Take Action: how small wins alleviate anxiety
Jamal Hamilton had a week from hell with a layoff and a family medical emergency. He tells me how he uses small, concrete actions to manage his anxiety and escapism.
Jamal Hamilton came on the pod right after a week from hell. He got laid off, his son got strep throat, and his mom was rushed into emergency surgery for a hole in her colon. All this happened during his birthday week. He's an extremely open and empathetic person, and he uses LinkedIn like therapy, as a way to get his thoughts out of his head.
Jamal calls himself a king of escaping. His main vice is doom scrolling on his phone, watching funny videos or binge watching a series to avoid dealing with what is going on around him. He says the more you avoid something, the bigger it feels in your head. His partner Amanda can tell when 'old Jamal' shows up, the one who is closed off and doesn't know how to express his emotions.
His whole approach changed when he heard a quote from sales guru Alex Hormozi: 'action alleviates anxiety.' It was the missing piece. Now, whenever he feels anxious, he pinpoints the feeling and asks what action he can take. Sometimes that action is huge, like finding a new job, but it can also be as small as getting out of bed. He says getting your quick wins as early as you can in the day builds momentum.
“Action alleviates anxiety.”
Notes
- In one week, he got laid off, his son got strep throat, and his mother had emergency surgery for a hole in her colon.
- He calls himself an 'escape artist' and says his partner can tell when 'old Jamal,' his closed off self, shows up.
- He and his partner use a list of question prompts to help each other get to the root of what they are trying to escape from.
- A quote from Alex Hormozi changed his perspective: 'action alleviates anxiety.' Now he starts his day with small wins, like making the bed, to build momentum.