Nuanced Productivity: Embracing Human Variability for Sustainable Effort

Key Quotes

"Nuance is such a powerful interesting word because it is something that people fight against like crazy in this world of absolutes that we so desperately try to make happen and the problem is nothing is black or white there's shades of gray right like it's it's it's the we talked about equanimity in the previous episode we've talked about balance and and in previous versions of this this idea of of nuance I think cannot be lost when we're trying to be productive and it resists the pull of absolutes which you know and I wrote in my book the productivity diet about the pitfalls of absolutes there's middle ground right"

Mike Vardy argues that nuance is essential for productivity because it allows for flexibility and acknowledges the complexities of real life, resisting the urge to apply rigid, absolute rules. Vardy explains that this concept, which he also discusses in his book "The Productivity Diet," emphasizes finding a middle ground rather than adhering to black-and-white thinking.

"null days yeah I uh because you can't just say null that sounds stupid but null days and in fact that's why taking a day off having nothing on that spot or that time and space you know one of the things that we often say is you know hey let's not be some people say it this way and I think it's the wrong way to say it it's a it's the intention is to reset your system the intention is to take a break but an extended break it's a sabbath to some people right and it's not about so the way people some people say it is they say oh I'm going to I'm not going to be productive today well the thing is is that you're creating a fallacy saying I'm not going to be productive as if resting wasn't productive"

Erik Fisher introduces the concept of "null days" as intentionally scheduled time off, emphasizing that rest itself is a productive act, contrary to the common misconception of not being productive on such days. Fisher clarifies that the intention is not to cease all activity but to intentionally refrain from work-related output, highlighting the importance of planned breaks for system reset.

"signals can be external and internal right so that's my s word what I like about signals is they can be very overt and they can be quiet they can be yours personally or they can be for we talked about expectations in the previous episode they can be externally you know kind of spoken or announced so that people know like you're talking about like I'm putting the headphones on and therefore that's what this means so for example if you're using something like horizontal themes that's a signal hey I'm moving into that and this is what I should be focusing on at this point in time"

Mike Vardy defines "signals" as both internal and external cues that guide focus and action, differentiating them from general noise. Vardy explains that these signals can be overt or subtle, personal or communicated to others, and provides the example of putting on headphones as a signal to indicate a shift in focus.

"scaffolding so one of the things I mean again I've talked a lot about how this year has been different there's been different things going on one of the things for me you know building new habits in other words you want to have you want to have temporary structure in place that's going to support you but you don't want it to be there you know forever so to speak or you don't need it there forever"

Erik Fisher explains "scaffolding" as a temporary structure put in place to support the building of new habits, emphasizing that this structure is not meant to be permanent. Fisher uses the analogy of scaffolding on a building to illustrate how it provides support during a construction phase but is eventually removed once the habit is established.

"yard sticks are a tool of measurement so I am not so naive not to think that being productive does not involve some element of quantitative metrics it is what we all recognize objectively right why is inbox zero such a powerful productivity metric even though I believe it's the wrong one of the wrong ones we use it's because it's numerical I went from this to this why are due dates such a powerful because it's it's a date it's objective I see it why are meanings the objective but we often prescribe quantitative metrics to things that should probably benefit from qualitative ones"

Mike Vardy discusses "yardsticks" as tools of measurement in productivity, acknowledging the power of quantitative metrics like "inbox zero" and due dates. Vardy suggests that while these objective measures are effective, there is often a tendency to apply them to tasks that might be better evaluated through qualitative assessment.

"my z word is zettle and this is an area I can actually benefit more from in terms of an organizational component so zettle if you've heard of the term zettle it's like a method of of organizing notes and thought and ideas and concepts it's often associated with personal knowledge management tools you know and and that's a whole rabbit hole that we could go down but really when I'm thinking about it's our in terms of just the term zettle is like this small note a curle for lack of a better term a fragment of an insight a seed of a thought like a curle of a thought or an idea"

Mike Vardy introduces his "z" word, "zettle," as a method for organizing notes, thoughts, and ideas, often associated with personal knowledge management. Vardy describes a zettle as a small fragment of insight or a seed of a thought, noting that while individual zettles may seem insignificant, they can be transformative when collected collectively.