Weekly Quote: Marcus Aurelius on Having no Opinion

This week’s quote comes from Marcus Aurelius, author of Meditations, Stoic philosopher, and Roman Emperor from 161 to 180.

Choosing not to have an opinion on a subject over which you have no control is a valuable lesson. It’s vital to learn the difference between what should receive your attention and the low signal, high noise stuff that doesn’t deserve your time but does its best to get in front of you regardless.

When you cast your opinion towards things that don’t matter, when you comment and like or share, when you offer an idea that you may not even believe in, it’s easy to get sucked into a vortex that makes you unhappy and robs you of your attention and inspiration. It’s not an easy place to escape, so avoid it.

In fact, entire industries thrive when you don’t follow this advice, with some sharing impressive quarterly earnings on calls to their investors, touting the financial success of their engagement strategy.

Time is the most valuable commodity you have. Do everything you can to avoid getting caught up in things that don’t matter. Guard your attention, and honor yourself by making the most of it.

Weekly Quote: Tony Fadell, Author of “Build,” on Screwing Up

This week’s quote comes from the book Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making by Tony Fadell, founder and one-time CEO of Nest Labs and the co-creator of the iPod and the iPhone.

Mistakes are the language of growth, and the idea of productive struggle is one of untapped potential. It’s a powerful experience to learn something, especially after getting it wrong.

I’m a few days late with this because of illness in the family, and I’m unable to write many thoughts, although I do not doubt that I’ll be sharing more from this book in the future. Tony is an accomplished and driven guy from whom we can all learn a great deal.

PKM Toolkit: Using Kindle for Learning and Research

Books are a significant source of joy in my life and a big part of what inspires this site. I read daily, even if only for a short time on busy days, and I do most of my reading using the Kindle app on my iPad.

I like using Kindle because it makes reading more manageable and more accessible. I can easily organize highlights and streamline knowledge transfer into other places for future access. Here are some other reasons why Kindle is an essential aspect of my personal knowledge management system.

Readwise Integration

I wrote about how much I use and like Readwise in the first entry of the PKM Toolkit series. I have used an old-fashioned highlighter in print books and then typed those quotes or passages into Readwise, but it’s time-consuming. Live Text on iOS makes this a little easier by taking a photo and then copying the text,, but highlighting in the Kindle app is simple. Readwise is integrated with Kindle and can automatically sync highlights for me.

Using the Kindle highlight feature, which imports into Readwise easily, is a low-friction way for me to take notes because I need to highlight the text. As a result, the interruption in reading is limited.

Split Screen for Intensive Note Taking

While Readwise is my go-to app for short highlights and the quotes that I feature, Craft is the app I use for data collection, in-depth note-taking, and as a tool for reviewing and tracking my projects.

On my iPad, I can have Craft and Kindle open in split-screen, so I can paste text and take notes. I don’t do this often, but it’s convenient to have the option.

Searching

The keyword search feature in Kindle works well. I like how It breaks down the results into different sections, starting with notes and highlights and then sections of the book by chapter.

I use this feature a lot when building a quote post, so I can find the original context from which the quote was pulled.

Access on Other Devices

Sometimes I read on my iPhone or my hardware Kindle, and because the sync feature is pretty reliable, I can switch back and forth as needed.

Where it Fits in

I get a lot of information from the books I read, which end up in different places based on the intended use. Highlights go into Readwise but can end up in Craft for a different kind of review, and some go to Day One in my personal reflection journal, where I can write at length to get more clarity on a concept. 


Despite enjoying ebooks, I still like the printed page, and my personal preference for Kindle is what works best for me right now. With Kindle, I like the portability, ease of note-taking, and access to my books on different devices.

If you’re trying to improve your reading experience on the iPad, you can read about how I hid the reading progress and clock in Kindle and also check out my Reading Focus Mode that helps deal with distractions.

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PKM Toolkit is a series featuring software and ideas that help collect, organize, review, and share knowledge.  You can learn more about personal knowledge management by reading the first entry of the series.

Weekly Quote: Annie Murphy Paul, Author of “The Extended Mind,” on Teaching to Learn

This week’s quote comes from a favorite and often quoted book here on 24 Letters, The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain by Annie Murphy Paul.

The context of this quote is that children who are encouraged to take home what they are learning and teach it to their family members can learn more and better understand the material through this act.

This seems to work, in a few different ways, in our adult lives too.

When you were asked to teach your colleague that new system at work, it probably helped you learn it more thoroughly. It may have sharpened your social skills, potentially giving you more confidence, greater empathy, and a better understanding of communicating clearly.

When you go to your doctor, you may experience the teach-back method. Health care professionals are increasingly being trained to ask in a nuanced way for the patient to repeat back what they heard after a conversation so they can offer clarification and address any misunderstandings. The added benefit is that by doing this, the recipient has an opportunity to better understand the information by teaching it to the provider.

You probably remember someone who taught you something important. It may have been in school, a job, or maybe a friend who impacted your life. Perhaps it was a new skill that made you better at your job or a new idea that helped you improve your relationships. Whatever it was, you know the value of teaching even if it isn’t your job because you not only remember that person, you remember how they changed you. Everyone can and should teach what they know; it’s a gift you can give someone that can help improve their lives and the lives of those they touch.

Weekly Quote: Stephen Covey on Leadership and Management

This week’s quote comes from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.

This quote resonates with the leadership and management styles that I most admire. Skilled leaders recognize that they are a beacon of strength, experience, and guidance to those around them, and they see their team as vital to their own success and treat them as such.

I’ve found the best outcome for a leader, and a team is to develop a symbiotic relationship where all involved rely on each other for individual and collective success. No one does it alone, and embracing that can be the key to the kind of forward momentum that results in triumph.

PKM Toolkit: Using Day One for Higher-Level Personal Reflection

I keep several journals in Day One. I’ve had a general catch-all since I started using the app regularly in 2016, and I have a gratitude journal that I wrote about here. The newest one I’ve created is for higher-level personal reflection. It’s where I ponder big ideas.

The most recent entry is about focusing on the present and being in the moment, which I struggle with sometimes. Another topic I’m writing about is humility, looking at this concept through the lens of my relationship with various elements of my family, friends, and professional groups. I don’t write in this journal daily, although I have a reminder to look at it weekly and glance at the topics under review, sometimes contributing and writing further.

Journaling, in whatever form works for you, is worth doing for many reasons. It doesn’t have to be complicated or fancy, and while a prompt or theme can be helpful, it’s unnecessary. Just start writing your thoughts. It helps figure challenges out and better understand yourself and those that are closest and most important to you.

Weekly Quote: Ryan Holiday on Answering the Call

This week’s quote comes from Courage is Calling by Ryan Holiday, an author who is a continued inspiration for me.

Get Started. Go for it. Do it.

When starting a new project, you need encouragement to overcome the resistance. I am thankful for the family and friends who supported me as I launched this project because my negative soundtrack was loud! I didn’t fully understand what came next, and I was scared.

Now, seven months into publishing weekly entries with several regular features, part of the pleasure of working on this project is that I’m still figuring some of this out. I have ideas at various stages of creation, and I’m taking the time to write and think about them, to clarify and build them into something cohesive and tangible that I can share with you.

The vital first step in any creative endeavor is to begin. I started writing blog posts before registering the domain or even settling on the site name because I wanted to start by bringing my ideas to life. The more I wrote, the more confident I became and the more I wanted to accomplish. My confidence grew because I thought less in the abstract and took the time to get work done.

Is there something you want to do? If so, what are you waiting for? Start it, and know that it may become something other than what you originally planned, but know it will be yours.

Finding Focus: Hiding the Clock and Reading Progress in Kindle

I like to minimize distractions while reading on the iPad. Without the proper controls, a connected device can become a firehose of eye-catching notifications. I wrote about how well my Reading Focus Mode is working for me, and that has inspired me to try and reduce the amount of visible data on screen in the Kindle itself. To accomplish this, I’ve decided to hide the Reading Progress data that displays in the lower left corner and the current time that appears in the upper left corner.

It’s easy to toggle these options in the Kindle App. Just do the following:

1. Open a book and press anywhere in the middle of the screen. Doing this will change the view and offer settings and other options.

2. In the upper right corner of the screen, press the icon featuring an upper and lowercase letter and navigate to the More category.

3. Under the More pane, toggle Visible Clock.

4. Press on Reading Progress and adjust as desired.

5. If you check all options available under Reading Progress, it will hide the information but keep it accessible with a tap to the lower left corner while you are reading.

I’m enjoying the white space that this creates. I know it’s a little tweak, but sometimes those can significantly improve an experience. I think this is one of those situations. If you try it, let me know if you find it helpful.

Weekly Quote: Ward Farnsworth, Author of The Practicing Stoic, on Living in the Present

This week’s quote comes from The Practicing Stoic: A Philosophical User’s Manual by Ward Farnsworth, a book I am slowly reading and very much enjoying. I’ve written about this book before and continue to gather insights into Stoicism and how it can help shape my personal and professional journey.

I’ve spent this week living firmly in the present with a house full of sick people (that includes me), and I haven’t had much time to write or do anything beyond survival. I’m happy to live in the present, yet I look forward to the family being well and our routine returning to normal soon.

Weekly Quote: Harry Truman on Reading to Lead

This week's quote comes from Harry Truman, the 33rd President of The United States. In A 1962 letter to Dean Acheson, his Secretary of State from 1945 to 1947, Truman references how essential his reading as a young man was for his time as President, referring to it as his "terrible trial."

Good leaders aren't just readers. They like to write things down as well. Marcus Aurelius wrote Meditations as a journal, likely with no intention of anyone reading it. Winston Churchill wrote and published multiple volumes about his early life and World War II. Their motivations may have differed, but society benefits from their accounting for the historical record.

Biographies are perennial bestsellers because you can gain much insight into the subject's thoughts and ideas and learn lessons from choices and mistakes. You can read widely and deeply into the history of the world and come away with a more profound sense of curiosity and wonder while also learning something new.


You are likely a leader in some aspect of your life. So go and read with intention, even if it is just a few pages before going to bed or during your lunch break. Do it daily, and you will educate yourself, satisfy your curiosity, and build ideas that can inform the future.

If you are interested in reading more about Truman, I recommend The Accidental President: Harry S. Truman and the Four Months That Changed the World by A. J. Baime. So much of our world changed in just the short period this book covers, and it’s an eye-opening read.

Learning Facilitation with AJ&Smart on YouTube

I discovered AJ&Smart’s Youtube page during the pandemic. At the time, I was regional chair of an Employee Business Resource Group with members throughout New England, and we were looking for a new way to hold virtual events while everyone was under travel restrictions or working remotely.

I connected with someone in our organization who was skilled in facilitation, and he agreed to lead a Lighting Decision Jam workshop. As part of the prep work, we received an email with content to review, including AJ&Smart’s video linked below:

The workshop was a great success because of the effective framework, innovative software, and our truly excellent facilitator. We used an intuitive and helpful app called Mural, which made the process run smoothly. It was easy to learn, and had the feeling of an unlimited canvas with areas already set up and ready to go when we needed them..

While this framework wasn’t quite the right fit for an annual meeting type event that we were trying to plan, I have used some of what I learned in other workshops and meetings and it works really well.

If you are interested in this topic, you should check AJ&Smart’s website and especially their YouTube. They have a lot of videos that cover various elements of leading workshops and facilitation in general. There is also some content about becoming a professional facilitator, which is neat. I enjoy their videos and appreciate the humor they sprinkle in to keep things fun. .

Kara Swisher Ends Sway, Her New York Times podcast

I found Kara Swisher’s podcast, Sway, after her interview with Apple CEO Tim Cook was discussed on Upgrade, and I became an immediate fan.

On the June 30th episode, Kara announced that her show would end after nearly two years. I’m disappointed because her show was one of my favorite interview podcasts with really great guests from diverse backgrounds in tech, entertainment, finance, business, and politics.

Kara is respected and well known by many, although this was the first time I had encountered her. I’m a fan now and look forward to checking out her other projects, including Pivot from New York Magazine.

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Weekly Quote: Neil Peart on Seeking our Better Natures

This week’s quote comes from Neil Peart, the late legendary drummer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band Rush and a prolific author of many books.

We all experience our own darkness, the coming night that Peart references. Depending on the situation, it can be minor, or it might overwhelm us, shut us down for a while, or utterly destroy us. The next line in the song, not included in this quote, no one gets to their heaven without a fight, will mean different things to different people. I hear it as pushing through whatever resistance we face, with our highest ideals at the vanguard, towards the most important aspects of our lives. That may be family, children, friendship, or a professional calling, whatever is most important to us.

When we are at our best, we try to be even better. We extend more love, seek more connection, and present more kindness. Seeking elevation means pushing ourselves to become better.

Sometimes, little reminders are all we need. This lyric pops into my head sometimes, and it’s helpful to remind me that I can fortify myself against the darkest night, and the best way for me to do that is to hold the most important aspects of life close and see them for what they are, my everything.

*Photo Credit: Weatherman90 at en.wikipedia, CC BY 3.0 ,via Wikimedia Commons

PKM Toolkit: Rediscovering My Journaling Habit with Day One

My earliest personal knowledge management tools were journals. Even in the days of using the original iPhone, I did most of my note-taking and writing in print. Can you remember the before times when you double-checked your pockets not for your phone, but to be sure you had your iPod and that tangle of earbuds?

For many years I kept a Moleskine journal and would write in it daily, sometimes more often. I documented my ideas, days, creative bursts, to-do lists, big plans, and emotional struggles. Later, I also kept a Field Notes in my pocket for jotting things down when I was at work or away from home. I even got nerdy and created a basic index system so I could reference stuff I had written.

Eventually, I just stopped. I got pretty intense in my habit and would write even when I lacked much to say because I didn’t want to break my streak. I became burned out by that part in particular and also found myself having more responsibilities as I got older, leaving less time for the kind of detailed journaling that I was prone to.

Making a Brief Return to Print…

With the changes that occurred in my life over the last year, I felt the desire to return to journaling so I could document my life and process my thoughts and feelings. To get started again, I picked up a new journal and decided on the following three prompts to answer for each entry:

1. What am I grateful for?

2. What did I win today?

3. What did I learn today?

It worked well for a few months, and then I had that little broken wrist issue, which made writing by hand impossible for eight weeks. So I took a few days off as I went through the initial recovery stage and decided to modify my approach instead of giving it up.

… And then to Digital

Using Day One, I switched to a simple one-question gratitude prompt and found this to be an even more effective method for my needs. It’s been rewarding, and here are my four big reasons why Day One is working better and will be the format that I stick with:

Photos with a date and place

It’s easy to import photos from the day’s events and have the journal automatically change the location and other relevant info based on their metadata.

Access from anywhere

It’s the same with reading on Kindle; I like that I can access this journal on my iPhone, iPad, or Mac. I have a shortcut on all of my devices that gets me right to a new entry with the date and the prompt so it is very convenient. I don’t have a set time for my reflection, although I try to do it in the morning. If that doesn’t happen, I can do this easily from any device later in the day.

Backups

Because my Day One backs up to the cloud and syncs to all of my devices, I don’t have to worry about losing my writing.

Less Pressure

By reducing the prompts from three to one, the process is simplified. I can write a sentence or a paragraph and feel happy with whatever I’ve recorded.

Journaling for Myself

I do not journal for anyone other than myself. I enjoy the process of recording gratitude because it feels great, and the ability to look at past entries and see what was happening can be fun too.

Do you maintain a journaling habit? I recommend it, in whatever form and frequency work for you. It’s helpful in so many ways for the present and can interest your future self too.

Weekly Quote: Ryan Holiday on the Anger Trap

This week’s quote comes from a favorite book I regularly read: The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday and Stephen Hanselman.

Anger usually results in pain, frustration, and a loss of clarity and connection. It is an emotion that is the worst kind of fuel. We all deserve better, as do our co-workers, team members, families, and friends.

Have you noticed that the people around you who are always angry want you to join them? It’s usually true. Angry people find other like-minded people. They want to be miserable together and are always recruiting. Don’t get drawn in. Remember, your anger is their fuel.

The first principle in Stoicism, as this quote from Ward Farnsworth discusses, is that you don’t react to events but instead react to your judgments about them. So choose to respond without anger. Don’t fuel the rage, and don’t fall into their trap.

Focus Mode Comes to Craft

Craft, my favorite app for building ideas, has implemented Focus Mode in its latest update (v2.2.3). With a simple keyboard shortcut (command + .), I can toggle all sidebars, navigation, and headers. I'm left with a distraction-free workspace to create.

Craft is regularly updated with thoughtful improvements, and I appreciate that. The developers are already looking at iOS 16 and macOS Ventura features like Lock Screen and Stage Manager. The mockups look great, and I'm excited to see where things land when the new operating systems are released.

Weekly Quote: James Clear on Being Proud of Yourself

This week’s quote comes from James Clear on Instagram, asking a Monday morning question.

I like this question because it goes explicitly beyond the idea of being happy or well paid or on the receiving end of professional or personal accolades. Instead, it’s about how you feel internally, regardless of external feedback.

This type of personal reflection might be challenging with all the responsibilities and distractions in your life. Do it anyway. Finding time and space for yourself is a worthwhile investment.

Want to give it a try? Do the following: Block out an hour on the calendar. Find a quiet place. Grab a pen and notebook, write this or a similar question on a blank page, and sit there. You may be surprised by what you end up with.

Pushing Reset on Todoist

I spent the last two weeks helping my entire household (including me) recover from a nasty daycare-acquired cold. We’ve had multiple doctors and urgent care visits and several sleepless nights. Now that we are all getting better, it’s time to organize a few things.

At the end of last week, I caught up on email, did some planning for upcoming blog content, worked on a few blog posts, and read. I also went through and deleted or rescheduled everything in Todoist. Doing this took about 15 minutes and was less complicated than I had expected it to be. It felt good to hit the reset button as we headed into the weekend.

My primary job right now is as a stay-at-home dad, so much of what was on my Todoist was related to this site, household chores, or other similar tasks. As a result, my task list debt was not as significant as when I had my corporate job, but it was still piling up. It was freeing, and I even removed a few tasks I had yet to finish but hadn’t felt ready to delete.

The time away forced an audit, which I haven’t routinely done in quite a while. However, I will start doing it again, even if it’s just five minutes weekly and fifteen minutes monthly. Keeping my Todoist organized and up to date is helpful in all aspects of my life.

Doist, the company that makes Todoist, has an article about task management bankruptcy. It’s worth a read, especially if you are feeling overwhelmed and want to burn it all down. You won’t be the first, and no doubt others will do the same in the future.

Weekly Quote: Steven Pressfield on Starting your Symphony

This week’s quote is from Steven Pressfield’s book The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles, which I’ve written about before.

I've found that procrastination is sneaky because it sometimes disguises itself as planning or ideation, two essential aspects of the creative process. It's generally easier to think about something than actually do it, and taking the time to think about something offers more time for the resistance to get stronger. So, the longer I wait, the less likely I am to succeed..

This site began publication in January 2022, although I started planning it in October. We had a newborn, and there were plenty of legitimate considerations to consider before embarking on a new project requiring time and attention. Still, I know that some of that time was the resistance manifested as procrastination and fear. I had many internal arguments about why I couldn't get this site off the ground, and the voice of resistance was cunning and powerful. Yet, despite not knowing precisely what 24 Letters would become, I knew it needed to be created, so I launched. I can thank my family and friends who cheered me on, creators who inspired me, and books like Courage is Calling, The War of Art, and Soundtracks for helping me get here.

Pressfield talks about how the resistance gets even more potent when something is important and meaningful. I didn't realize it then, but creating this site has been vital to my happiness and growth over the last eight months. It has allowed me to connect with new people, learn new skills, grow new ideas, and think in new ways. This has been transformational, so the resistance was exceptionally loud!


I recommend following @steven_pressfield on Instagram. He's creating videos about overcoming resistance and getting stuff done. I like his style and his writing. Check out some of his historical fiction, too. It's really well done.

How do you overcome resistance and get projects shipped and that symphony written? Let me know.

Weekly Quote: Ward Farnsworth on the First Principle of Practical Stoicism

This week’s quote comes from The Practicing Stoic: A Philosophical Users Manual by Ward Farnsworth. I heard the author on a recent episode of The Daily Stoic podcast, and based on that conversation this book was an immediate purchase for me.

The judgments are up to us. This is a profound reminder. It’s easy to forget that while we have very little control over what happens in our lives, we have an enormous ability to control how we react to our interpretation of what has happened. In conversations with friends and colleagues, I’ve struggled to explain my understanding of this part clearly. Ward has done it better and more succinctly than I could.

I am enjoying the style of this book a lot. The various chapters include relevant quotes from the original Stoics and other, more modern philosophers. Perhaps unsurprisingly, using quotes and extrapolating on them really works for me. Who knew!

If you pick this book up, send me a note and tell me what you think.