You may not like how life unfolded. It might not be your fault. But it’s up to you to run more experiments and figure out a better way. Here’s how.

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I loved science when I was a kid.

I’d watch Mr. Wizard on Nickelodeon and imagine recreating his experiments.

Dinosaurs were fascinating to me.

Books about space and our Solar System would entertain me for hours.

When people asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d tell them “a scientist.” Maybe even a doctor.

Eventually I realized that pursuing my dream of becoming a heart surgeon required extra years of schooling.

And I hated school (even though I was really good at it); so I opted to find something else.

Something less intensive.

That’s when I charted a course towards sports journalism and set my sights on becoming a broadcast journalist.

But the science kid in me never completely faded with that unrealized dream.

Even to this day, I like to learn new and interesting things.

One of my favorite excursions with the Interns is going to the natural history museum here in New York City and checking out the dinosaur exhibit and its planetarium.

Since I spend a shitload of time with my two kids, I try to toss in some teachable moments whenever I can, too.

I tell them that both math and science are everywhere: From the stats we use in sports to the measurements we use to bake (even to the actual science of baking itself).

I’ll quiz my kids on how many yards are left to make a first down.

“That’s math!” I’ll proudly explain as they give me the answer.

We’ll talk about how the Earth’s moon plays a role in the tides and waves of our oceans.

“See … science is everywhere.”

And that’s the lesson for today.

So many of us lose sight of the bigger overall picture and don’t realize that life is really a collection of tiny little experiments that mold us.

We get so caught up in living life on someone else’s terms that we don’t realize just how much power we have to make a change for ourselves.

And we ignore the power of small wins that compound into major results.

Today, my hope is to encourage you to engage in your own tiny experiments (small habits) that lead to big results.

If you’re going through a lull and life is kicking your ass, that midlife crisis is rearing its ugly head, you’re just in a funk and don’t know how to break out of it … it’s time to run more experiments and figure out a better way.

Here’s how.

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Be more curious and run more experiments

No one is curious anymore.

Fewer than half of all Americans read one book or more per year.

Instead, we get all of our information from social media and call it “DoInG mY oWn ReSeArCh.” Face palm.

Everything needs to be easily digestible and delivered in an instant. It’s the reason why marketers promote their “done for you” solutions.

I get it.

We’re overextended, overstimulated and overwhelmed with career, kids and adulting.

There’s only so much mental and physical bandwidth to try new things.

So we settle.

We settle into our career and routines with kids. It’s safe.

But “safe” is boring.

It’s slow death.

You need to break out of the monotony.

Too many people read that and assume they need some major overhaul of their entire lives in order to break the cycle of suck.

That’s just overkill.

In reality, you can change your entire life by simply testing a few small things at a time.

Tiny experiments changed my life

About two years ago, I had that midlife crisis style episode where I felt lost. Hopeless.

It felt like I’d never have time to slow it down and enjoy things for myself.

I wrote in my journal “NO ONE IS COMING TO SAVE ME.”

Blunt? Yeah, probably.

Dramatic? Yeah, definitely.

But was this also empowering? For me, it was.

It was a reminder that maybe it wasn’t my fault that I landed on burned out island, overwhelmed and under-fulfilled.

But it was my responsibility to figure out a better way.

I embraced my own inner Mr Wizard and committed to the plot: that science was indeed everywhere.

And I started experimenting.

It began with simple experiments for my health, my business, my parenting.

Small little tests:

• What if I get up a little earlier and go for a walk?
• How about trying this subtle change to my workday schedule?
• Let’s see what happens when I shut down my work earlier and decompress with a video game?

My results:

• I got into the best shape of my life after 40
• My productivity skyrocketed when I committed to doing less
• Video games helped me relieve anxiety and stress so I could be a more present, more patient dad to my Interns.

And even I realized that fitness coaching was not the long-term career choice that served me.

Testing things led to my ultimate career pivot to creating this newsletter.

How to run your own little experiments

You don’t have to settle just because you’ve always done it this way.

Act like a scientist and just question things. Be open to exploring new things.

Every single experiment will provide some feedback. Data.

With each tiny discovery and new data, you build confidence to do more.

You get a little hit of dopamine.

A simple change of scenery can be what you need to break out of a quick rut.

Try a new commute to or from the office.

You can add a morning walk to clear your mind. And it might be the catalyst for better mindfulness, creativity and maybe even weight loss.

No need for a college-level course in philosophy when you can commit to testing out a few pages of a book per day.

Don’t start waking up at 4:37 a.m. for that 27-step morning routine because you saw it on Instagram.

Maybe just test what it’s like to wake up 15 minutes earlier for a few weeks.

Just commit to doing one thing at a time. Start small.

Make it short

These are meant to be short sprints.

Especially if you’re just getting started.

Sprints are not meant to be six months.

Instead, think about two to four weeks. You can do anything for a couple of weeks.

Make it a little challenge for yourself, get your family and friends involved to keep you accountable.

Embrace the suck

It’s not always going to be sunshine and roses. In fact, it might suck a little bit. Embrace the challenge and lean into it.

I hated getting up at 5:25 a.m. to step outside into the cold, dark NYC mornings to go for a walk. But I committed to doing it for “just a few weeks” to run my test.

And now it’s my daily ritual.

Your brain and body both need to be challenged.

On the other side of that challenge is real growth.

Analyze the data

Every great scientist, like Mr. Wizard, reviews the data of the experiment.

Take notes along the way. Track progress.

Check in with how consistent you are with it.

Reflect on the process and the progress of your experiments.

If you guessed that I’m going to suggest using a journal for this, you’d be correct (and clearly you’ve been following along for some time).

Any time I’m running a new experiment for myself, I’ll whip out my journal and check in:

• What’s working well?
• How am I feeling about taking on this new experiment?
• Am I changing my mind on anything?
• Is this experiment opening up new pathways and ideas for other experiments to run?

Be curious about whether this is actually serving you or if it needs to be paused, tweaked or eliminated altogether.

Now go forth and … run more experiments

Each time you test something new, you’re firing neurons in your brain that promote more creativity and give you a little confidence to experiment even more.

And you’ll get so much feedback on how you feel along the way.

It’s only a few weeks.

Don’t like it after a few weeks? Examine why that might be, make a tweak, or eliminate the thing altogether and try something else.

I was curious about how I could Level Up my own life (hence the name of this newsletter).

And I will continue to be curious.

Maybe my little systems and routines won’t serve me 10 years from now. And that’s okay. If that happens, I’ll test a new way.

Because I never want to act like I have a life all figured out … so I will continue to experiment and test and tweak.

What’s the worst that’s gonna happen if I try something new for a couple of weeks?

I’m not saving lives here; I’m not in a rush.

Might as well keep going and keep exploring.

That’s the entire purpose and meaning to life.

Get off the sidelines and just try some new things.

Track your progress. Have fun with it. Challenge yourself.

And start living.

I hope you found this useful. If so, I’d appreciate it if you sent this newsletter to one person you think would benefit from my writing today.

And if you’re new here and enjoyed this newsletter, I’d be honored if you subscribed for more at this link.

And as always, if you have any questions, please feel free to reach out.

I answer all of my emails at pete [at] petecataldo [.] com … Hit me up with the subject line “run more experiments” and I’ll answer any questions you have to make this work for you.

Until next time,
Pete