Monthly Archives: May 2008
Why do we feel so economically squeezed?
Last night I wandered into a bookstore by mistake and ended up sitting through a fascinating talk by economist Jared Bernstein. He was discussing the economic trends that have us feeling overworked, underpaid, and anything but upwardly mobile. Unlike most … Continue reading
What is hard work?
“Work hard and you’ll be successful.” “You just need to put in a little hard work.” “Whew! I worked so hard today.” We say things like this all the time without thinking about it. Recently, my bedframe broke and I … Continue reading
Organizing an 80,000 word book: my current process and thoughts
An 80,000-book is very different to write than a 900-word podcast. It’s been a challenge to wrap my head around lots of specific tips and tie them together coherently. Here are the tools and my current conception of how I’m going to organize the book. Hope it works… Continue reading
Social media confuses relationships and databases
I’m writing this on a fine day, right around my birthday. And what a glorious time to be alive! The sun is shining, birds are chirping, and automated “social networking” sites have started sending “Happy Birthday” e-mails on behalf of … Continue reading
The joys of complaining
Ok, big epiphany today. I was complaining. Then I noticed that somethings, I complain about. Others, I don’t. What’s the difference? For me, complaints seem to be statements of where in my life doesn’t seem under my control. Even when … Continue reading
How big is your backlog?
I’m trying to get a sense of what kinds of things stay on our backlogs and clutter up our mental lives. When you don’t get to something on your “to do” list on a given day, how long does it … Continue reading
Listen to web/phone "Talk Shoe" event
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
I did a half-hour live interview show today about social media, its impact on productivity (business and personal), and more on the career lies (see this post for the handout). You can hear a recording here: http://www.talkshoe.com/talkshoe/web/tscmd/tc/18410 Click on episode … Continue reading
The Paradox of Choice – great video
Here’s a video by Barry Schwartz, the author of “The Paradox of Choice.” Having more choices seems to be a recipe for doing less and being less happy (exactly the opposite of what we all want). I want to work … Continue reading
"Self-promoting w/o being a jerk" — good topic?
Today’s podcast is about how to be self-promoting without being a jerk about it. I think it’s one of my better podcasts. What do you think? Should this be expanded into a chapter (or part of a chapter) in the … Continue reading
What makes up your physical clutter?
Ok, my desk sometimes gets a tad messy. So now I’m working on techniques for whipping that desk back into shape. Looking around, there’s a clear pattern: I’ve got Books-I’ll-read-someday here, along with a bunch of incoming paper mail that … Continue reading
