In this short, solo video, entrepreneur and author Mike Michalowicz shares a personal productivity habit he calls the “typewriter technique.” Filmed in his New York office, he shows a vintage typewriter on which he types his yearly intentions for 2018—covering personal life, business, and books. He explains why making goals visceral and constantly visible (e.g., on a typewriter, desktop sheet, or planner) helps keep them top‑of‑mind. Mike reviews the typewriter daily, marks achieved goals with circles, crosses missed ones with Xs, and adjusts goals that evolve over the year. He notes that most of his yearly goals are met, and the physical record of successes and adjustments motivates continued progress. The video’s purpose is to encourage viewers to adopt a tangible, regularly‑reviewed goal‑tracking system to stay aware of and achieve their entrepreneurial objectives.
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Hey, it's Mike Michalowicz here. Occasionally I like to post little videos that I think may help you in all your entrepreneurial endeavors, something I'm doing here at my own office. And, well, I don't know if you've seen my office before, so this is my office. My standing desk over there, my homage to Virginia Tech, all those football helmets over there, and beautiful views out the window of New York City. For me, it's an inspirational space. It's a little bit of my own man cave. But one thing that's really unique about this is right here, this typewriter. 'Cause I'm an author, I found a vintage typewriter in honor of the work that the people before me did with their books. And what I have on here is my intentions for 2018. I don't know if you can see it so well, but I have on here typed up every major intention I have in my personal life, my business, with my books and so forth. I look at it every day. And the tip is this, when you set goals for yourself, do something so it's visceral, so you can see it consistently, that's always in front of you. I think having a goal sheet or something, maybe put it on your desktop, or maybe you put it in a planner that you carry with you, are very helpful. For me, this is my space I come into almost every day, unless I'm out traveling speaking, and I see that typewriter sitting there every single day. And with my goals on there, it's just a fun way for me to revisit it and explore it. And sure enough, most years I hit my goals, and, or most of them at least. And then I now have a collection of them at my home office. I've been pinned against the wall every year with the ones circled that I've achieved and an X through ones I missed and an adjustment for goals that changed. Sometimes a goal I set in the beginning of the year is not the perfect goal for the end of the year, and I change what I did do. So there you have it. That's my typewriter technique, and I encourage you to do the same thing.
