137: Managing Busy
Mike and David return to the insidious problem of "busy". Mike and David are not beyond getting caught in this trap and share some ideas about how to avoid it.
Oct 27, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 137
Focused
David Sparks and Mike Schmitz are not nearly as productive as they’d like to be. Join these fellow travelers (and a bunch of special guests) as they share the best ways to get focused, and talk through their successes and failures along the way. Hosted by David Sparks and Mike Schmitz.
Episodes
136: Social Focus, with Taylor Jacobson
Taylor Jacobson joins us to talk about groundedness, vulnerability, and accountability on his journey to founding Focusmate.
Oct 12, 2021•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 136
135: Don't Eat the Frog, with Jesse J. Anderson
Jesse Anderson joins us to talk about self-awareness and the struggles with being productive while battling ADHD.
Sep 28, 2021•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 135
134: Finding Space with Sean McCabe
Sean McCabe comes back to report in on what happened when his year-long sabbatical smacked into a pandemic and how he keeps his focus while winding up a new business.
Sep 14, 2021•2 hr 36 min•Ep. 134
133: Success & Failure
David & Mike do an audit of their productivity workflows and share what's working (and what isn't).
Aug 31, 2021•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 133
132: Willpower and Your Environment
Is willpower enough to plow through? In this episode, Mike and David look into that question.
Aug 17, 2021•1 hr 13 min•Ep. 132
131: Liminal Thinking
We're all a lot less objective than we give ourselves credit for. David & Mike attempt to figure out why by considering limiting beliefs, learning loops, and the slippery slope of self-sealing logic.
Aug 03, 2021•1 hr 24 min•Ep. 131
130: Toxic Productivity
At what point does your quest for productivity and efficiency become toxic? It's a good question and an easy trap. Mike and David have a few ideas.
Jul 20, 2021•1 hr 19 min•Ep. 130
129: No One Wants to Work With a Jerk, with Colleen Wainwright
Gmail ninja Colleen Wainwright joins us to talk about delegating work to others, the evolution of the attention economy, and working out of email without going crazy.
Jul 06, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 129
128: Communication
Mike and David tackle one of the most difficult subjects of focus, Communication.
Jun 22, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 128
127: Focusing a Team, with Ken Case
Ken Case joins us to talk about how the Omni Group focuses their work teams, the lessons they've learned from forced changes due to COVID, and the benefits of planning for disruption.
Jun 08, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 127
126: Productivity vs. Grinding
Mike and David get into note-taking (and note-making), listener feedback, and the pesky problem of productivity vs. grinding.
May 25, 2021•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 126
125: Professional Nerd, with Rosemary Orchard
Rosemary Orchard joins us to talk about juggling projects, automation, kanban boards, and keeping the jobby job.
May 11, 2021•1 hr 29 min•Ep. 125
124: Reading and Learning
In this episode, Mike and David talk about PKM planets and how they read, process, and learn from books and other media.
Apr 27, 2021•1 hr 25 min•Ep. 124
123: A Focus on Time
David & Mike talk about the different ways they track their time, what tools they use, and share the focus & productivity benefits they glean from the process.
Apr 13, 2021•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 123
122: Linking Your Thinking with Nick Milo
Nick Milo from *Linking Your Thinking* joins this week to consider the role of focus in idea development and knowledge management.
Mar 30, 2021•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 122
121: Analog Focus, with Jeff Sheldon
Jeff Sheldon from Ugmonk joins us to talk about his Analog productivity system, connecting dots, intentional constraints, and being a geek for the details.
Mar 16, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 121
120: Caveday with Jake Kahana
Jake Kahana from Caveday joins to talk about his journey and how Cavedays can help you get your focus mojo back.
Mar 02, 2021•1 hr 15 min•Ep. 120
119: Productivity & Meditation, with Chris Bailey
Author Chris Bailey joins us to talk about the productivity benefits of meditation, conquering resistance, and the path of least regret.
Feb 16, 2021•2 hr 33 min•Ep. 119
118: Tasks and Habits
Tasks are great but sometimes the wrong tool. Mike and David make the case that habits are underrated and can help you where projects can not.
Feb 02, 2021•2 hr 42 min•Ep. 118
117: Roles & Goals
Goals are great, but they aren't enough. In this episode, David & Mike talk about how roles & goals work together and how the hats that you decide to wear are the real foundation of a solid personal productivity system.
Jan 19, 2021•2 hr 32 min•Ep. 117
116: The Big Reset
Mike and David take on the new year in their own focused ways as they talk through a workflow for change.
Jan 05, 2021•2 hr 33 min•Ep. 116
115: Solving Interesting Problems, with Ernie Svenson
Ernie Svenson joins us to talk about how focus inspired his career change from lawyer to small firm consultant, the importance of getting help, and the value of journaling.
Dec 22, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 115
114: Inputs and PKM Stacks
Inputs! We all have too many of them and not enough of us have a plan for them. In this episode, Mike and David talk about those pesky inputs and how to deal with them.
Dec 08, 2020•1 hr 28 min•Ep. 114
113: ADHD and Cognitive Science, with Brittany Smith
Brittany Smith is a cognitive scientist and very focused. She's also diagnosed with ADHD and she has a lot of wisdom to share in this week's episode.
Nov 24, 2020•1 hr 21 min•Ep. 113
112: Productivity & Creativity
David & Mike consider the relationship of productivity & creativity and how it shapes the work that they do. They dive into their personal knowledge management stacks and the tools they currently use, share some tips for tagging, and discuss where to draw the lines between tools for managing tasks and ideas.
Nov 10, 2020•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 112
111: Environmental Focus, with Erik Fisher
Erik Fisher joins us to talk about internal and external distractions, setting up your environment for focused work, dealing with unexpected changes, and building self-awareness.
Oct 27, 2020•1 hr 27 min•Ep. 111
110: Focus with Michael Hyatt
Michael Hyatt joins in to talk about staying focused, drift, scaling back on social media.
Oct 14, 2020•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 110
109: Email Workflows
David & Mike revisit the topic of email and discuss their current workflows. They share how and when they process email, what they use to do it, and the strategies they use to break free from their inboxes long enough to do some actual work.
Sep 29, 2020•1 hr 22 min•Ep. 109
108: Pruning with Ian Byrd
Educator, speaker, and online course creator Ian Byrd joins Mike and David to talk about quarterly retreats, technology, and focus. David makes a commitment.
Sep 15, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 108