Saturday mornings in the late ’80s were sacred to me. Every week, I’d wake up, grab a bowl of cereal, and flip through the three network channels we had, hunting for cartoons. I loved it.

DuckTales. Muppet Babies. Transformers. Thundercats. Gummi Bears. Honestly, if it was animated and on TV Saturday mornings, odds are I watched it.

One of my favorite things every year was the special preview showing the new fall lineup of Saturday morning cartoons. Remember those? It felt like a sneak peek into another world.

But of all the cartoons, one show stood above the rest: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The fights. The jokes. The ridiculous and amazing characters! The theme song. Michelangelo was the ultimate party dude, and I thought it was the funniest thing I had ever seen.

One year, my mom even ordered a cake from my favorite bakery, Kennedy’s, designed to look like the turtles’ sewer hideout. She put one of my presents right on top: a Raphael action figure. To this day, it’s one of the only birthday cakes I remember.

And I wanted to be a turtle. I once used green frosting from turtle-themed cupcakes to paint my entire face in the back seat of my grandma’s car. When she turned around and saw me, she laughed harder than I’ve ever heard her laugh.

At the time, I wasn’t thinking about teamwork, leadership, or focus. But looking back now, I realize the show was teaching me something big without me even noticing. It was showing me the power of clarity and why it matters so much when a group of people comes together around a shared purpose.

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles started as a playful parody comic in 1984, created by Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. By 1987, the cartoon exploded, and suddenly these four wildly different turtles were everywhere.

I thought I loved it for the pizza, the battles, and the “Cowabunga!” catchphrases. But now I see it was sneakily teaching me what powerful teamwork looks like.

Each turtle had a clear role:

They couldn’t have been more different, but three things united them: a shared mission, a trusted mentor, and belief in each other’s roles. Splinter gave them purpose. Protecting New York gave them focus. Trusting each other made them strong.

That’s the real lesson.

When a team, a family, or a group of friends aligns on what matters most, differences stop creating friction and start becoming fuel.

Decisions get easier. Energy flows where it should.

Chaos turns into clarity..

Essentialism is about clarity. It’s the practice of focusing on what truly matters and letting go of the rest so your time, energy, and attention flow to the things that make the biggest difference.

For individuals, that means saying no to distractions and protecting your highest contribution. For teams, families, or any group working toward a common goal, essentialism unlocks something even greater: joy.

Think about the turtles again. They were wildly different, yet when they worked toward the same mission, something clicked. Big battles felt lighter, victories felt sweeter, and even setbacks were easier to handle because they faced them together.

That is the power of an aligned team. When everyone knows what matters most, you stop competing and start creating. You find energy instead of draining it. Friction turns into flow. And in the process, you rediscover the kind of joy you had as a kid on a Saturday morning when even hard work felt fun because you were in it together.

Without clarity, even the most talented groups get stuck in frustration and burnout. With clarity, people thrive. They contribute in their own unique ways, trust each other’s roles, and build something bigger than themselves.

In this section every week, I’ll give step by step instructions on how to tackle one project. It could be something simple and small like this week’s assignment, or it could be more involved. Once you take on a few of these, you’ll learn some of the common strategies that can be applied to just about anything.

My hope for this newsletter is to make it feel like a mini-coaching session with me.

So now, it’s time to…

If the turtles taught us anything, it’s this: a group works best when everyone understands the mission. Without clarity, differences create friction. With clarity, they create strength.

Here’s a seven-step process to help your group find alignment and create a shared mission you can rally around:

Pick one group that matters right now. Your work team, your family, or your circle of friends. Set aside 20–30 minutes where everyone can be fully present and distraction-free.

Tip: Smaller groups work better for this. If you have more than six people, consider breaking into sub-groups and comparing later.

Before diving in, explain why this matters:

“This isn’t about adding more work. It’s about making life simpler for all of us by focusing on what matters most.”

Tip: Framing it around simplicity lowers resistance and helps everyone buy in emotionally.

Start with one focused question:

“What matters most to us right now?”

Keep the focus on this season or this project, not forever.

Tip: If people struggle to answer, try flipping it and ask: “What would make this season/project a win for us?”

Go around and invite each person to share what’s important to them.

Tip: Write everything down without editing. People open up faster when they feel fully heard.

Look at everyone’s answers together and start grouping similar ideas. You’ll see themes emerge naturally.

Tip: Keep an eye out for overlap between seemingly opposite ideas. That’s often where breakthroughs happen.

Distill the patterns into one short, powerful statement:

Tip: Test your draft by reading it aloud. If it sounds clunky, simplify until it feels natural.

This is where essentialism comes alive. Use your mission as a decision-making filter:

Tip: Revisit your mission regularly. A simple monthly check-in keeps everyone aligned and energized.

Not every group gets a wise mentor like Splinter or a headquarters in the sewer to bring them together. But every team, family, or circle of friends can find strength in clarity.

When you know what truly matters, everything feels lighter. Decisions get easier. Tension fades. And you start to rediscover the simple joy of working toward something bigger than yourself. That is what made the turtles unstoppable, and it is what can transform any group into something remarkable.

Take a minute this week to think about your “team,” whoever they are. Do you all know what matters most? Are you pulling in the same direction or in four different ones?

That simple alignment is where the real magic lives.

And if you want help bringing essentialism into your team, your family, or your life, hit reply.

I would love to chat and help you find your own version of clarity.