Why is it Important to Know These Levels?

Knowing these levels helps you in three big ways:

First, it shows you exactly where you are right now with your money. You might discover you’re already at Level 2 and didn’t even know it!

Second, it gives you clear goals to work toward. Instead of just saying “I want to save money,” you can say “I want to get to Level 3 by saving up four months of expenses.”

Third, it helps you stay motivated. When you see yourself moving from Level 1 to Level 2, you feel proud and want to keep going.

Again, at what Point will you be financially free?

To be financially free, recognise these 7 Levels and complete them one at a time.

  1. Clarity (know your monthly expenses)
  2. Self-sufficiency (Save 1x monthly expenses)
  3. Breathing Room (Save 3 to 5x monthly expenses)
  4. Stability (Save 6x monthly expenses)
  5. Flexibility (Save 24x monthly expenses)
  6. Financial Independence (Make enough money to pay for your living expenses forever)
  7. Abundant Wealth (Have more money than you’ll ever need)

Ultimately, the amount you need comes down to the life you want to live, where you want to live it, what you value, and what brings you joy.

I hope this helps.

Godspeed and Cheers.

Zamai.

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