Weekly Wisdom #315 - How to rest when you spend all day using your mind

How to Rest, Antifragile, Singapore's Healthcare, Canada's Spending & Ben Howard

​

Happy Sunday!

This week I watched a YouTube video about a guy making cabinets.

The most interesting part of the video wasn't the cabinets, but the quote he mentioned partway through:

"If you work with your hands, rest with your mind. If you work with your mind, rest with your hands."

For many of us, "labor" has drifted a long way from anything you can touch and hold.

I spend my days staring at a screen for 8-10 hours (or more), and at the end of the day, it's hard to point to a single thing that I made.

Aside from some words on a page, or maybe some charts in a Miro board, there's no tangible proof of progress. Just a to-do list that continues to grow.

I've always been drawn to making things. As a kid, I'd spend hours building Lego.

These days, I settle for small projects: building a set of shelves or tinkering with my bike. There's always something grounding about it, a small satisfaction that's hard to come by otherwise, made even better by the hour or two focused on a single thing, without the distraction of constant notifications.

And that's probably the point: after a day of distractions and work that lives inside my head, using my hands isn't just a break: it's a reset, a conclusion, a reminder that there are things a lot more real than our lives online.

So the next time you're feeling burnt out after a long day using your mind: try doing something with your hands.

Have a great week!

Graham

​(see also Shop Class as Soulcraft)

Links

📚 Book Notes: Antifragile - Nassim Nicholas Taleb - One of the most impactful books I've ever read, this is one I strive to re-read at least once a year.

I was reminded of it this week when Daniel Vassilo, an entrepreneur who left a high-paying Amazon job, posted about how much a particular story from the book had influenced him too:

Daniel Vassallo-->

@dvassallo

The story from Antifragile that influenced me the most:

1:30 AM • Mar 26, 2025

135

Retweets

1543

Likes

Read 53 replies

​

📖 Singapore's Healthcare System - we have the data one of my favourite new X/Instagram accounts, shared this thread from Justin Mares about Singapore's healthcare system.

In short:

They have the best health outcomes in the world

They spend less than a third of the US ($4K/yr vs. $15K/yr)

Singapore is no doubt unique in some ways, but it's something I'd like to read more about.

One of the key aspects of their system: transparency.

All healthcare providers must display their prices and outcomes so that buyers can assess the cost and quality.

Justin Mares-->

@jwmares

Singapore created the world's most efficient healthcare system from scratch in one generation.

They spend $4,000 per person on healthcare. We spend $15,000.

Their secret?

The exact opposite of what American "experts" recommend: 🧵

1:3 PM • Apr 1, 2025

5543

Retweets

29085

Likes

Read 676 replies

​

🇨🇦 Canada Spends - On a related topic, a group of entrepreneurs and investors has been working to build more transparency into Canada's government spending. You can view the results so far here.​

Excited to see where it goes.

🎧 Ben Howard - Walking Backwards - Live by La Blogothèque - I stumbled on this video of Ben Howard performing Walking Backwards and it's gorgeous, and the audio is amazing.

Try and listen on a pair of good speakers or headphones if possible.

Tweet of the Week

​

Charles Miller-->

@charlesmiller_7

Be stubborn on destination but flexible on path

11:49 AM • Apr 1, 2025

1007

Retweets

5891

Likes

Read 15 replies

​