Cal Newport on Slow Productivity
This week’s quote comes from Cal Newport’s latest book, Slow Productivity: The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout.
The trap of unlimited time is rather easy to fall into, especially when you are working on a passion project. Add to that the rigors of everyday life, family, and day job stuff, and that unlimited time can quickly morph into infinity. I’m speaking from experience here, as I have projects I’ve lost track of because I haven’t been able to set the right kind of deadlines and actually make the right kind of effort to match them. I’ve written before about how practice makes progress, and this idea speaks to this quote. We needn’t forge a masterpiece here; we need to make something that causes those we want to reach most to take note of.
I’m taking the advice here to heart and seeing how I can make some slow progress on the work I’m doing. I hope you’ll do the same, and in doing so, be kind to yourself. Your circumstances are what they are, and they’re real. Even Newport mentions that what he suggests in this book won’t work for everyone, or at least not in its totality. Remember that, and do your best to accomplish the things you want to get done.
Weekly Quote: Raymond Carver on Being Patient
When I'm not writing, it's as if l've never written a word or had any desire to write. I fall into bad habits. I stay up too late and sleep in too long. But it's okay. I've learned to be patient and to bide my time.
Raymond Carver
This week’s quote comes from a 1983 Interview in The Paris Review with the short story writer and poet Raymond Carver, considered by many to be one of the defining voices of short story writing in the later part of the 20th century. If you’re new to Carver and want to read some excellent short fiction, I recommend starting with this collection.
While I cannot attribute my lack of writing to bad habits so much as to the demands of being a busy parent, I can relate to the idea that I feel far away from writing when I don’t do it regularly. Lately, my time to write has been less regular than I’d like or is even typical, so when I consider getting to my desk during quiet moments either late at night or occasionally during the day when there’s a bit of a lull, it feels more daunting than usual.
Yet, when I sit down, and my hands touch the keys, it feels entirely right again. Now, I’m not writing short fiction or poetry, at least not right now, but what I am writing, the story I’m telling, is something that has an impact on me and, I hope anyway, an effect on others, too.
Maybe you haven’t picked up your guitar in a while, or haven’t made it on a run in a few days, or perhaps you haven’t sat at your computer to write the next chapter in your novel. This happens to everyone. We lose the thread and sometimes for no reason that we can parse except getting busy or getting distracted. Don’t worry about the why right now. Be patient, and when there’s time and space find your way back to whatever it is you’ve lost touch with, embrace it, and make your way.
What I’m Watching - Spring 2024
I only have a little downtime for TV these days. My kids are my full-time job, and as a stay-at-home dad, I'm also the responsible party for the bulk of the food prep, transportation, cleaning, etc. So, while I'm not sitting down to watch movies with my wife (she's also busy working and being a fantastic mom and wife), I do find small windows of time, most often while doing those aforementioned household chores, to stream a show or two. Here are a few shows that I'm slowly watching and enjoying:
Franklin - Apple TV+
I read Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson last year and found the story of one of America's founding fathers to be fascinating. Of course, growing up, Franklin has always loomed large as an important character in the history of the United States. The Apple TV+ series focuses on the eight years that Franklin spent lobbying the French to aid in the cause of independence.
The cast is splendid, led by Michael Douglas as Franklin. I know this may seem an odd choice for casting, but Douglas is enjoying the role and playing him with the demur whit that Franklin seems to have embodied. I also quite enjoy Noah June as Franklin's grandson Temple.
Clarkson's Farm - Amazon Prime
Jeremy Clarkson is best known for his time on Top Gear and later The Grand Tour. I've watched some of each series and have enjoyed them both. Clarkson's Farm, now on its 3rd season on Amazon Prime, follows the efforts of Clarkson and a humble band of characters as they work to make Diddly Squat farm a success. They're up against the weather, Clarkson's own incompetence, and the local council, and these challenges make for entertaining and occasionally poignant moments.
Tasting History with Max Miller - YouTube
Max Miller had a successful career at Disney when he was furloughed during the COVID-19 Pandemic, giving him more time to focus on his YouTube Channel and eventually to publish his first cookbook. Tasting History with Max Miller combines two things I really enjoy, History and Food. Max picks one recipe tied to an important moment from the past, and while he cooks the recipe, he devotes most of his time to sharing its place in history.
Some of my favorites from Max include his detailed breakdown of the menus of the Titanic, recipes from Ancient Rome and Egpyt, and a particularly tasty Pecan Pie that I made a few Thanksgivings ago. Our guests were divided, although I preferred this earlier rendition, popularized before Caro Syrup became a thing.
What's on your watch list
Do you have any recommendations that I might enjoy? If so, please send me a note. I'd like to hear from you.
Weekly Quote: Tony Bourdain on Character and Skill
This week's quote comes from the world-traveling documentarian, chef, and writer Anthony Bourdain, whose book Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly greatly inspired me when it was released a couple decades ago. I keep a well-read copy of the book on my shelf. I remember buying it a few days after I moved into my second apartment in the early 2000s. It's one of the few possessions that's moved from city to city, through career changes, and from being single to being a happily married dad with two kids.
Tony is sadly no longer with us, but his legacy as a writer, traveler, and chef continues to inspire many. I still use the Global 8-inch chef's knife, which he recommends in the book, daily when I'm prepping meals for my family, just as I did as a kid in his early twenties, living on his own and trying to figure out the world. Another tool that’s been well worth holding on to.
As for the quote, it broadly speaks for itself. We've all known people who are strong of character but lack the skills. We should always bet on them. They're the ones worth putting the effort in for because they'll be there for you, too. Most often, the energy pays off, and everyone gains something.
May the 4th Be With You
Happy Star Wars Day!
To commemorate the day, Apple released this fun little ad.
This year was more special because my oldest child wished me a “Happy Star Wars Day,” and we spent a little time playing with some Droid Funko Pops. I am not a massive collector, but I do like to pick up one or two throughout the year as new series come out.
One of the fun parts about being a Dad is that I can share my interests and fandom with my kids, and they can try it on to see if it fits. Whether they become fans or not, I like showing them that it’s important to have things in our lives that exist merely to bring us joy and make us happy.
I shared some thoughts in 2022 and 2023 too. I’m glad to mark the occasion again this year, and hope you do something nerdy today to celebrate!
Weekly Quote: Seneca on Learning While Teaching
This week’s quote from Seneca brings forth an important idea: We best serve ourselves and others around us when we learn as much as we teach. Consider what we can glean from what someone is saying when we listen. When we really listen, instead of busying ourselves with crafting our witty response, which is meant to impress but does little more than feed our ego.
Don’t waste your time trying to put on airs. The right people, those you should be spending your time with whenever possible, will see through that. Want to impress someone? Listen to them, learn from them, and then teach what you know when they are ready to hear it.
Weekly Quote: Austin Kleon on Collecting Good Ideas
This week’s quote comes from Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative by Austin Kleon. Inspiration might be found everywhere. Whether reading a book, watching a classic film, chatting with some old friends, or taking a long hike, be ready to make a note in your project ideas list, journal, or commonplace book.
I’d argue the next step is actually going back and taking a look at these ideas. They’re easy to collect and forget about, yet I think you really start to find the influence and build a creative narrative from the ideas you’ve collected when you take a second (or third or fourth) pass and get another look at them.
The Cloud Under The Sea
The Verge today released a beautifully written and designed feature on the rarely thought of network of undersea cables that transfer data around the world and the people who are responsible for installing and repairing them.
Here’s a blurb from the article:
The world’s emails, TikToks, classified memos, bank transfers, satellite surveillance, and FaceTime calls travel on cables that are about as thin as a garden hose. There are about 800,000 miles of these skinny tubes crisscrossing the Earth’s oceans, representing nearly 600 different systems, according to the industry tracking organization TeleGeography. The cables are buried near shore, but for the vast majority of their length, they just sit amid the gray ooze and alien creatures of the ocean floor, the hair-thin strands of glass at their center glowing with lasers encoding the world’s data.
In addition to learning about how we are presently managing these systems, there’s also some fascinating insight into the history of submarine communications cables, which were first laid in the 1850s (yes, that’s the middle of the 19th century, not a typo!).
This is a lengthy feature. It’s worth your time, if for no other reason than to gain a slightly better understanding of how incredible it is that we are all connected and can access virtually anything from anywhere in the world with little wait despite living on a planet that’s 71 percent water.
David Sparks on Avoiding Email
I don’t deal with email as a stay-at-home dad like I did when I was in management, and yet I’m still finding value from what David Sparks has written about email. Part one, about doing the hard stuff instead, is here. Part two focuses on email as a tool, and David makes this excellent point:
Despite its widespread use, email is not an efficient tool for all types of communication. We’ve overlooked its limitations in our attempt to make it do everything. It’s time we acknowledge that email is often the wrong tool for the job.
Give it a read. David knows his stuff and wants us to use our technology in the ways that best serve us.
Weekly Quote: Finding Opportunities in Challenges with Dr. Michael Gervais and The First Rule of Mastery
I've just finished The First Rule of Mastery: Stop Worrying about What People Think of You by Dr. Michael Gervais, and I really enjoyed it. It's the right mixture of social science, organizational psychology, and personal development, culminating in actionable advice aimed at helping us overcome one of the more powerful external actors in our lives: FOPO, or fear of other people's opinions.
When I shared this week's quote with a few friends, we all arrived at a similar conclusion: the idea that we should see challenges to our beliefs as an opportunity and not a threat is a great idea, but it's also difficult to actually make it a part of our daily practice.
As you know, I believe in productive struggle and know mistakes are the language of growth. This aspect of development is worth working on, regardless of how difficult it is.
Weekly Quote: The Daily Creative on Brilliance Hiding in Simplicity
This quote from Todd Henry’s Daily Creative: A Practical Guide for Staying Prolific, Brilliant, and Healthy reminds you not to give up on something because you already know it and because, in your mind, it’s the most basic element of something bigger.
You might think, “surely everyone knows this,” as you consider posting something on your blog or sharing an idea on your podcast. Even if your audience is aware of what you want to share, they probably don’t know as much as you do about it, and just as important, they don’t know what you think about it.
Other people are looking for what you know and need you to share. Your voice and perspective matter. They need you to help them grow in just the same way those who shaped you did. Don’t worry that you’re wasting other people’s time. Share what you know, and let them make the choice.
Excellence in the Dish Pit
I’ve watched this video a couple times following the crew of the dish pit at Brooklyn’s oldest restaurant, Gage & Tollner, and I so appreciate how the guys who form the backbone of keeping things clean do a difficult and unrelenting job skillfully with humility, focus, and respect.
Excellence is sometimes center stage, but so often, it’s happening in the back of the house. I always celebrate it, wherever it may be. Well done guys.
Jim Eagar Talks Repotting & Retirement on the Focused Podcast
My good friend Jim Eagar appeared on the Focused podcast last week to discuss the four phases of retirement and how to find our meaning and purpose in life.
I’m not even close to retirement, yet I found so much value and insight that applies to my experience. Regardless of where you are in your life, give this episode a listen. We all hope to grow old, and there are some thoughtful ideas here on how to do that with intentionality instead of by accident.
Weekly Quote: Adam Grant on the Power of Rethinking
This week’s quote comes from Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know by Adam Grant, bringing to mind one example of rethinking from my professional life.
Several years ago, I offered my position on a topic that differed from what others thought during a meeting about an initiative we were putting together for a client. It wasn’t controversial, but there was some amicable disagreement among the leaders at the table about how we would proceed. We kept moving forward, deciding that my department would take a different tact that still met our shared goals.
The thing is, I was wrong. After a day or two of considering the situation and those involved and looking at the data and the planning with the added perspective of what my colleagues had said when we met, I changed my mind.
The following week, when we met to discuss updates on the project, I shared that I had changed my mind and agreed to adjust my department to more closely align with how they were proceeding. I wholeheartedly embraced my ability to rethink, and it made a difference. The project was more successful, not necessarily because I changed my mind (it was a relatively minor thing in this case), but because I was willing to do so, and my colleagues had a similar mindset. I didn’t let pride or stubbornness get in the way of finding the best outcome for the client.
The takeaway is this: Don’t be afraid to change your mind. Doing anything else feels like a waste of time. Don’t cling to your ideas just because they’re yours. Find the best ideas with which to make the best decisions, regardless of who introduced you to them. This is all just too important to do anything else.
Introducing the Building in Public Newsletter from 24 Letters: Sign Up to Receive a Journaling Quick Guide Today
Friends, I've been working on my first offering beyond the blog and newsletter, and I've decided to share the details of the building process via a revamp in my newsletter, now known as Building in Public.
I’ll also be giving anyone who subscribes and confirms their email address something that can help you in your journaling practice right now. More on that at the end of this post.
For now. You have questions? I've got answers. Read on.
What are you Working On?
I'm creating a guide to journaling. Now, I know this isn’t for everyone, but I'm kind of a nerd, and I think I could share some ideas that might prove helpful for you if you're starting or restarting, as the case so often is, your journaling practice.
Why?
I strongly feel that everyone could benefit from some sort of journaling practice. Whether you’re doing morning pages or an entry once a year on your birthday or something in between, there's a lot of value in writing things down to help figure it all out. I’ve written about these ideas here on the blog and on Threads, too.
I've been journaling for years, and it's helped me build confidence, feel more gratitude, and experience less anxiety. Journaling has helped me make difficult decisions and get through some tough times. A lot of people need help with that stuff, maybe even you, and journaling can be a part of that solution.
Okay, so what's the newsletter about?
I'm going to share my insights into the process of building this course and also offer updates and previews to subscribers. I'll email you roughly once a week and sometimes less frequently. We all get too much email, and I've had to talk myself into believing it's okay to offer this to people because going on this journey with me will provide some value to you.
What is the ultimate goal here?
In addition to building tools to help you in your journaling practice, I'm interested in developing something akin to a community of people interested in journaling, personal development, and the creative process. This isn't a thinly veiled sales funnel. I'm going to send you emails with fundamental ideas and authentic experiences.
Finally, as a thank you, I'll send you my quick guide Seven Thought-Provoking Prompts for Your Journaling Practice when you confirm your email.
I’ll be sending the first email out later this week. I hope you’ll join me.
Weekly Quote: Living on Our Own Terms With Dr. Michael Gervais
This week's quote comes from The First Rule of Mastery: Stop Worrying About What People Think of You by Dr. Michael Gervais. Dr. Gervais is a high-performance psychologist who has worked with some of the top performers in sports, business, and the arts.
It is helpful to know that even the highest achievers in the world need help overcoming the struggle of weighing the opinions of others over our own. It's one of those character traits that many of us are so good at, and we practice it to our own detriment.
Here's another helpful note. It takes everyone's time and effort to get better at this, from the highest-performing athlete and Fortune 100 CEO to you and me. We all struggle with this, and we're all finding our way together.
The Pax Romana Podcast
If you find the history of the Roman Empire as fascinating as I do, check out The Pax Romana Podcast by Professor Colin Elliot.
From the show’s official description:
This podcast, hosted by historian and professor Colin Elliott, brings to life the stories and sources from the pivotal and fascinating age that followed the death of Julius Caesar and ended just after the reign of Marcus Aurelius. This period was called the Pax Romana—or the Roman Peace—and it was an age to remember—an age of emperors, wars, conspiracies, love affairs, decadence and so much more. New episodes each week, mid-week.
I’d start from the beginning, episodes aren’t long and you can really get a feeling for this era of history thanks to the style and storytelling skill from Professor Elliot.
Weekly Quote: David Sparks on Carrying Less Water
This week’s quote is from the recently released Productivity Field Guide from David Sparks. I’m a big fan of David’s work, including MacSparky and The Mac Power Users. I’m also a member of the Labs, where he shares even more to help us get the most out of our technology and be more productive and focused in the process.
He’s been working on the ideas in the Productivity Field Guide for a long time, and it shows. He takes a thoughtful approach to the topic and looks at It through the lens of planning and crafting your arete, that is, your ideal roles in your life. David is inspired by philosophers from the ages, citing some of my favorites, including the Stoics.
David encourages us to find a balance. We shouldn't do too much, likening that to trying to carry more water than our bucket can hold. But we also shouldn't allow fear to stand in the way of doing the work we are meant to do. That's an important balance, and again, the focus on your individual roles is a way to effectively measure how you're doing in the most critical parts of your life.
It’s also worth noting that David is a really nice guy who’s offered encouraging words in my creative journey and was even kind enough to feature my Home Screen when I was first starting out. Check out The Productivity Field Guide page out for a free 30+ minute sample and see if it’s for you. I bet it could help you in more ways than you realize.
Finding Focus: How I Fortify My Day With A Morning Reading Habit
Life holds a certain dissonance, even in the best of times. Joy comes with pain. Growth with sadness. Not to sound too much like Master Yoda here, but hopefully, you get my point. Life is messy and full of responsibility. People depend on us, and to be successful, we need all the help we can get.
In my own life, this is undoubtedly true. To help fortify my day, I take 15 or twenty minutes each morning to read a daily passage from several books and to review a selection of highlights from past reading. Aside from starting the day with a sense of accomplishment, it also offers me fresh insights related to essential roles in my life.
To accomplish this, I’m using my recently acquired iPad mini, whose primary purpose is to act as a personal reflection tool. I use it for reading, journaling, highlighting, and light note-taking.
The Books
Here's what I'm reading as part of this routine, as well as the corresponding role that it's aimed at improving:
The Daily Dad: 366 Meditations on Parenting, Love, and Raising Great Kids by Ryan Holiday
The Better Parent and Partner
This is the newest addition to my daily reading list. I'm on my first read-through and started it on January 1st. As the title implies, this book is helping me build my toolset as a father. The role of a father is among the most important to me, and as a stay-at-home parent, it's where I spend most of my time on a given day, so having this book as part of my startup is really helpful to remind me of my desire to be a helpful and loving father and husband.
The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living by Ryan Holiday
The Better Human
Now on my fourth read-through, The Daily Stoic is the book that began my interest in Stoicism and daily learning, helping me realize that a few pages a day can be an antidote to the powerful feelings of self-doubt that lurk just outside our field of vision. The Daily Stoic helps to fortify me against my lack of control over external events and reminds me of my power to understand and shape my reaction to those events.
Daily Creative: Find Your Inspiration to Spark Creative Energy and Fight Burnout by Todd Henry
The Better Creative and Professional
My friend Jim suggested this book during one of our regular calls last year, and I enjoyed reading passages sporadically but didn’t quite commit. This year, I'm making it a part of my daily ritual. This feeds my creative self; I'm a better writer and thinker when that gets attention.
After finishing my morning reading, I switch to the second part of this routine and jump from the Kindle app on my iPad Mini to my preferred app that helps me manage and organize highlights from ebooks, articles, and email newsletters, Readwise.
Making and Reviewing Highlights
Much of what I think and write about is sparked by my reading. To manage highlights from things I've read, I use Readwise. I like that I can access all of my saved highlights via the app or the web, and they regularly email me with highlights and summaries to review. You can read more about how I use Readwise in this piece I wrote as part of the PKM Toolkit series.
While I'm reviewing highlights, I have two shortcuts at the ready. The first allows me to easily send a topic idea to a Craft document where I keep possible ideas of interest to write about. The second opens a mind map in Mindnode for a similar purpose. However, this is less focused on specific topic ideas and more on adding bits and pieces to projects or topics already in active development.
Building The Fortification
My daily reading practice is a powerful way to start my day in the right direction and help me build a foundation upon which to work to be a better dad, husband, human, and creative. While this habit is just part of my morning routine, it's crucial to any success I find during my day and offers an outsized reward for my time invested.
Weekly Quote: Ryan Holiday on Overthinking
I haven’t much to add other than to say that sometimes my morning reading really hits the mark.