Life in weeks

I still remember the exact moment I first saw Tim Urban's "Your Life in Weeks" post on Wait But Why back in 2014. I was sitting in a coffee shop, taking a break from working on my journaling application—I'd already been building this diary tool and journaling consistently for three years at that point. When I stumbled upon this simple grid of squares, each representing one week of an average human life (roughly 4,000 weeks total), it perfectly captured what I'd been trying to solve with my own tool.

Something about seeing my entire existence laid out like that hit me like a truck. I was 36 at the time, which meant I'd already lived through about 1,872 weeks. The remaining squares suddenly felt both precious and terrifyingly finite.

The life calendar I built for OhDiary—each square represents a week, colored by your journal entries and experiences

The Wait But Why wake-up call

Tim Urban's visualization struck a nerve with millions of people because it made the abstract concept of a lifetime tangible. When you see your entire life laid out as a grid of squares, something profound happens in your brain. You realize that time isn't this endless resource you can always tap into later.

But here's what bothered me about the original visualization: it was static. Just empty squares staring back at you, a reminder of mortality without any actionable insight. I kept thinking, "Okay, so I have roughly 2,500 weeks left. Now what?"

Why this perspective changed everything for me

• It created urgency without panic - Understanding my finite weeks motivated me to act, but didn't overwhelm me with anxiety
• It put daily problems in perspective - That stressful week at work? Just one square out of thousands
• It made me more intentional - When you see weeks as limited resources, you spend them more wisely
• It highlighted the power of small habits - Consistent weekly actions compound over hundreds of weeks

From visualization to action: My daily journaling practice

The "Life in Weeks" grid was powerful for perspective, but I wanted to make it actionable. So I committed to an experiment: what if I documented each day as I lived it? What if those empty squares could be filled with the richness of actual experiences, thoughts, and growth?

That's when I committed to daily journaling—and I've maintained that practice consistently ever since. With OhDiary, I can view my life not just in weeks, but across multiple time perspectives: days, weeks, months, quarters, and years. Each view reveals different patterns and insights about how I'm spending my finite time.

How I make every week count

Over the years, I've developed a simple but powerful approach to weekly reflection. It's not about productivity optimization or life hacking—it's about living more consciously.

1. Sunday planning

I start each week by writing about what I want to experience or accomplish. This isn't a to-do list—it's more about setting an intention. Maybe it's being more present with my family, trying something new, or simply practicing gratitude.

2. Sunday review

Later that same Sunday, I reflect on the week that just ended by sitting down with these five questions:

• What was the highlight of this week?
• What did I learn about myself?
• How did I grow or change?
• What would I do differently?
• What am I grateful for from this week?

3. Pattern recognition

As my collection of weekly entries grew, patterns emerged. I noticed I was happiest during weeks when I exercised regularly—shocking revelation, I know! Sometimes the most obvious insights are the ones we need data to finally accept. My most productive weeks followed a certain routine. These insights helped me design a life that aligned with my natural rhythms.

Building a digital life calendar

The more I journaled, the more I wanted to see my "Life in Weeks" grid come alive. Instead of empty squares, I imagined each week filled with the colors and textures of my actual experiences—my thoughts, feelings, achievements, and memories.

This vision eventually led me to extend and improve OhDiary. I wanted to create a tool that transformed Tim Urban's sobering reminder of mortality into a celebration of life lived fully. Each journal entry represents not just time passed, but time experienced, reflected upon, and learned from.

With OhDiary, you can now see your life in weeks through multiple lenses: not just text entries, but also "photos in weeks" (showing a random photo from each week when you've uploaded multiple) and "moods in weeks" (displaying the predominant mood for each week). It's like having a visual autobiography that unfolds week by week.

Features that bring your weeks to life

In building this tool, I focused on making each week meaningful:

• Visual Life Calendar - See your entire life laid out in weeks, with each week colored based on your journal entries and moods
• Mood Tracking - Identify patterns in your emotional well-being across weeks and months
• Memory Preservation - Each week becomes a time capsule of your thoughts, experiences, and growth
• Progress Visualization - Watch your writing consistency and personal development unfold over time
• Photos in Weeks - View a random photo from each week, bringing your memories to life
• Moods in Weeks - See the predominant mood for each week, helping you understand your emotional journey

How you can start this week

You don't need to wait for Monday or the beginning of a month to start. Your life in weeks is happening right now, and this week—this very week—can be the beginning of a more intentional, reflective life.

My simple framework for beginners

If you want to try this approach, here's the simple structure I recommend for your first weekly entry:

1. This week's highlight - What was the best moment or experience?
2. Challenge faced - What was difficult, and how did you handle it?
3. Lesson learned - What insight did you gain about yourself or life?
4. Gratitude moment - What are you thankful for from this week?
5. Next week's intention - What do you want to focus on in the coming week?

This framework takes just 10-15 minutes but creates a powerful record of your weekly experience and growth. I've been using variations of this for years, and it never gets old.

The bigger picture I've learned to see

As I've built my collection of weekly entries over the years, larger patterns and themes have emerged. I can see seasonal changes in my mood, the impact of certain activities on my well-being, and how my priorities and values have evolved over time.

This macro view of life—seeing the forest as well as the trees—has been one of the most valuable gifts of consistent journaling. It provides perspective during difficult times and helps me make more informed decisions about how to spend my precious weeks.

Embracing the full spectrum

Here's something important I've learned: the goal isn't to optimize every week or achieve perfection. Life includes difficult weeks, mundane weeks, and weeks that feel wasted. The beauty of the "Life in Weeks" perspective combined with journaling is that it honors all of these experiences as part of your unique human story.

Every week I document is a week I've lived consciously. Every entry is a gift to my future self—a reminder of who I was, what I experienced, and how I grew during that particular week of my one precious life.

Your life in weeks starts now

Tim Urban's "Your Life in Weeks" visualization opened my eyes to the finite nature of time. But I've learned that you have the power to fill those weeks with intention, reflection, and growth. By combining this powerful perspective with the practice of weekly journaling, you transform time from something that simply passes into something that's truly lived.

Your life in weeks isn't just about counting down—it's about making each week count. I started this practice years ago, and it's changed how I see time, growth, and what it means to live consciously.

Start today, start this week, and begin creating a record of a life lived with purpose and awareness. Trust me, your future self will thank you.

Here's to making every week count,
With love, Peter