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Good and Bad Value
One of my friends remarked that I’m really obsessed with value. It’s true. I love spending money on things that are great value and I hate spending money on things that are a bad value. I thought I’d share a few examples of ways I’ve spent money that feel like good and bad values. Island…
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Removing Friction
The glamorous side of productivity and self improvement is the big changes. You put your stake in the ground, decide to make a change, and you do it. You start a new set of habits or a new project. These are positive things, but we sometimes forget about the other side of forward progress. Throughout…
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Why I Bought a Bentley and What It’s Like
In 2003, Rick Rubin offered me a ride in his Bentley Arnage. I declined because I thought the place we were going was within walking distance, and only after he drove off did I realize that I was thinking of the wrong place and had missed a chance to ride in what I still believe…
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What I’ve Learned from Six Months of Coaching
Six months ago I began accepting coaching clients beyond my one initial client. I had this plan that after six months I’d collect a bunch of testimonials, write about coaching, and sign up a new batch of people. But the truth is that my schedule is pretty full, so I’m not really trying to sign…
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Sleep and Crossword Puzzles
I wouldn’t say that my younger cousin and I are competitive, but let’s just say that when she got good at crossword puzzles, I felt that I had little choice but to also get good at crossword puzzles. So for the past few months I’ve averaged probably 2-4 crossword puzzles per day. Crossword puzzles, to…
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How to Relate to Others
I have to admit that I never thought that I’d write a blog post on how to relate to others. For most of my life I realized that I wasn’t particularly empathetic but didn’t prioritize changing that. Then I met a very empathetic friend (she wrote The Charisma Myth) and she just point blank told…
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Small Footprint Identity
Once in a while I do something that threatens my status as a minimalist. It was pretty clear cut when I traveled the world with nothing but a backpack and had nothing back home, but now it’s not so clear. I wear the same shirt every day, but I have real estate in a few…
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Okay with Process, Okay with Outcome
My recent car purchase has been something of a disaster. That’s why I haven’t written about it yet (or, rather, posted the rather excited blog post I’ve already written). The car is currently back with the seller, who owns a shop that repairs these sorts of cars, and he’s trying to figure out why it…
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What’s Going to be Different Tomorrow?
Yesterday, in a fit of inspiration, moved the furniture out of my bedroom and tore up half of the carpets. A few months ago I did the floors for the rest of my house, but I ran out of time and my bedroom threshhold was a natural stopping point. And then… there was no natural…
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Long Life Trajectories
I went to a Roger Waters concert earlier tonight. I got a free ticket and I make it a habit to see anything or anyone who’s supposed to be one of the best, even though I don’t like rock music. One of my first memories of music is listening to Another Brick in the Wall…
