đ§ The Boxing Day subtract
Fly lighter, steer better: remove one thing for seven days and give your week back its margin.
đ§ Welcome to this weekâs issue of The Shift from Mindset Rebuild, where we update your inner map so that next week moves more easily.
âïž One gentle pivot you can actually feel by Friday.
đ Rename one thing today and watch what changes.
𫶠Fridays are free. Upgrade for Wednesday build notes + copy-ready cards.
Some weeks donât need a rename. They need a removal.
Boxing Day carries that energy. You see the pile, keep what matters, and carry one box out.
Not a purge; just enough subtraction to let the good stuff breathe.
Today Iâm borrowing a line from Antoine de Saint-ExupĂ©ry (1900â1944), the French aviator and writer who balanced poetry with flight plans.
Heâs credited with a design rule I return to when my week feels crowded:
Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
I donât need perfection. I need a week that steers.
the subtraction test (takes two minutes)
Look at your coming week. Ask three plain questions:
What do I keep that still earns its place?
What looks useful but quietly blocks momentum?
What would I never start todayâif it didnât already exist?
No judgment.
Youâre not cleaning house; youâre clearing one square foot of counter.
where subtraction helps most
Skip the sacred cows; start small where friction is loudest:
a standing update that never changes anyoneâs mind
a report no one reads, kept âjust in caseâ
a task label that spawns debate every time you use it
a meeting segment (not the whole meeting) that eats the first 15 minutes
Pick one. Remove exactly that.
Donât replace it yet.
Saint-Ex in the cockpit
Saint-Exupéry flew mail planes across the Andes and the Sahara before writing at night.
Flying forced a pragmatic aesthetic: every extra bolt has a cost; every gauge must earn its spot.
He didnât worship minimalism; he respected load.
In the air and at work, excess weight erodes margin.
Subtraction is not an aesthetic choice; itâs how you make room for control.
Thatâs the spirit here: not a vibe, a margin.
the Boxing Day move (how to do it kindly)
Write a single line where the work lives:
âFor the next 7 days, weâre removing [one element] from [place]. If anything breaks, weâll restore it and note the evidence. Review date: [next Friday].â
Thenâimportantâadd one sentence of care:
âIf you relied on this, tell me once and Iâll either restore it or show you the better path.â
Youâre not yanking rugs. Youâre testing weight.
a small example (lightly disguised)
A teamâs Monday stand-up always starts with âround-the-room wins.â
Itâs sweet, but it burns 15 minutes and makes the real decisions rushed.
They post:
Remove: the âwinsâ round from Monday stand-up for 7 days
Why: create margin for deciding the week
Care: wins go in #celebrate; PM will pull two into Friday
Fridayâs review shows fewer rush items, clearer assignments, and more wins posted, because people share them when they happen.
The team keeps the change and adds a monthly âlong winsâ meeting that doesnât steal Monday.
if youâre nervous, make it reversible
Archive, donât delete (docs, labels, reports)
Pause, donât cancel (recurring segments)
Silent mode, not off (notifications you suspect are noise)
Youâll quickly determine whether the item was load-bearing.
If it was, put it back with dignity and a tiny note about why it matters.
If it wasnât, enjoy the space you just gave the week.
what to ship today (tiny receipts)
Do these two things, and youâll feel the floor firm up:
Post the removal line where the click happens.
Save one receipt that proves either ânothing brokeâ or âthis needed restoring.â
Next Friday, keep whichever story is true.
Youâre not trying to be clever. Youâre trying to be honest with the weight your week can carry.
why this matters now
Renames (last week) point the attention. Removals return margin.
In holiday weeks, when calendars are weird and energy is mixed, margin beats ambition.
Saint-Ex would approve: fly lighter, steer better.
With a kinder pace,
~Warren
P.S.
Want a calm 90 minutes to pick the one thing to remove (without denting trust)? The Clarity Sprint is open. Not sure if it fits? Reply with one sentence about the knot, and Iâll point you to the smallest move.