This morning, I drove from Boston to Cape Cod, alone with my thoughts except for Theo sleeping in the back seat. Once we were out of the city and smoothly on the highway, I got to thinking about work, and things really started clicking. I found myself reaching for my iPhone to record voice memos about once every minute. I may have even cracked an important nut; we'll see. I can't remember where, but I once heard the phrase the optimism of the traveler, and the idea has really stuck with me. For me, this manifests itself in the fit of ideastorming I usually find myself in whenever I'm on a plane or train (and sometimes when I'm in a car). Some of my most creative and productive times have been in these situations. And it's not just about volume of ideas -- there's a different sort of excitement and hopefulness that happens during these times. So, what is it about traveling that produces such excitement? Is it being away from the internet, and therefore being forced to digest some ideas and not just consume at will? Or maybe it's less about attention, and more about being in that middle place between destinations, where anything is possible? Whatever it is, it's really great. Of course, the hard part is putting those ideas into motion once you're feet are back on the ground... // Photo by Tjeerd on Flickr
I've been thinking a lot about fitness lately, mostly spurred on by the great stuff coming out of Clay Johnson's new blog, InfoVegan. Clay has been drawing a parallel between physical obesity and information obesity, and has been diving deep on what it means to have a "healthy information diet." It's inspiring stuff, and definitely worth keeping up on. The takeaway for me is that fitness (of any type) is largely about producing, not just consuming. You need to write to properly digest what you've read, and you need to exercise to properly digest what you've eaten. My favorite characterization of this is David Eaves' "if writing is a muscle, this is my gym" tagline on his blog. So in the spirit of fitness, yesterday I went for a run and today I wrote this post :)
I spend a fair amount of time thinking about LifeHacking. Getting my inbox filters just right so I can get to "inbox double-zero," syncing my iPhone and my Google Calendar, setting up ssh keys in all the right places, etc. But something I'm still not that good at is "LifePruning," that is, the continual process of getting rid of all the old / no longer relevant shit in my life, the stuff that, if left untended, will crowd out all the good stuff. It's kind of hard for me, as I have natural
This morning, I drove from Boston to Cape Cod, alone with my thoughts except for Theo sleeping in the back seat. Once we were out of the city and smoothly on the highway, I got to thinking about work, and things really started clicking. I found myself reaching for my iPhone to record voice memos about once every minute. I may have even cracked an important nut; we'll see. I can't remember where, but I once heard the phrase the optimism of the traveler, and the idea has really stuck with me. For me, this manifests itself in the fit of ideastorming I usually find myself in whenever I'm on a plane or train (and sometimes when I'm in a car). Some of my most creative and productive times have been in these situations. And it's not just about volume of ideas -- there's a different sort of excitement and hopefulness that happens during these times. So, what is it about traveling that produces such excitement? Is it being away from the internet, and therefore being forced to digest some ideas and not just consume at will? Or maybe it's less about attention, and more about being in that middle place between destinations, where anything is possible? Whatever it is, it's really great. Of course, the hard part is putting those ideas into motion once you're feet are back on the ground... // Photo by Tjeerd on Flickr
I've been thinking a lot about fitness lately, mostly spurred on by the great stuff coming out of Clay Johnson's new blog, InfoVegan. Clay has been drawing a parallel between physical obesity and information obesity, and has been diving deep on what it means to have a "healthy information diet." It's inspiring stuff, and definitely worth keeping up on. The takeaway for me is that fitness (of any type) is largely about producing, not just consuming. You need to write to properly digest what you've read, and you need to exercise to properly digest what you've eaten. My favorite characterization of this is David Eaves' "if writing is a muscle, this is my gym" tagline on his blog. So in the spirit of fitness, yesterday I went for a run and today I wrote this post :)
I spend a fair amount of time thinking about LifeHacking. Getting my inbox filters just right so I can get to "inbox double-zero," syncing my iPhone and my Google Calendar, setting up ssh keys in all the right places, etc. But something I'm still not that good at is "LifePruning," that is, the continual process of getting rid of all the old / no longer relevant shit in my life, the stuff that, if left untended, will crowd out all the good stuff. It's kind of hard for me, as I have natural
Cleaned out my clothes closet and donated all the things I never wear anymore / don't fit. Amazingly, getting rid of those uncovered some real gems that I had forgotten about.
Got a new computer and transferred my data and applications. Not all of them, mind you; just the ones I really need. The result is a leaner, meaner, faster machine. (Note: getting a new computer is not required to do this, but it helps)
Went through my Google Reader and deleted all the feeds I no longer read, or are just less into these days. That means less distraction from the awesome ones I want to make sure I actually read every day.
I know that good things will come of this pruning, and I'll try and keep track as they do. For example, I'm sure I'll read a great post I would have otherwise missed thanks to my RSS pruning, and I'll look sweet at the office in that shirt I found in my closet (not sure of the practical usefulness of that), and so on. This is just a start. I'm going to keep an eye out for more LifePruning opportunities, and I'll post them here as I do. If you have a good life pruning suggestion, let me know. Update: SVN has a post today on this topic: The Art of Taking Things Away. // Pruning grahpic via Agriculture Guide
Cleaned out my clothes closet and donated all the things I never wear anymore / don't fit. Amazingly, getting rid of those uncovered some real gems that I had forgotten about.
Got a new computer and transferred my data and applications. Not all of them, mind you; just the ones I really need. The result is a leaner, meaner, faster machine. (Note: getting a new computer is not required to do this, but it helps)
Went through my Google Reader and deleted all the feeds I no longer read, or are just less into these days. That means less distraction from the awesome ones I want to make sure I actually read every day.
I know that good things will come of this pruning, and I'll try and keep track as they do. For example, I'm sure I'll read a great post I would have otherwise missed thanks to my RSS pruning, and I'll look sweet at the office in that shirt I found in my closet (not sure of the practical usefulness of that), and so on. This is just a start. I'm going to keep an eye out for more LifePruning opportunities, and I'll post them here as I do. If you have a good life pruning suggestion, let me know. Update: SVN has a post today on this topic: The Art of Taking Things Away. // Pruning grahpic via Agriculture Guide
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
Share Dialog
