I’ve received a few requests for this post, so here it is: my approach to focus. It is not an end-all be-all solution for everybody, but rather a look at the key underlying ways you can keep yourself moving towards a task. The tricks here should work well for anybody,...

Staying in shape as a traveler is a challenge: space, time, equipment and money are all of concern. It is hard to strictly manage a diet when you are at the whim of what you can find to eat, and don’t get me started on the extortionist prices charged my...

I have said that it is a boon to productivity to be too busy but did not address one key aspect: why?   One of the biggest reasons is also the most simple: if you produce too much, you can cherry-pick the quality items. In photography, for example, you have...

In Ireland there is a saying “what’s the crack?” to mean, “what is happening?”  Here, though, I am referring to your drug of choice to motivate yourself.  I have a number of things that I fall back on when I need an extra bump in productivity (not just coffee).  ...

We all know what the right decisions are, as well as what the wrong decisions or “cookies” in our life are.  The list of things we each intend to do is a long one: eat healthy, exercise, study and work hard, etc.  What fascinates me is why we so often...

If you read self-help books, you will find plenty of advice telling you how to become less busy or cut down on your responsibilities.  I am all for minimalism, and I certainly do not want to encourage multitasking so that you hurt your performance – and we definitely do not...

What do cliff diving and moving abroad have in common?  They are each scary when looked at from a certain perspective.  It is tempting to anticipate that moment of hitting the ice-cold water with such fear that it becomes difficult to actually make the leap.  The trick hacking our minds...

Every once in a while it behooves even the kindest of people to be a bit of a jerk.  The world tries to pull us each in different directions, and often it becomes necessary to put a foot down – and sometimes this cannot be done whilst maintaining the finest...

Minimalism is the art and lifestyle of doing more with less.   When I left the United States nearly a year ago, all I had was what you see in the picture to the left.  No checked baggage.  No box of clothes and books.  This is part of the reason...

Given that I cut the amount of sleep I need by 2 hours per day, you might expect that I have a loud alarm clock and a rigid sleep schedule without a social life.  All of these could not be further from the truth.     Some days I go...