132: Willpower and Your Environment
Is willpower enough to plow through? In this episode, Mike and David look into that question.
Episodes
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
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.
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.
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.
128: Communication
Mike and David tackle one of the most difficult subjects of focus, Communication.
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.
126: Productivity vs. Grinding
Mike and David get into note-taking (and note-making), listener feedback, and the pesky problem of productivity vs. grinding.
125: Professional Nerd, with Rosemary Orchard
Rosemary Orchard joins us to talk about juggling projects, automation, kanban boards, and keeping the jobby job.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
110: Focus with Michael Hyatt
Michael Hyatt joins in to talk about staying focused, drift, scaling back on social media.
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.
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.
107: The Bullet Journal Method, with Ryder Carroll
Bullet Journal Method founder Ryder Carroll joins us to talk about taking time offline, asking the right questions, and finding the the balance between style and substance in getting the right things done.
106: Home Offices with Laura Vanderkam
Laura Vanderkam joins the podcast this episode to talk about challenges and opportunities in working from home. Mike and David also break down their ever-evolving shut down routines.
105: Living the Multipotentialite Life, with Jay Miller
Jay Miller joins us to talk about balancing many interests, transferring your focus as you switch between them, and what it means to live the multipotentialite lifestyle.
104: Sleep and Sabbaticals
Mike and David cover a lot in this week's episode ranging from David's attempt at a sabbatical to sleep to productivity in virtual reality.
103: Systems & Challenges
David tweaks his shutdown routine and preps for his sabbatical, Mike unpacks his hybrid productivity system, and they each have their own productivity challenge to complete.