Overflowing with Nothing
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Excess is one of the defining words of culture today. Excess money for some, while others struggle. Excess emails and tasks for everyone. Business owners push AI as the next saviour because tech companies have tricked us into believing that the excess that’s good for billionaire investors is also good for us. Political excess running
The Myth of the Self-Made Success
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The introduction of Never Play it Safe ends with a story I’ve heard before from Chase Jarvis. To abbreviate it, Paul is a photographer in Africa and he gives up his living situation to pursue his dream of photography. We hear about Paul because he succeeded. His story is talked about by Jarvis as one
Three Ways to Resist the Oligarchy of Distraction
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It’s easy to say that you want to be an author, or in better shape. Show me how you spend your time and I’ll show you what you value. For many if we looked at where you focus your attention we’d assume that the most important thing in your day is scrolling on your phone
The Efficiency Trap – Why Productivity Rewards Suck and an Antidote
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This was the book club book for August 2025. Join the free newsletter to get all the posts that talk about it. In September we’re reading Never Play it Safe by Chase Jarvis Where most productivity books try to give you a system to get more done, Oliver Burkeman takes a different stance. You need
Companies Don’t Change, But People Can
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The more I experience the increasingly enshittified world controlled by corporations, the less surprised I am when they find new ways to squeeze money out of both customers and creators alike. In their continual quest for profits, I’m extremely skeptical of any promises made and instead wait to see what actions companies take and then
The Efficiency Trap and the Power of Rest
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Once you stop struggling to get on top of everything, to stay in absolute control, or to make everything perfect, you’re rewarded with time, energy and psychological freedom to accomplish the most of which anyone could be capable. –Meditations for Mortals Pg 149 When I look at much of what concerns me in a day
Stop Renting Your Life – Own It
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I’m still thinking about ownership and simplicity so here are some tips on Emacs from others, some talk about the importance of physical ownership, and a thought from an upcoming short book on choosing a note tool. Owning tasks in Emacs I’ve been using Emacs with Org mode for a few weeks now and enjoying
What if it were easy?
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One of the key questions I’ve asked myself for years when a task comes along is “What if this were easy”, so seeing Oliver Burkeman bring up the same question in week three got me smiling. One problem with typical productivity advice is that it assumes you need a deep reservoir of motivation to do
From Shelter to Side Hustles – Profit Took Over Our Lives
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What happens to life when basic needs, like housing, becomes an investment vehicle? How does you life change when the joy of watching sports is tied up with the idolization of gambling? What do we do with our leisure time when so much of the push around us asks us to monetize our hobbies calling
Sipping the Comfortable Cocktail of Procrastination and Excuses
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I’ve lost count of how many people have told me they want to write a book — but never start. They want to be authors, but they’ve invented roadblocks limiting them from writing. They enjoy their comfortable cocktail of procrastination and excuses that gives them license to avoid writing. If you’ve got young kids and
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