House Rules

The Case of the Tenth Hour

You planned the start.

You never planned the stop.

So you kept going.

Past the clarity.

Past the focus.

Into the spiral.

You called it productivity.

But really, it was panic with a calendar.

You don’t need more energy.

You need boundaries.

A set of house rules—quiet, firm, and in place before the day even starts.

So now?

I stop before the quality drops.

Focus: 3 hours.

Learn: 1.

Read: 30 minutes.

Reflect: 15.

After that, I’m pretending.

Or escaping.

Or reworking things that didn’t need to be reworked.

Not because I’m fragile.

Because time is.

The Argument

You thought more time meant more progress.

It didn’t.

It meant more cleanup.

The Tool

What I do now:

• I cap my effort—on purpose.
• Focus gets 3 hours.
• Learning gets 1.
• Reading gets 30 minutes.
• Reflection, 15.

Not the goal.

The limit.

Because doing more is easy.

Stopping well is the skill.

Case File #008 – The Case of the Tenth Hour (March 2024)
From the occasionally organized notes of Toffer Lorenzana

Fusion

The compass—shaping your focus. Build systems that direct your energy toward what matters.

Navigate life with intentional strategies that clarify your true north.



Action

The energy—fueling your drive. Align your actions with your strengths to sustain momentum.



Your personal growth and relationships become the renewable power source that transforms potential into purpose.

Vision