Fortitude Fridays

Vol. 136: The Tomorrow Razor, Why We Rationalize, Choose Your Battles & More

Welcome to Fortitude Fridays—part mindset training, part field notes from real life. I share what I’m learning, testing, and using to help you take better care of yourself, strengthen your mindset, and keep showing up—week after week.

Here are a few ideas as you head into the weekend.

Read time: 7 mins

This Week’s Snapshot:

• Quote: Decoding Human Behavior
• Tactic: The Tomorrow Razor
• Small Thought: How to Choose Your Battles

Truth: People are not rational. They are rationalizing. Once you understand this simple fact, all the oddest human behavior will suddenly make way more sense. -Billy Markus (Software Engineer) Most people aren’t avoiding the truth as much as they’re protecting the story they need to believe. Let that give you compassion, but also boundaries.

Tactic: The Tomorrow Razor

The tiny question that creates just enough space between impulse and action.

I do not trust myself equally at all hours of the day.

There. I said it.

Tired me? Resigned. Overstimulated me? Reactive. Overwhelmed me? Ready to burn the whole system down and call it “simplifying.”

That is why I love a good philosophical razor. A razor is a simple question or rule that cuts through the bullshit when your brain is making things harder than they need to be.

You have probably heard of Occam’s Razor, the idea that the simplest explanation is often the best place to start.

This is my version for decision-making and you are welcome to try it for yourself.

I call it The Tomorrow Razor because it brings the future close enough to matter.

Not someday-me. Not fantasy-me. Tomorrow-me.

The real one who has to wake up with whatever today hands over.

The question is simple:

I can’t tell you how many times this has saved me. For the big questions, yes, but also for the dumb little ones that quietly run our lives.

Send the email or avoid it? Go to bed or keep scrolling? Take the walk or skip it? Buy the thing or pause?

Big or small, the question is the same.

It pulls you out of the moment. Not forever. Just long enough to stop letting stress, guilt, cravings, frustration, or overwhelm drive the whole bus. Your body may be sending real signals, but real does not always mean reliable.

Those signals are real, but they are not always the best decision-makers.

They are loud, and loud is not the same as wise.

This question gives you enough distance to think past the next five minutes and treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping.

Maybe tomorrow-you would be grateful you went for the walk, sent the email, packed the lunch, checked the budget, had the conversation, went to bed earlier, or paused before buying the thing you do not actually need. Or maybe tomorrow-you would be grateful you rested instead of forcing it.

That is why this question works almost everywhere.

It is not about always choosing the most productive thing. It is about choosing the thing you are least likely to regret tomorrow.

Sometimes that is action. Sometimes that is recovery. Sometimes that is discipline. Sometimes that is kindness.

The goal is not to get it perfect. The goal is to get enough space in the moment to choose better.

Bringing it home

The choices we make do not just create outcomes. They create a story.

A story about whether we can trust ourselves. Whether we keep promises to ourselves. Whether we are taking care of future-us or constantly handing them the mess.

Most of us do not get stuck because of one giant decision. We drift there through tiny ones.

The extra scroll. The avoided email. The skipped walk. The thing we keep buying, delaying, saying yes to, or pretending does not matter.

But those choices compound.

They become our energy. Our stress. Our health. Our relationships. Our confidence. Our self-trust. Our future.

The rest of life is made up of tomorrows.

Let’s stack the odds in our favor.

Small But Mighty: Most arguments are people defending their identity, not searching for the truth. You still need to stand up for yourself. But wisdom is knowing when to say, “You’re probably right,” and be done. It’s not surrender. It’s strategy. You understand that some conversations are never about understanding, and you don’t have waste energy trying to force them to be.

Loved this:

Jon Batiste Turn Beethoven into blues. Click image to watch.

Thanks for reading. Here's to tomorrow. Until next time…

You got this,

P.S. If you’re new—welcome! I’m so glad you’re here. You’ve just stepped into a community of people who are showing up, doing the work, and getting after what matters. We’re all about learning, growing, and building real momentum—together. Let’s go!

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