• podcast
    Deliberate Living,  Podcast

    Podcast Episode 64: Boundaries

    “Good fences make good neighbors,” Robert Frost said. Boundaries are important, both in a physical sense, but also in an emotional and intellectual sense. I find, though, that most people don’t know how to set a good boundary, and this can severely hamper them as they work toward a more fulfilling life. This is Episode 64, which I am calling “Boundaries”.

  • Open Loops as Clutter
    Productivity

    Open Loops as Clutter

    Our brains, the Ziegarnik effect reminds us, focus on the open loops that have yet to be completed. Physical clutter can often hide open loops. Today we look at how to figure out if your clutter is hiding open loops and what to do about it.

  • Recipe Cheat Sheet
    Simplify

    My Recipe Cheat Sheet

    I have a tendency to make the same recipes frequently. I know the steps to make the food, but not necessarily the exact proportions. Yes, I could look them up, but just having a list with my bare-bones information was all I really needed.

  • Minimum Viable Result
    Productivity

    What is Your Minimum Viable Result?

    Have you ever finished a project and realized that much of what you did didn’t need to be done? You can avoid this situation by learning to find your minimum viable result. Today we will look at this software development concept and how it can save you time and energy on all of your projects.

  • Commitments
    Deliberate Living

    Getting Rid of Commitments

    A reader asked about how to analyze and get rid of commitments that are taking up your time. It's a hard proposition: we are pulled in so many directions, and many of us really want to actively contribute to many of our commitments. However, we are still over-scheduled and over-committed and we need to cut back. Here is my take on how to get rid of commitments:

  • plus address
    Productivity,  Software

    The Power Of Plus: Microsoft Gets On Board

    One of the most powerful things about Gmail is that you can add a “+tag” to your email address, turning your single email address into an infinite amount of addresses. These modified plus addresses can then be used to filter email with great precision.Microsoft finally is getting on board with this, setting the Plus addressing as a default as of April 22, 2022. It can still be overridden by system administrators, but hopefully most people will take the default.