Me Plus Grid Search
Choose a direction, test its daily tasks, and pivot with evidence
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 7
- Confidence
- 99%
Me Plus Grid Search starts with a provisional picture of the future but tests that picture through tasks rather than status labels. Ask where you would like to be if things worked out, then examine what that future person actually does on an ordinary day. Choose small activities aligned with that direction and invest about 90 minutes each week. At the start of each week, review whether the tasks were enjoyable, purposeful, and useful, and consider new opportunities revealed by movement. The goal supplies temporary certainty and a direction of travel, not a binding destination. As new evidence arrives, move forward, backward, left, or right. This creates a career search process in which action generates information about preferences, capabilities, and opportunities while small investments compound over time.
Origin
Dr Grace Lordan explained Me Plus and grid-search career decisions on Deep Dive with Ali Abdaal while discussing ideas from her book Think Big.
Core principles
- 01A future identity should be evaluated through its daily tasks
- 02Direction creates movement without requiring permanent commitment
- 03Small weekly investments compound
- 04Experience produces better preference data than speculation
- 05Goals should remain open to evidence-based pivots
How to run it
- 1
Picture Me Plus
Imagine where you would like to be if fear of failure and loss aversion did not dominate the choice. Treat this as a provisional direction.
Pro tip Describe a plausible future several years ahead rather than a 30-day reinvention.
Watch out Do not confuse an attractive label or lifestyle image with suitable work.
- 2
Translate identity into tasks
List what the future role would require you to do during a normal Monday or working week.
Pro tip Ask people already in the role how they actually spend their time.
Watch out A prestigious title can conceal daily tasks you dislike.
- 3
Select small investments
Choose tasks that develop relevant skills or expose you to the work. Commit roughly 90 minutes each week to them.
Pro tip Keep the commitment small enough to repeat under normal pressure.
Watch out Doing too much at the beginning reduces the chance of repetition.
- 4
Start moving
Act toward the provisional destination even though certainty is incomplete. Use movement to encounter opportunities and learn about yourself.
Pro tip Choose a reversible first direction when several options appear plausible.
Watch out Waiting for perfect certainty can keep you stationary indefinitely.
- 5
Review each week
At the start of the week, reflect on the tasks completed, your engagement, and the information gained.
Pro tip Ask whether you enjoyed the task itself, not merely the idea of its associated identity.
Watch out Do not judge the entire direction from one unusually good or bad session.
- 6
Update from new data
Use evidence about enjoyment, purpose, skill, microculture, and opportunities to adjust the direction.
Pro tip Record what increased or reduced energy so preference patterns become visible.
Watch out Continuing solely because of sunk costs defeats the grid-search approach.
- 7
Pivot consciously
Change goals when the accumulated evidence supports a better route, while carrying forward useful skills from the previous path.
Pro tip Treat a pivot as an informed update rather than a personal failure.
Watch out Constantly switching without sustained experiments produces little useful data.
In the wild
Ali initially pictured his future self as having six-pack abs. Translating that image into tasks revealed a more useful Me Plus: someone who exercises every day and enjoys doing it. This reframing made going to the gym feel like the desired life itself rather than a sacrifice made for a distant result.
→ Exercise became a process to practice immediately instead of a contract to remain dissatisfied until an appearance goal was reached.
A medical student who does not know which specialty to pursue selects one plausible option and begins building relevant experience. Movement develops the CV, reveals opportunities, and teaches the student which tasks are enjoyable; the direction can then be changed while momentum and transferable skills remain.
→ Provisional direction replaces paralysis without demanding permanent commitment.
Common mistakes
Choosing a label
Wanting to be a doctor, trader, or lawyer reveals little about whether the associated daily tasks will be satisfying.
Attempting instant reinvention
An excessive initial commitment is difficult to repeat and obscures the value of compounding small actions.
Treating the goal as permanent
The destination is meant to create direction and should change when better evidence or opportunities emerge.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for people designing or changing a career who know only approximately what their future should look like.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for decisions that are irreversible, extremely hazardous, or too costly to explore through small experiments.
From the transcript
“what I'd like people to do is to think about where would they like to be if it all worked out?”
“I asked for a commitment of 90 minutes a week, which for most people, regardless of how pressurised you feel is very, very possible.”
“this is like a grid search.”
From the episode
Lessons I’m Taking Into 2022 - Season 1 Roundup
Season 1 Roundup