1-2-3 Inner Game
- Dhiren P. Harchandani
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Welcome to 1-2-3 Inner Game, your weekly hit of actionable strategies to achieve a high-performing, healthy, and thriving life.
Today's Highlights
Your Inner Game Has a Score — It’s Called HRV
1-2-3 Inner-Game
Value of Time: How to Make Every Moment Count
Brain Candy
What's Fueling My Curiosity
Listen to the audio format of this issue
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If you and I have spoken recently, you already know my latest obsession: HRV.
That tiny number inside your Health app that, quietly, ruthlessly, tells the truth about how your body is actually doing.
I’ve been watching HRV the way founders watch revenue dashboards.
Refreshing. Comparing. Asking, “What’s really going on under the hood?”
And here’s the big realization:
HRV isn’t a fitness metric. It’s a leadership metric.
Because it tells you the one thing most of us are terrible at admitting: Whether you’re actually recovering… or running on fumes.
What HRV Really Means (The version anyone will understand)
HRV = the variation in time between heartbeats.
High HRV → Your system is adaptable, resilient, ready.
Low HRV → Your system is stressed, depleted, overloaded.
It’s the earliest warning signal you have.
Long before burnout shows up… HRV does.
Why You Should Care
Your HRV reveals:
If your sleep is restorative
If emotional stress is draining you
If you’re under-recovering from training
If your lifestyle is quietly taxing your system
If you’re mentally sharp or mentally foggy
In other words:
HRV predicts your leadership capacity.
When my HRV dips, I’m more reactive, less creative, and quicker to frustration.
When it’s high, I’m strategic, clear, grounded.
It’s becoming an honest mirror.
How to Find Your Baseline
Don’t chase numbers — chase patterns.
Track your HRV for 7–14 mornings.
Calculate your average → that’s your baseline.
20% below baseline? You’re under stress. Adjust your day.
10–15% above? You’re recovering well. Push a little.
This alone can change how you train, work, and lead.
What HRV Taught Me
A few uncomfortable truths HRV exposed for me:
I can feel fine and still be physiologically stressed.
Emotional stress tanks HRV faster than physical.
Late nights hurt more than hard workouts.
Meditation actually moves the needle.
My body keeps the score even when my mind says, “I’m good.”
HRV forces honesty.
How to Use HRV Starting NOW
Morning reading → no interpretation, just data.
Low HRV → recovery, hydration, breathwork, lighter load.
High HRV → threshold work, big decisions, deep focus.
3+ days of drop → something’s off; adjust before it becomes a problem.
The Bottom Line
If revenue is the score of your business,
HRV is the score of your inner game.
It shows you what your body knows before your mind admits it.
That’s why I’m obsessed.
And if you start tracking it… you might become obsessed too.
If you’re an entrepreneur, or know one who would benefit from creating clarity, aligning their team, building momentum, and growing their business with the Bloom Growth system, I’d love to connect.
Where do you feel the most pressure to move fast?
Strategy
Execution
Team Decisions
Relationships and Conversations
Here's some Inner Game wisdom to chew on this week
1 question to punch your brain this week
Are you growing stronger — or simply growing tired? (Click to Tweet)
2 questions (and answers) from me
What’s real resilience? Not enduring more, but recovering faster. (Click to Tweet)
What’s the most underrated form of courage? Admitting when you’re not okay, and still choosing to move forward. (Click to Tweet)
3 insights for the Inner Game Junkies
Strength Isn’t Built in Comfort It’s built in those silent moments when quitting would be easier — but you don’t. (Click to Tweet)
Overwhelm Isn’t a Sign to Stop It’s a signal to simplify. Your system is asking for a redesign, not surrender. (Click to Tweet)
Your Future Self Is Built in Micro-Moments Not the big wins, but the tiny choices you make when nobody’s watching. (Click to Tweet)
Value of Time: How to Make Every Moment Count
In this episode, Dhiren and Marcus (InnerFight) dive into time management and its impact on productivity.
Join them as they discuss how to align your daily life with your values, discover joy, find the right balance in life, and prioritize goals.
Available now on Apple Podcasts and everywhere you get your podcasts
Brain Candy Tweets That Made Me Think, Laugh, or Go ‘Huh, Interesting!
True richness is a life you wouldn’t trade, even with more money.
Presence reveals itself most clearly in its absence.
What's Fueling My Curiosity
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I'm rooting for you to continue crushing it! 💪🏼
Dhiren
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