I just finished reading the newest productivity book phenomenon, Four Thousand Weeks — and wow, it was a thinker. The author, Oliver Burkeman, asks us to question the value of trying to get everything done (which is the underlying driver behind nearly all productivity and time management principles) when we have only four thousand weeks […]
Things I'm reading
Potential vs Achievement
What matters more? Potential or achievement? This has been coming up for me a lot lately in my daily life and my reading. I believe most of us tend to judge ourselves based on what we have or haven’t achieved — but in the contexts that have the most daily, real-world consequences (the workplace, interpersonal […]
Hearing the Inner Voice
After listening to John O’Donohue’s The Inner Landscape recently, I’ve been thinking on the concept of “a world inside yourself.” Though O’Donohue’s take is richer than this — his concept is of a whole universe of being inside yourself — I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately to the notion of the inner voice. […]
Rethinking Communication
I preordered Cal Newport’s new book, A World Without Email, months ago — in both Kindle and hardback format, because I’m a total Cal Newport junkie. I devoured the book as soon as it arrived, and it didn’t disappoint. In it, Newport challenges the notion that email is beneficial in the workflows of knowledge workers, […]
Burnout and a Mad, Mad Barbie
The book Burnout, by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski, was a timely read for me a couple months ago. It explores stress in a modern woman’s life and healthy ways to deal with it. (It also explores how patriarchy has been one long gaslighting — but that’s a rant for another time.) The thing is, stress isn’t […]
Digital Minimalism and the Gift of Solitude
Recently I’ve been reading Digital Minimalism (affil.) by Cal Newport. A friend recommended it after hearing about The Dimmer Switch: Reflection as a Path to a Brighter Future, the book proposal I’m working on on the subject of reflection — and I see why. In addition to painting a stark picture of the mental health […]
