The other day I tweeted ( as I usually do when a random thought comes into my mind), and it went like this
And it interestingly got a largely positive reaction ( actually, it was almost entirely a positive reaction). And that was heartening. It's also because I have been referred to as a “productivity guru” a few times in recent times, and ( apart from the fact that I shudder at being called a guru), I'm actually not a very productive person. It's something that doesn't come to me naturally, and in recent months it's been tough to stay even reasonably productive. I am, however, an "optimiser", which is a word I prefer over productivity. I Optimise what I do every day with one single ( or rather dual) focus in mind "Happiness" and "Satisfaction".
I am often behind schedule on things, putting it together last minute, terribly inefficient with scheduling or planning things and more often than not filled with a need to slow down, empty my mind and recalibrate. It's chaos that only makes sense in my head, but it makes me happy. It's my system, and it works for me. That is the essence of how I look at optimisation over productivity. It's not about getting the most results out of your time. Instead, it's about getting the most happiness and satisfaction out of your process.
It's not for everyone, but I think it's important to find systems that don't over-focus on the result vs the process and how much you enjoy it. And the slowing down part ( as I will do over the next few days) is one of the best parts. As Ryan Holiday puts it in one of my all-time favourite books, "Stillness is the key",
"Your job, after you have emptied your mind, is to slow down and think. To really think, on a regular basis. Think about what's important to you. Think about what's actually going on. Think about what might be hidden from view. Think about what the rest of the chessboard looks like. Think about what the meaning of life really is."
So, the next time someone talks to you about productivity as the be-all and end-all, maybe randomly throwing in the concept of optimisation might be a fun spanner to throw in the works.
Weekly recommendations
➡️ Starting off with a deep dive into the unique phenomena that is creators and boxing
➡Then a fascinating video on how Hypnotism came to be
➡️ A look into the new communities feature that might make twitter a lot more like reddit
👉🏽 https://www.theverge.com/2021/9/9/22664103/twitter-communities-bring-context-back-editorial
➡️ Tim Ferris speaks to The Founder of Dyson, Sir Richard Dyson
➡️ And a chat with the authors of a book thats definitely on my “next read list”
Plus, in my weekly self-plug.. I had an amazing chat with Varun Mayya on “Advertising is dead”
And I’d love for you to find your zone of genius as I dug into on “The Varun Duggi Show”
✌🏽
Optimising life, slowing down and happiness + weekly recommendations