Category: A Matter of Time
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What do you need?
This is worth being curious about. But for starters, you need to be mindful and not distracted—sometimes, bored—in order to remember to ask yourself this question. “Our changing moods and energy levels, and how inspired we’re feeling on any given day, are part of the hard reality we must accept in order to take effective…
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The secrets of the tree
An old Cambodian tale suggests that if you carve a hole in a tree and whisper into it, it will keep your secret. In the closing scene of In the Mood for Love (spoiler alert!), a man who had his heart broken—twice—travels from the bustle of Hong Kong to the trees of Cambodia to leave…
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Primary focus
“Figure out what your primary focus is and make progress on that every day, first thing in the morning, no exceptions,” Nabeel Qureshi writes (while hat tapping Tyler Cowen). “Days with 0 output are the killers.” This was the gentle reminder I needed, and I shared it in case it might help you. 0.1 output…
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The power of the paper calendar
After over a decade of planning and working on projects digitally, I have found the best solution for me: the paper calendar. I just search, “printable calendar,” and I print out the months that I need on letter paper. (Often from this site!) I usually like to print three copies of the calendar out. One…
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Who came before you?
Sometimes, it helps to remember that you’re never alone. You are just one of the more recent people in a long line of people that started before you, connected together by your craft. In Eat a Peach, David Chang notes the absurdity of working in a kitchen. Every chef goes through extremely high stress, every…
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Clocks
Centuries ago, clocks were advanced technology. To the members of the Qing dynasty that ruled China from the Forbidden City in Beijing, clocks did more than just tell time and help them organize their day. These very rare, well-decorated, ornate, devices represented status and wealth. Some clocks could even be wound up and play music…