How This Guy Has 30 HOURS in a Day...

...while the rest of us have 24 | (6-min read)

Today’s log is different. It’s in the lead for the ‘Most Impactful Log’ award.

One of the most beautiful things about social media is that you are able to briefly live your life through someone else’s. A perspective that you would have never had access to if it wasn’t for the internet. A couple months ago, I was scrolling through the mindless crap on TikTok until a random day-in-the-life vlog caught my attention.

It seemed like every other DITL video, clips of their day with a voice-over, but this one was different. It was WEIRD. He starts the day off at 4am, has 7.5 hours of meetings, obsesses over protein bars (who actually likes those?), and actually likes Mondays because his family has their favorite meal, fish tacos.

Sounds miserable, right? But the voiceover contained no misery, instead great appreciation. This two minute video changed my life.

Ladies and gentlemen, Out West presents to you, Timm Chiusano.

I’m not going to lie or create a false narrative that what I am about to explain to you isn’t exhausting. Still, I like that when I’m tired, I know I’m genuinely at my capacity and within the boundaries of what makes me happy. Think about that for a second, making the most of the time you have in a way that makes you most comfortable. This is certainly within the confines of family and work, but most of us have those variables anyway. The question then becomes how can one craft their world so that they can have true enjoyment consistently and feel like they are getting the most out of every day.

Happiness above all else. Let’s start there. My name is Timm, and it is 4:38 in the morning on a Wednesday. I got an ask yesterday to write an article for my amazing friends Tejas and Sean [and Daniel! (soon)]*, so here I am making sure it was towards the top of my to-do list because those fuckers gave me a deadline of Friday morning…

Currently, I am the Vice President of Production & Creative Services for a company called Spectrum Reach. I lead a team of about 240 amazing creative people spread out across over 30 states, and we primarily focus on creative campaigns for small businesses.  Long story short, if you have ever seen a small or regional business commercial on TV or on a streaming service, there is a good chance my team produced it.

Because of the size of my team, my desire to work out at least a little bit every day, my incredible wife, my thoughtful and kind daughter, and my insatiable appetite to make mediocre content at scale, I have been scheduling my day in 15-minute increments for quite some time now. It starts at 4:00 (4:02 to be exact) every morning. For me, this creates so much opportunity over the course of a day - but with flexibility. I don’t change direction every 15 minutes, but it allows me to frame what I want to do and how long it realistically takes.

As a teenager, I sucked at school but was obsessed with over-delivering at work, even if that was just being a caddie, driving range boy or lifeguard. I totally had phases where, if I wasn’t working, I would sleep till noon and play video games while eating chicken parm and candy. In my 20’s I started to evolve a bit but not a ton. The difference was living on my own for the first time. How could I jam in all the video games, while also overdelivering at work?

The answer: make a list of shit to-do across Manhattan and see how strategically I could get it done. Starting downtown, before making my way back up to 89th street, where I lived at the time.  

Today, almost nothing has changed about me at my core.  If nothing else, my current routine is the same in principle as the way I looked at a Saturday in my 20’s. I just try to “idiot-proof” as much of my time as possible so that I can enjoy everything as much as possible. I wear a suit and tie Monday through Thursday because I want to - and it‘s brainless dressing. I eat the same thing for lunch every day because I love that salad and it‘s one less decision to make.

The takeaway hopefully is this. First, happiness above all else. If you find what you love in little pockets throughout the day, while repeating those things as often as you can, your routine breeds happiness. It’s like saying:

“OK, if I have a job, family and other responsibilities, what is the best goddamn day I can structure around everything to do ALL the things while being a bit selfish too?”

That’s how I do what I do. That’s how I’ve made 700+  TikToks while doing everything else. That’s how I met Tejas and Sean [and hopefully Daniel soon!]*. That’s how I enjoyably make the most of the 18 hours I give myself a day.

That’s also why I am ending this here. It's 5:00am now and it's time to try and make a TikTok, go for a walk, hit the gym, get home and get back out the door by 7:30ish.

Go do what you want with the time you have. Don’t forget it’s your time and you get to spend it the way you want to. And please, never forget: happiness above all else.

What is success? Graduating college? Landing your dream job? Having enough money to say “fuck it”?

Sure, any of those things. It might just be plugging the USB in correctly the first time. But success means one thing to me - and Timm Chiusano is a walking example. 

Earning money, building a business, gaining status - they’re all admirable. But what’s really admirable is achieving any of that with a whole separate priority. The priority for others. Early in our lives, it’s easy to look forward and think that we’ll always cherish our inner circles. But inevitably responsibilities rise, stakes heighten, vision tunnels - and we can leave people behind. It’s a common side effect to working hard, and I think we’re all susceptible to this. 

And boy, does Timm work hard. I won’t even delve into his work ethic, time management, all of that grownup stuff. But where Timm really shines in my eyes is how he treats his family. Timm’s wife and daughter feature frequently in his videos - but not as side characters. Timm’s family is the beating heart of his content. Without them, his channel’s soul would falter. His platform, his essence, is fuelled by his loving home. 

Some people forget this. They’re honed in, head down - but the byproduct is weakening ties with those who care. And hey, reader - I’ve felt this once or twice. But I have two important things to mention here. Firstly, if we’re focusing on what’s good for “climbing the ladder” - a strong family is an advantage. Timm knows this. I’m sure he’d admit he can credit much of his work to the time he has away from it. But what we should really take away from Timm is that professional prosperity is never the end goal. 

“Do your best to make those around you feel really good about themselves.” - Timm Chiusano

As a 22 year old finding my feet in the industry, finding a work life balance has been somewhere I’ve truly struggled. All it takes is one glance at someone like Timm to know that there is no sacrifice in prioritising our relationships. We’re always just building the best version of ourselves.

Every time Timm posts a video, my first thought after watching it through is something along the lines of “man, he’s figured it out.” But, for some reason, I’ve never been sure of what he’s figured out - until today, when he graced us with this article. 

Ever since I first found his channel over a year ago, I’ve always looked up to him, his life, his ethics, and his morals - all of which are glaringly apparent in all of his content. His consistency (not just in his life), but in his videos makes his channel very bingable. Timm does a great job of purveying authenticity through the short-form medium, and has a proclivity to make the mundane 9-5 fantastical and inspiring.

I mean, just reading his article made me feel as though I was walking through a painting - impressions of titular moments throughout his life, all coalescing into a singular lesson. A true master of his craft, Timm bobs and weaves words into your brain in a way that really, really impacts you.

Out of all the two-second moments he records throughout the day, the ones that bring joy to his life are the ones that matter. Every Timm video is a reminder of that. Although it’s rarely the main subject of his videos, it is definitively the overarching purpose of his content.

It’s so easy to forget what we’re doing here, from a high-level perspective. Happiness is the goal, always, no matter what. To be able to wake up (even at 4am), be “on” for 18 hours and STILL make time to foster the relationships that matter at home? Who wouldn’t want that?

Timm, on behalf of myself, and pretty much everyone: thank you. I truly wouldn’t be the same today had I not found your channel.

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(Tejas wrote the intro, that’s why he ain’t have a banner this week).

Have you seen Timm’s content? If you have, what’s your favorite part about him as a creator? If you haven’t, what’s your first impression of him?

Let us know below, and like always, we’ll respond to every stinkin’ one.

On behalf of the OW crew, THANK YOU TIMM for taking precious time out of your day to humor our silly little newsletter. We can’t thank you enough. Drinks on us next time