From Theory to Practice
A look inside practical applications of a systems thinking approach to life
From “Why” to “How”: Answering Life’s Big Questions
The ultimate test of any framework, guide, or philosophy for everyday life isn’t its intellectual appeal; it’s how useful it is in the real world. Over the past few weeks, I’ve explored how learning to see the world through a systems lens can bring clarity. I’ve also shared tools that can be used for understanding the complex dynamics that shape our lives.
When we can see the structures and feedback loops that govern the systems around us, we gain the ability to work within them more effectively. We can spot leverage points in which to intervene, anticipate consequences that manifest downstream, and find ways to make things better through optimization.
Once we develop this capability of understanding systems, we can begin to work on improving them. And I can’t think of a better place to start putting this knowledge to action than with the most important ones we’ll ever manage — the systems within our own lives.
This task gets to the heart of why Part 3 of the book was my favorite to write. Those who know me well can attest that I’m obsessed with finding practical and actionable solutions to life’s big questions: How do we decide what to do? How do we manage our time and energy? How do we handle the flood of information and turn it into usable knowledge? How do we live with purpose?
Part 3 is my latest thinking around this obsession. It’s where the theory of systems thinking becomes practice, translating these powerful ideas into concrete strategies for designing a life of clarity, purpose, and resilience.
An Overview of the Answers & Their Origins
The final third of this book addresses some of the fundamental “how-to” questions we all face. Many of these ideas started as explorations over the past 18 months right here on this Substack, and have since evolved and deepened as I have integrated them into the book’s framework. Below is a brief overview of Part 3’s core components.
How do I design a life that aligns with my vision? (Chapter 12: Life Planning)
This chapter moves beyond simple goal-setting to the work of designing a complete life planning system. The core ideas evolved from a post I wrote last year on Achieving Your Goals, focusing on a connecting long-term vision to your daily habits. Building on insights from thinkers like Cal Newport, Angela Duckworth, and David Allen, I explore this concept, showing how to build a hierarchical structure with built-in feedback loops to ensure that your actions consistently guide you closer to the life you want to live, despite how messy your daily life gets.
How do I manage the flood of information I consume? (Chapter 13: Knowledge Management)
Trying to keep up with life in 2025 often feels like trying to drink from a firehose. This chapter tackles that challenge directly by introducing a systems approach to managing the information you consume. I build significantly on concepts developed by Tiago Forte and those I wrestled with in my posts about Designing My Digital Knowledge Hub and Building My Second Brain. The aim is to create a system that helps you capture, organize, and synthesize the information you encounter, enabling you to think better and turn information into usable knowledge.
How do I decide what to do right now? (Chapter 14: Dynamic Prioritization)
We’ve all faced the frustrations of an ever-growing to-do list in our lives. Instead of prioritization tactics that often fail us, this chapter offers a dynamic system that aligns your tasks with your natural energy cycles. I first wrote about this idea in my post on Priority Stacks. In the book, I build further upon this concept through a complete systems lens, providing a practical method for ensuring you do your most important work when you’re best equipped for it, working with your body’s rhythms, not against them.
How do I live a life of meaning and purpose? (Chapter 15: A Life of Purpose)
This is the final and perhaps most fundamental question. It’s a topic I’ve been exploring for years, and one I spend considerable time thinking about. Way back when I started this Substack, I wrote a post about it called Finding Meaning. In this concluding chapter of Part 3, I explore how a fulfilling life isn’t usually achieved by chasing it directly, but rather it emerges naturally from a well-designed life system — one that integrates the needs of the Mind, Body, and Soul. Through this framework, I explore how we can build habits that nurture these areas from the ground up, creating a foundation from which purpose can arise.
An Excerpt from Part 3
To give you a concrete example of this practical approach in action, I wanted to share another excerpt from my current manuscript. The section below is taken directly from Chapter 14 on dynamic prioritization. The core idea originated in my post on Priority Stacks, but my thinking and the system itself have evolved since then. This updated take applies a systems mindset to tackle the fundamental daily question: What should I actually be doing with my time right now?
Using Priority Stacks for Dynamic Prioritization
In 2019, I was listening to a now-discontinued podcast, Exponent, hosted by Ben Thompson, founder of the website Stratechery. In one episode, Thompson introduced an idea called “principle stacks,” which he described as a rank-ordering of a company’s core principles. He recommended that firms undergo this exercise and utilize it when facing decisions involving political, business, or ethical issues.
I considered the idea. However, instead of viewing it through the lens of a company, I thought about how it applied to one’s life. Every day, we are faced with moments where multiple priorities vie for our time. A preordained set of rules or values would make in-moment decision-making much more manageable.
Its implementation didn’t become clear to me for a few years. But once I developed a better sense of how my energy levels varied throughout the day, the idea became clearer. Priority Stacks work by pre-sorting tasks into different categories based on the type of energy and context they require, then matching your current state to the appropriate stack.
The system has three building blocks:
Areas: These are the different types of work in your life. For me, this includes (but is not limited to):
Family: My roles as a father to my daughters and a husband to my wife
Professional Career: My duties as a representative of the firm to which I am employed
Writing: My pursuit to grow my abilities as a writer and create this book
Self-Development: My quest to develop my mental and physical health
Community: My role as a homeowner, neighbor, and member of my local community
Each area requires different types of energy and often operates in distinct contexts.
Context Windows: These are the time blocks in your day when certain types of work are possible. Context windows are defined by:
Physical location (home, office, commute)
Tools available (computer, phone, notebook)
Social Environment (alone, with others, interruptible)
Time boundaries (before meetings, during the workday, weekends, after kids’ bedtime)
For example, I have a context window from 6-8 AM that’s perfect for deep work: I’m at home, the house is quiet, I have my computer, and there are no interruptions. I have another window from 1-2 PM that’s constrained to my phone while walking — perfect for calls or listening to educational podcasts.
Constraints: These are the factors that limit what you can do when:
Fixed commitments (meetings, appointments)
Energy patterns (when you naturally peak and dip)
External dependencies (when others are available)
Physical needs (meals, exercise, sleep)
The magic happens when you align all three. A writing session that requires deep focus energy fits perfectly into that quiet 6-8 AM context window. A walking meeting with a colleague aligns with the afternoon energy dip when movement helps maintain alertness. Playing with my daughters works best in the evening, when creative and playful energy naturally emerges. Instead of trying to force complex strategic thinking for work at the end of the day, or attempting to be fully present with my kids while mentally reviewing my task list, I match each area’s demands to the appropriate energy state and context window.
Conclusion & A Look Ahead
I hope the overview and excerpt above give you a clearer picture of how Part 3 aims to turn the concepts and tools from the first two parts into practical strategies that you can use within your own life designs. The goal isn’t just to understand the world around you, but to consciously design the systems you live within.
The preorder campaign for The Journey to Phronesis is open and running through November 9. The early support has been incredible. If my approach to thinking and living resonates with you, preordering the book is the most meaningful way you can support this project.
You can find all the details and preorder your copy here: https://books.manuscripts.com/product/the-journey-to-phronesis-the-art-of-thinking-in-systems-and-living-with-purpose/
Thank you again for being on this journey with me. I’ll be back in your inbox next week to explore the thread that runs throughout the entire book: Stoicism. I’ll look at how this ancient philosophy has surprising parallels with modern systems thinking, offering timeless wisdom for navigating our complicated world.
All the best,
Michael Lukich