Turning 28, Getting Things Done, Painful Letters & Wild Adventures
Weekly Mix #162: Turning 28, Getting Things Done, Painful Letters & Wild Adventures
Hi everyone,
I hope you had a great weekend.
You may have noticed a change in the newsletter format, which I hope you find easier to read. You may see some changes over the next few weeks as I experiment.
Please let me know if you have any feedback!
I'm now going to put a summary of links here, with details below (just scroll down to see them).
I'm also committing to sending this newsletter out once a week on Mondays. It's been a bit scattered until now, but it's one of my favourite parts of the week, and so I'm committing to it every Monday!
In this week's newsletter:
- Blog: 8 Lessons From Year 28
- Book Notes: Getting Things Done by David Allen
- Letter: Ryan Caldbeck to Former Board Member
- Article: Dear Dad, Please Don't Vote for Donald Trump This Time
- Article: Chris Burkard's Wild Thru-Ride Across Iceland
- Tweet: Sam Parr on Items for a $5K Wardrobe
- Video: Passive House Explained
- Photo: The last days on the water
Have a wonderful week!
Graham
Blog: 8 Lessons From Year 28
I turned 28 last week, and took the opportunity to write down some of the lessons I learned or thought about a lot:
- Less but better
- Subtract to improve
- Happiness = results - expectations
- Process goals, then target goals
- You will overestimate what you can accomplish in the short-term, and underestimate in the long-term
- Artificial constraints are everywhere
- You can have (almost) anything you want, but not everything you want
- Ignore the news
Book Notes: Getting Things Done by David Allen
I finally got my notes together for the single best productivity book I've ever read.
There's a reason this has been so popular for the last 20+ years. It's a classic, and will give you instructions that apply to every area of your organizational life.
Letter I'm Reading: Ryan Caldbeck to Former Board Member
This is cringe-worthy, but if you want some insight into what a terrible startup board member looks like, you can read this letter.
It was written by a startup CEO to a former board member, and it's hard to imagine how much it would suck working with people like this.
Article: Dear Dad, Please Don't Vote for Donald Trump This Time - Ryan Holiday
These days I try to avoid anything related to Trump or American politics, but this letter was particularly moving.
Because Holiday writes it for his father, it is much easier to relate, and really understand what principles are at stake.
Article: Chris Burkard's Wild Thru-Ride Across Iceland - Justin Housman - Adventure Journal
If you don't know Chris Burkard, he's a world-renowned adventure photographer, and he's been on some crazy adventures recently. This covers his Iceland journey, which happened a number of weeks ago.
I would recommend following him on Instagram for his stunning photos, and to see the Instagram Stories unfold during his trips.
Tweet: Sam Parr on Items for a $5K Wardrobe
The replies to this tweet are the valuable part. Parr asks for suggestions to make up a lifetime wardrobe, and there are lots of great suggestions.
Video I'm Watching: Passive House Explained
I've been diving into home design principles, and Passive House is one of the most interesting.
These houses are built so they need next to no heating or cooling, even in highly variable climates (like Quebec/Canada). This video is a quick intro to how that is accomplished.
Photo: The last days of summer
We finished packing up the last of the floating docks and boats this week, which puts an end to the boating season. A sad day, but made much better by these beautiful fall colours and a calm morning.
