#96 End-Of-Year Reflection & Eclectic Content You NEED for 2025

Welcome back, and welcome to December ⛄️ 

Holy sh!t. One month left in 2024.

To me, December stands out for a multitude of reasons:

• The holidays bring good energy.

• Nothing like cozy vibes on colder nights.

• Tis’ the Season of Giving.

• And there’s some time off mixed in between for most.

But I believe the most important thing is the End-Of-Year Reflection.

Call me corny, but this sh!t is important AF. At least in my opinion.

I look at the YE-reflection as a way to understand where and how I progressed throughout the year. Sometimes we can forget just how far we’ve come and we deserve more credit more often.

But, I always look for ways to improve because it’s not always sunshine and rainbows. And if I am not celebrating the progress at the end of the year, then what’s the point of all the hard work? It’s like running a marathon and skipping the medal. Or put another way: if I didn’t celebrate my progress, I would miss opportunities to truly connect with my own story!

So, as we head into this last stretch of 2024, I challenge you to take some time for your own reflection. Celebrate the wins—big or small—because they’ve brought you to this moment. Learn from the losses, but don’t let them overshadow the growth you’ve had!

Real talk…reflecting is the sh!t.

Let’s close out this year with gratitude, reflection, and a plan to crush 2025.

Ready?

Cool.

LG!

Kick-Starting December With ☃️ 

FATTENING THE WALLET 💰️ 

• Making Cents of Decluttering Your Inbox

• Hustle Hub: A Key Side-Hustle Skill, A $500K Tutoring Business, and 7 Holiday Marketing Ideas

ELEVATING YOUR BRAND 📈 

• Content For Your Commute: Learn How To Get More Customers, Negotiate Stronger For YE Reviews, and Influence People Through Persuasion

• Expert Advice On a Technique You Probably Haven’t Heard Of Before

BOOSTING YOUR PRODUCTIVITY 🕺 

• A December 2-DO To Prepare You For 2025

Making Cents 💰️ 

Why You Should Declutter That Inbox BEFORE 2025

Short and Sweet: I heard on a podcast years ago that your inbox is like your mind, you want to keep it clean and clear. A cluttered inbox is more than just an annoyance — it can become a source of unnecessary stress and temptation. Promotional emails and spam distract you, waste your time, and push you to spend money on things you don’t actually need.

(We like to think OTF is an exception to this! 😃)

Q: Why is decluttering my inbox even necessary?

A: Having a cluttered inbox filled with spam, promotional deals, and unnecessary subscriptions can lead to decision fatigue, wasted time, and impulsive spending—especially during the holiday season.

Q: How does cleaning out my inbox help with my finances?

A: Every promotional email you receive is designed to tempt you into spending money (and they def use persuasion tactics I point out below in Expert Advice). By unsubscribing and decluttering, you eliminate the opportunity for impulsive purchases like we said above, which will help you stay focused on your financial goals and help you to not rack up debt as we head into the new year.

Q: What’s the first step to decluttering my inbox?

A: Start by identifying repeat offenders — brands or companies that flood you with daily or weekly promotions. Use the “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of these emails to permanently remove them. Don’t read, swipe and delete. Just unsubscribe if you’re tired of all of the emails.

Q: How often should I declutter my inbox?

A: Make it a monthly habit, but the end of the year is a great time for a big purge. Decluttering before 2025 ensures you start the new year with a clean slate, free from distractions and temptations.

O.T.F. 
O.F.T - One Final Thought 

Let me be clear. I am not here trying to be a scrooge as we head into the holidays, but decluttering helps you stay focused, organized, and in control of your email. By removing distractions, you can prioritize what truly matters and start the new year with a fresh inbox.

And if you want some quick tips so you can stay decluttered in the future:

• Use a secondary email address for shopping or sign-ups to keep promotions out of your main inbox (think of your main inbox as a place of value).

• Create folders or labels to sort important emails and automate where they go.

• Regularly review your subscriptions and unsubscribe as needed.

Your inbox can either work for you or against you. Don’t become the person who deletes the majority of emails and wastes time and energy doing so. Unsubscribe, get off the promotional product launches and treat that inbox with care.

It’s a valuable place if you let it be.

Keep it clean.

Hustle Hub 📈 

YOUR SUCCESS:

Get Informed - Don’t forget about this critical skill you need to run a money-making side hustle. ‘A gigantic portion of’ your success depends on it, says this expert.💡 

THEIR SUCCESS:

Get Inspired - This 36 year old quit his SIX-figure Wall Street Job to start his own tutoring business. He says he now has extraordinary work-life balance and is expected to make $500,000 in 2024 (he even did so in 2023!). 💰️ 

YOUR SUCCESS:

Get Exposure - Borrow these 7 innovative marketing ideas to help your brand get more awareness this holiday season!🕺 

Content For Your Commute 🚶🚆 🚗 

• ON FOOT: Learn how to get more customers, make more profit per customer and how to keep them longer with Alex Hormozi’s podcast, The Game — episodes are normally under 20-30 mins. Alex is on the path from $100M net worth to $1B! And he’s documenting the journey…for FREE.

• TRAIN TIME: YE Reviews are around the corner, pick up or send someone a copy of Never Spilt The Difference by Chris Voss (a former international hostage negotiator), to help you ‘negotiate as if your life depends on it’.
  

• FIRST CLASS: The Expert Advice I provided below is from Influence, The Psychology of Persuasion. 2025 is around the corner and if you want to persuade people to buy your product or service, you’re going to want this book. Keeping reading for more.

Expert Advice 💭 

Every now and then I like to remind you of certain sections and why we have them. Our Expert Advice section is intended to provide you with words of wisdom from successful entrepreneurs, content creators, authors, psychologists, Fortune 500 CEOs, and more to give you fresh perspectives applicable to your personal and financial growth.

I am reading Influence, The Psychology of Persuasion for the second time and it’s even better than the first time I read it.

I’ve been incorporating tactics from this book in this newsletter, through written word on LinkedIn and even through video content on Instagram and TikTok.

Here’s the advice I can’t get out of my head:

It’s called: “The Rejection then Retreat Technique.”

I am taking this directly from the book because it is explained so well.

“Suppose you want me to agree to a certain request. One way to increase the chances I will comply is to first make a larger request of me, one that I will most likely turn down. then, after I have refused, you make the smaller request that you were really interested in all along. Provided that you structured your requests skillfully, I should view your second request as a concession to me and should feel inclined to respond with a concession of my own — compliance with your second request.”

Boom, lethal.

Here are a few examples to bring it home:

• Negotiating a Raise: You ask your boss for a $15,000 raise, knowing it might get rejected. When they say no, you propose a $5,000 raise and additional professional development opportunities, which feels more reasonable and beneficial for both sides.

• Buying Tickets: You ask your friend to join you for an expensive $500 concert weekend, knowing they'll probably say no. After they decline, you ask if they'd be down for a $50 local show on a Saturday instead, and they're much more likely to agree.

• Partnership Proposal: You approach a business owner with a proposal to invest $25,000 in your startup. After they decline, you pivot to asking if they’d contribute $5,000 as an advisor. The smaller investment feels less risky, so they’re more likely to accept.

O.T.F. 
O.F.T - One Final Thought 

Look, he’s not saying every single time you do this it will work in your favor. But, if you do this skillfully, it is more likely than not to work out for you.

This is the best bed-side book I own. Bold statement, but for someone who is trying to build and sell to people, this book is required.

You’ll learn about the following principles of persuasion:

• Reciprocation

• Commitment and Consistency

• Social Proof

• Liking

• Authority

• Scarcity

• Unity

Whether in your personal life or business venture, these principles are the bedrock to build trust, influence decisions and drive meaningful results…if used properly.

Who is Robert B. Cialdini?

• He is an American psychologist and a visiting professor of marketing, business and psychology at Stanford University. For more on him: click here.

• The book above has sold over five million copies and has been translated into 41 languages. It has been listed on the New York Times Best Seller list and Fortune lists it in their "75 Smartest Business Books”.

2-DO For You: December ❄️ 

1. Plan for the New Year! 💰️ 

How to do it:

• Review your expenses from the past year to identify areas where you need to cut back.

• If holiday shopping is still on your to-do list, set a realistic budget to avoid starting the new year in debt.

• Set a goal for that Emergency Fund you’ve been meaning to start. $125 per week gets you to $1,000 by February if you start this week.

What you get:

• Enter 2025 feeling in control about your finances.

• Starting the year with a plan increases the likelihood of achieving your long-term goals, like paying off debt or saving for that big purchase.

2. Declutter Your Space (not only the inbox) Before the New Year! 🧹 

How to do it:

• Start small: Tackle one room or category at a time (e.g., clothes, books, or pantry items).

• Use the “one-year rule”: If you haven’t used it in the past year, it’s probably time to let it go.

• Donate or recycle items responsibly to reduce waste and help someone else in need.

What you get:

• An organized space leads to an organized mind, reducing stress and improving productivity.

• By donating items, you end the year with a generous act that supports your community.

• You’ll enter 2025 with a clean, clutter-free environment that motivates you to take on new challenges.

Before You Go

We hope you enjoyed this week’s edition.

Next week, we’ll be back with December #2, which includes Cool Communicator, Food for Thought, and much more.

See you then!

You are now On The Fly and In The Know.