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The 4000 Weeks Shock: The Most Jarring Way to Think About Your Time

Part 1: Why This Framing Changes Everything

Author

Arzoo Batra
March 31, 2025

In partnership with

"4000 weeks is by far the most insane framing for how short life is."

I came across this tweet the other day and it hit me like a punch to the gut. Why? Because it's true.

The average human lifespan is about 80 years – or just 4,000 weeks. Not millions. Not hundreds of thousands. Just 4,000.

And if you're 30 right now? You've already used up 1,500 of them.

Think New Amsterdam GIF by NBC

Beyond Productivity Hacks

For years, we've chased productivity systems promising to help us fit more into each day.

But what if that's the wrong approach entirely?

đź’ˇ : No amount of optimization will give you more weeks. The counter only moves in one direction.

How Top Performers Are Responding

This limitation isn't just depressing – it's the key to a more meaningful approach to work:

Warren Buffett treats his attention like having a punch card with only 20 punches for his entire career.

Bill Gates schedules complete isolation twice yearly to think without distraction.

Jeff Bezos intentionally keeps his calendar mostly empty, focusing on a few high-leverage meetings.

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What This Means For You

  1. No More "Someday" Projects With only 4,000 weeks, "I'll do it someday" is actually saying "This isn't worth any of my limited weeks."

  2. The End of Infinite Browsing Every hour of mindless scrolling is literally consuming your finite life.

  3. Rethinking Professional FOMO You're designed to miss out on 99.9% of what's available. Choose wisely.

(This is Part 1 of today's newsletter. Part 2 will land in your inbox in a few hours with tactical approaches to implementing the 4000 weeks mindset. Stay tuned...)