What would future you do?

Happy Sunday, homies.

Hope you're having the day you need - whether it’s full of errands, seeing your people, or doing absolutely nothing.

My day is a combination of all three.

It’s been a week. Between getting my citizenship, moving into a new place and winning a hackathon, it’s been a BIG one.

The kind of week where life feels like it’s happening very quickly.

Which has actually been a nice break from the bigger existential questions I’ve been sitting with lately. The kind that creep in when life gets quiet.

But as things start to slow down again, I can feel those questions beginning to re-emerge.

So in today’s letter, I wanted to share a question a mentor asked me this week that genuinely cleared a lot of mental fog.

Without going too deep into it, I’m in one of those stages of life where there are a lot of possible directions.

Which is the positive framing when you don’t know what you want to do… because technically you could do anything. Which I love!

But if you’ve ever been in that place, you also know the other side of it.

Infinite possibilities can be incredibly exciting and incredibly overwhelming.

I was in the middle of explaining all the options, ideas and potentials swirling around in my head when he interrupted me halfway through and asked:

The version of you, five years from now, who’s deeply satisfied and fulfilled in her life - what did she do? If you’re looking for direction, work backwards from her.

Almost instantly, I could feel the shift.

Where there had been confusion, there was excitement.
Where there had been questioning, there was clarity.

And don’t get me wrong, the path was still incredibly blurry, but something was there nonetheless.

A feeling. Something I wanted to move towards.

And of course, it had been there all along.

So that’s what we’re exploring today:

How to use your future self.

You know the drill.

Go grab the journal, the beverage and find your cozy reading spot.

As always, I have a lesson, three questions, and a dare for you.

[LESSON]

There’s a reason any “future self” exercise feels so powerful.

It’s not just a motivational trick. There’s actual psychology behind it.

In behavioural science, researchers talk about something called future self-continuity.

It’s the degree to which you feel connected to the person you will become.

And here’s the interesting part:

People who feel strongly connected to their future selves make very different decisions today.

They save more money.
They make healthier choices.
They stick with long-term goals.

Because when they imagine their future self, it doesn’t feel like a stranger. It feels like them.

Psychologist Hal Hershfield’s research even showed that when people saw aged images of themselves, they were significantly more likely to make long-term financial decisions.

Why?

Because suddenly the future version of them felt real.

Not abstract. Not theoretical.

Real.

And this is where most of us struggle.

The future version of ourselves is often blurry. So when we make decisions, we optimize for the present version of us.

What feels easier?

What feels safer?

What feels good right now?

But when you spend time imagining your future self clearly - their standards, their habits, the way they move through the world, something interesting happens.

Your decisions start to change, not because you're forcing discipline.

But because you begin asking a different question.

Not:

What do I feel like doing right now?

But:

What would future me do here?

Future you becomes a compass. A reference point. A quiet guide sitting just a few years ahead, saying,

“Come this way.”

And the beautiful part? That version of you doesn’t appear magically one day.

They’re built through a thousand small choices made by the current version of you. Right now.

And as you do this, do it from an embodied place. Really feel into yourself. Really connect with yourself. And question the things you think you should want.

Is future you in a big house with a fancy car — or in a small cottage by the water?

Are they some hotshot exec — or doing a part-time job you genuinely love?

We’ve been exposed to far too much messaging about who the world thinks we should be. So take your time with this. Get honest. Get clear. And make sure the future you’re building is actually yours.

[3 QUESTIONS]

1. The version of you, five years from now, who’s deeply satisfied and fulfilled in their life - who are they? Not the resume. Not the achievements. The person.

2. What habits or standards does that version of you live by daily?

3. What are the quiet, normal things they do — without debating or negotiating with themself?

[A DARE]

This week, I dare you to make one decision from the perspective of your future self.

Just one.

Maybe it’s saying yes to something that feels slightly intimidating.

Maybe it’s saying no to something that no longer aligns.

Maybe it’s taking the first step toward something you've been circling for months.

Make the decision as if the future version of you is already real.

Because in many ways, they are.

They’re just waiting for today’s choices to catch up with them.

See you on a Sunday,
L