It was the last Sunday in October, the kitchen dark except for the laptop, and I was counting tabs. Twenty-two.
A novel stuck two chapters from the end. A spreadsheet for a product I’d sketched in August. Half an essay. Something about sourdough I can’t account for.… Read the rest “Clever People Rarely Fail. They Just Stay in the Hallway Too Long (An MIT Game Showed Why)”
The running shoes are by the door. Then a small voice asks one question, and your shot at consistent habits takes another knock.
The alarm goes at 6:00. Shoes where you left them. Last night, brushing your teeth, the plan felt settled.
Then, feet still under the duvet, the voice pipes up:
Do I really feel like doing this today?… Read the rest “Stop Asking Yourself This Question Every Morning (It’s Why You Keep Quitting)”
Make a fist. Hold it as hard as you can, and don’t let go.
Strong at first. The knuckles go white, the forearm sets, and for a few seconds you’re completely in charge. Then it aches. Then it shakes. Then the fingers start to open on their own, and there’s not much your willpower can do about it.… Read the rest “How to Break a Habit Without Willpower: 4 Simple Moves”
Make a fist. Hold it as hard as you can, and don’t let go.
Strong at first. The knuckles go white, the forearm sets, and for a few seconds you’re completely in charge. Then it aches. Then it shakes. Then the fingers start to open on their own, and there’s not much your willpower can do about it.… Read the rest “How to Break a Habit Without Willpower: 4 Simple Moves”
I write about guarding attention for a living. Most of what I have learned comes down to one habit I call intentional friction. One of my own rules for it held until about nine one evening, then lost to a thumb and a lit screen.
Last month I did the thing I keep telling other people not to do.… Read the rest “Everything in My Life Got Easier, and I Got Worse at Living It”
Stop trying to silence your inner critic. Put it on the right shift and it becomes the sharpest editor you’ll ever have.
It’s twenty to seven on a Saturday. Your coffee has gone cold, and you’re one paragraph into the piece you’ve been circling for a fortnight. Your shoulders are already up round your ears.… Read the rest “The 1-Minute Mental Shift That Turns Imposter Syndrome Into an Unfair Advantage”
Stop trying to silence your inner critic. Put it on the right shift and it becomes the sharpest editor you’ll ever have.
It’s twenty to seven on a Saturday. Your coffee has gone cold, and you’re one paragraph into the piece you’ve been circling for a fortnight. Your shoulders are already up round your ears.… Read the rest “The 1-Minute Mental Shift That Turns Imposter Syndrome Into an Unfair Advantage”
