This was from the latest edition of The Optimized Report newsletter, a collection of actionable ideas to help small business teams improve their performance, profit, and potential without sacrificing what's most important.

There are two things guaranteed in life; we're born, and we're going to die.

Everything else is the messy middle. You can't predict the exact events, but you can always prepare for them.

It's what the Stoics called Premeditation Malorum. It's an exercise in which one imagines things going wrong in their life. Viewing life through this lens helps us prepare for the most nefarious situations. It helps us understand that life is by far from perfect.

It's not meant to shield us from pain or sadness but instead, prepare for it.

And it applies to every area of your life, including your career and business.

Now, on to this week's optimized ideas: 👇

Stop Doing Irritating Work

Some type of work pisses me off.

My mood instantly changes, so when I read a book by Dan Sullivan to constantly update your focus to what you find fascinating, I was all in.

In this essay, I define the three types of tasks you must always classify to continually push yourself to higher-value activities—what you find fascinating.

Doomer Optimism

Tucker Max defines Doomer Optimism as "The shit's gonna hit the fan, but if I do my work, it'll be OK."

What's that about? You guessed it, being prepared. His article "Doomer Optimism: What I See Coming, & How I'm Preparing" has gotten him much attention lately.

The attention landed him having a further conversation about it on The James Altucher Show.

His points are vital to preparing yourself in all areas of life.

Related: 536 AD — the Worst Year in History

Elon Musk 5 Steps To Making Things Better

Elon is an improvement master.

He makes things incrementally better over time. In the Next Big Future, the author quickly explains how Elon prioritizes making things better.

The first is, "Make your requirements less dumb."

Related: Top 10 Reasons To Keep Work Simple

Inventory Is Screwed

Just-in-tine inventory has been the gold standard of inventory optimization.

But when shit hits the supply-chain fan, it leaves businesses with critical inventory out of stock. That's why Inbound Logistics wrote an article about Balancing Just-in-Time with Just-in-Case.

"Filling a warehouse with years of inventory isn't feasible. Neither is running out of inventory after a disruptive week in the supply chain."

Related: Is Globalization Over? The Risk And Reward Of An International Supply Chain

Can Oxygen Reverse Aging?

"The most common bottleneck faced by the 'normal aging' population is related to blood vessel potency and blood/oxygen supply."

Deepak Chopra believes the reversal of aging can happen by using HyperbaricOxygen Therapy (HBOT).

"The HBOT study not only stopped the shortening of telomeres but also found that telomeres increased by more than 20 percent in length in less than 3 months."

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