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The Productivity Show

Asian Efficiency

Asian Efficiency is the leading website on time management and productivity. Learn how to be efficient, get things done (GTD), and stay motivated.

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#630
Wednesday · 8 min
Heck Yeah or No: How to Say No, Even to Your Boss
Did you say yes to something recently and regret it before the calendar invite even arrived? Thanh once turned down an opportunity he was excited about, and it was tied to something he loves. Find out why he said no, and why it turned out to be one of his better decisions. When the request comes from your boss, saying no gets a lot harder. Thanh shares the simple test that makes most of these decisions for him and the words he’d use to say no to his boss without hurting his reputation. It all takes less than 10 minutes. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links DripDrop — 20% off your first order with promo code TPS 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#630
Monday · 47 min
The Productivity Rules We Stopped Following (and What We Do Instead) (TPS630)
A lot of popular productivity advice sounds smart until you actually try to live by it. In this episode, Thanh and Brooks share the rules they’ve stopped following, from inbox zero and rigid morning routines to building elaborate note systems and optimizing every minute. More importantly, they explain what replaced them: flexible systems, useful constraints, and practices that work in real life instead of just looking impressive on the internet. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Make the switch! MINTMOBILE.com/PRODUCTIVITY. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Learn more about how Notion can support your business at notion.com/tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:47] Why chasing inbox zero solves the wrong problem [6:56] Triaging your whole inbox from a 15-minute walk [10:39] What tracking every single minute for four months taught him [21:20] The two-app note setup that ended years of hoarding [28:11] The one rule that keeps a blown-up routine from wrecking your day [36:26] Principles, not prison cells [43:39] Links Mint Mobile — make the switch DripDrop — promo code TPS for 20% off your first order Notion 25X Productivity Coaching Bounce How to Try Again by Steve Kamb Nerd Fitness Apple Refurbished Store RefurbMe Refurb Tracker Quiet by Susan Cain Flight Plan by Brian Tracy Evernote Obsidian Drafts Day One Obsidian Map View plugin DevonThink Claude Atomic Habits by James Clear Productivity Academy If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#629
September 9 · 10 min
Stop Consuming Productivity Tips and Start Using Them
If you’ve ever spent an afternoon reading productivity articles instead of doing actual work, this episode is for you. Thanh breaks down the four signs you’ve fallen into the productivity content trap, shares a simple audit to catch yourself in the act, and gives you one rule that turns any tip into real behavior change. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Upwork 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#629
September 7 · 43 min
The Music That Rewires Your Focus w/ Dan Clark from Brain.fm (TPS629)
How would you know if you’d never actually experienced deep focus? Dan Clark, CEO of Brain.fm, says that’s the most common thing people write in to tell him — they thought they knew what concentration felt like, right up until they didn’t. In this encore episode, Dan breaks down the science behind functional music: how neural phase locking syncs your brain to a focus state in three to seven minutes, why lyrics quietly sabotage your flow, and the simple focus sprint setup he recommends for anyone trying it for the first time. Start with a free trial at shopify.com/tps. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Learn more about how Notion can support your business at notion.com/tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [2:02] The 12 phone calls that turned a superfan into the CEO [3:14] What “syncing your brain to music” actually means [6:30] The message Brain.fm gets from users over and over [11:32] Why lyrics quietly wreck your flow state [15:35] The focus sprint setup he recommends to every beginner [18:30] Half human, half math: how each track gets built [21:35] The surgery study that convinced him this really works [23:56] Video games, EEG, and fMRI: how they prove the effect [27:45] The morning ritual he runs before touching anything else [34:23] The Google Maps trick for a week that’s going sideways [38:34] Links Shopify Upwork Notion 25X Productivity Coaching Brain.fm Atomic Habits by James Clear Fireflies.ai Roam Research Hans Zimmer Focus@Will If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#628
August 31 · 56 min
The Workflow Friction Audit: Find and Remove the Hidden Drains in Your Day (TPS628)
You’re busy all day but still feel like you’re not getting enough done. The culprit isn’t your to-do list — it’s hidden workflow friction. In this episode, Thanh and Brooks walk you through a practical Workflow Friction Audit: how to spot the invisible drains like context switching, setup overhead, unclear handoffs, and rework — and how to eliminate them with templates, batching, automation, and clearer decision rules. Small fixes, massive compounding results. Masterclass.com/TPS for at least 15% off any annual membership. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. See what ElevenAgents can do for your specific workflows. Start with a demo at elevenlabs.io/tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [2:33] Why teaching someone your workflow exposes what you’ve been tolerating [7:19] The three-times rule and the “where am I waiting?” test [11:02] Ask AI to comb your past sessions and hand you the fixes [20:20] The one book idea that changes how you attack any bottleneck [26:56] How half a day of “donkey work” shrank to 15 minutes [32:07] The counterintuitive handoff fix: more meetings, not fewer [45:31] Why the debt-snowball approach beats a fancy priority matrix [49:36] The one friction point to kill this week [55:18] Links MasterClass Upwork Eleven Agents (ElevenLabs) 25X Productivity Coaching Codex Micro (Work Louder × OpenAI) Stream Deck (Elgato) Productivity Academy Apple Refurbished Store Blueair Blue Pure 511 Granola Wispr Flow The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt Atomic Habits by James Clear MindNode David Sparks (MacSparky) If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#627
August 26 · 9 min
Why Your Calendar Breaks by 10 AM (And What to Do Instead)
Rigid time-blocking sounds great in theory, but it falls apart the moment real life shows up. In this episode, Thanh shares five adaptive planning methods that preserve your intentions without making you feel behind before lunch. You will learn flexible focus blocks, rolling Top 3 priorities, time theming, buffer blocks, and energy-based planning. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links DripDrop — 20% off your first order with promo code TPS 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#627
August 24 · 50 min
The Productivity Content Trap: When Optimizing Becomes Procrastination (TPS627)
You’ve read the books, watched the videos, and tried the apps — but your output hasn’t changed. In this episode, Thanh and Brooks break down why consuming productivity content can become its own form of procrastination. They cover optimization theater, endless tool switching, note hoarding, and planning as avoidance — and give you a simple audit to figure out if your “learning” is actually moving the needle or just feeding a dopamine loop. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code TPS. Masterclass.com/TPS for at least 15% off any annual membership. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:42] Why the “productivity valley” is so fun to get stuck in [4:43] The “would you also like to…” trap that eats your afternoon [6:58] 3⃣ The rule that stops you building systems you don’t need [8:32] Four ways optimizing turns into procrastination [11:13] The search-first notes setup that skips the Obsidian rabbit hole [14:29] Why Thanh ditched markdown files for HTML pages [16:14] The automation everyone’s sleeping on right now [21:41] How to tell you’re consuming instead of doing [28:23] The $600 gadget that fixed his “knowledge debt” [31:01] The consume-versus-do ratio worth aiming for [37:05] Turning saved bookmarks into a weekly experiment [40:49] Want to build your own digest? Start here [46:30] Links DripDrop — promo code TPS for 20% off your first order Masterclass — at least 15% off any annual membership 25X Productivity Coaching Rework Basecamp Bird by Bird Marked Setapp Claude ChatGPT OmniFocus Obsidian Drafts Evernote Bending Spoons Airtable Atomic Habits MacSparky Keyboard Maestro Codex Nano Banana (Gemini Image) Laura Roeder on X If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
August 19 · 12 min
The Knowledge Worker’s AI Operating System: From Inbox to Deep Work to Done
Your AI tools keep promising to save you time — so why do you feel more buried than ever? We have a blunt answer: the tools were never the problem. You’ve been bolting AI onto a system that was already broken, like turbocharging a car with a flat tire. This Wisdom Wednesday, we lay out a different way to think about it — one that changes where AI actually belongs in your day, and where it never will. Ten minutes. One shift. Give it a listen. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Upwork 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#626
August 17 · 49 min
Why Productivity Systems Don’t Work for You (And How to Build One That Fits) (TPS626)
Most productivity systems fail not because you lack discipline — but because you borrowed someone else’s constraints. In this episode, we break down why copying another person’s tool stack or workflow is a recipe for frustration, and walk you through a better build process: starting with your workload reality, energy patterns, and review cadence. You’ll learn how to customize the friction points of a proven framework instead of reinventing everything from scratch. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Make the switch! MINTMOBILE.com/PRODUCTIVITY. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [2:18] Why almost nobody talks about productivity systems anymore [6:27] How AI quietly collapsed GTD’s five steps into one [9:34] Why your step-by-step instructions are secretly slowing the AI down [17:35] The reason someone else’s “perfect” system falls apart the moment you copy it [26:35] The 10/80/10 split that redraws where your real work happens [31:36] The one framework that survives even when all your tools change [36:10] The “skinnier me” trap that quietly wrecks the system you just built [41:04] The single lever to move today before you close the episode [48:42] Links Mint Mobile Upwork 25X Productivity Coaching The Art of Possibility (Benjamin Zander & Rosamund Stone Zander) Anker Laptop Power Bank, 25,000mAh 165W Midwit Meme Generator Getting Things Done (GTD) Getting Results the Agile Way (Agile Results) The 12 Week Year Wispr Flow OmniFocus Todoist If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#625
August 12 · 7 min
AI Fluency Is the Real Advantage
Why do 65% of employees say AI makes them more productive, but only one in ten say it actually changed how they work? That gap comes down to a single skill—and the people who have it are quietly reclaiming 15 to 20 hours a week. This Wisdom Wednesday, we break down the three levels of AI fluency and the simple audit that shows you exactly where you’re stuck. AI won’t fix a broken workflow—it just amplifies whatever you’ve already got. Here’s how to make it amplify the right things. Learn more about how Notion can support your business at notion.com/tps. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Notion 25X Productivity Coaching Gallup — Rising AI Adoption Spurs Workforce Changes ChatGPT Claude If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#625
August 10 · 49 min
Time-Blocking Is Broken: 5 Adaptive Planning Methods That Work Better (TPS625)
Rigid time-blocking sounds great in theory—until your 10 AM deep work block gets hijacked by an urgent meeting and you feel behind before lunch. In this episode, Thanh and Brooks break down why traditional time-blocking fails and share 5 adaptive planning methods that actually survive real life: flexible focus blocks, rolling daily Top 3, time theming, buffer blocks, and energy-based planning. Your calendar should preserve your intent, not punish you for being human. Masterclass.com/TPS for at least 15% off any annual membership. Make the switch! MINTMOBILE.com/PRODUCTIVITY. See what ElevenAgents can do for your specific workflows Start with a demo at elevenlabs.io/tps. Learn more about how Notion can support your business at notion.com/tps. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:39] Why the calendar block you swore by is quietly failing you [6:22] The counterintuitive move: running five tasks at once and calling it focus [8:53] The brand-new kind of distraction nobody warned you about [18:09] The hidden “debt” you rack up when your agents work faster than you can learn [21:31] Top 3 tasks or total focus hours—which one actually predicts a good day? [26:11] The one scheduling hack that frees up the rest of your week [34:37] The 15 minutes between meetings that change everything (and the 2-skip rule) [38:19] Why Friday afternoon is the perfect time to do Monday’s work [44:09] Links ElevenLabs / Eleven Agents Masterclass Mint Mobile Notion 25X Productivity Coaching Anker USB C Adapter Logitech MX Master 4 CyberPower UPS Claude Elgato Stream Deck XL OmniFocus Calendly Fantastical The 12 Week Year If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#624
August 5 · 8 min
The Goal Was Never the Point
What are you actually building when you chase a goal that takes years to reach? Most of us measure progress by whether we got the thing — the promotion, the number, the car in the driveway. But that scorecard misses the part that compounds. This encore episode gives you a better way to read your own progress, so the goals you’re grinding on right now pay off even when the outcome is slower or smaller than you hoped. You’ll learn why setbacks are data rather than verdicts, how to make decisions when every dollar and hour counts, and what actually carries forward from one accomplished goal into the next one. Ten minutes, and you’ll walk away with a clearer sense of what you’re really earning — and why the next impossible thing on your list will feel more possible than this one did. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. visit Listen to this episode (MP3) Links DripDrop — 20% off your first order with promo code TPS 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#624
August 3 · 54 min
The Knowledge Worker’s AI Operating System: From Inbox to Deep Work to Done (TPS624)
Inbox zero is not the win. You can hit inbox zero every single day and still feel like you’re drowning—because the real problem isn’t the inbox. It’s that most people are bolting AI tools onto a broken system. Today we’re going to fix that. We’re going to show you how to think about AI not as a collection of individual tools, but as an operating system—with five distinct layers that take you from incoming chaos to trusted next actions and protected deep-work blocks. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Shopify: Own your customer relationships. Own your revenue. Start with a free trial at shopify.com/tps. DripDrop: Get 20% off your first order at dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Even Realities: Use promo code tps at evenrealities.com to get 10% off Even Ring 1 and/or Even Clip when you add them to your Even G2 order. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:28] The Stream Deck button that shuts up a noisy office fridge [4:47] Stop using AI in random bursts — the five layers that change everything [6:44] Why capturing every meeting means you finally act on what you promised [7:37] The workaround for pulling Teams and Slack context into your AI [13:00] The mountain of captured stuff — and how AI finally clears it [19:33] When “good enough” AI beats code, and when it absolutely doesn’t [25:24] Let AI plan your week around your energy peaks, not just your open slots [30:40] Building the “software factory” that drafts your emails while you sleep [41:19] The gates that keep your AI agents from going off the rails [46:30] Links Shopify DripDrop Even Realities 25X Productivity Coaching Elgato Stream Deck How Brooks uses the Stream Deck (AE blog post) TRMNL Oura Ring How Thanh uses the Oura Ring (AE blog post) Granola Airtable OmniFocus Todoist Hazel Robert Smith, Vista Equity Partners If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#623
July 29 · 7 min
Your 10-Minute Habit That Ends the Chaos
Does your to-do list go off the rails before lunch? For fast-moving professionals in high-growth environments, the plan you make at 8am can be obsolete by 9. New clients, broken systems, back-to-back meetings — the day hijacks your priorities, and by 5pm you’re taking the laptop home just to catch up on the work you meant to do hours ago. In this encore episode, we share the simple skill that pulls order out of that chaos, and it’s the difference between feeling perpetually behind and staying on top of your game. If you’ve ever ended a busy day wondering where all your time went, this one’s worth ten minutes. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Upwork 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#623
July 27 · 48 min
AI Is Boosting Productivity, But Only for the Fluent (TPS623)
Most people think the gap is between those who use AI and those who don’t. It’s not. The real gap is between people who are AI-curious and people who are AI-fluent. In this episode, we break down the three levels of AI fluency—from casual assistance to workflows to autonomous agents—and show you exactly why access to AI isn’t the advantage. Fluency is. Learn the framework that separates people getting massive productivity gains from those stuck at square one. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Visit Upwork.com right now and post your job for free. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Use promo code tps at evenrealities.com to get 10% off Even Ring 1 and/or Even Clip when you add them to your Even G2 order. Masterclass.com/TPS for at least 15% off any annual membership. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet The productivity gap nobody’s talking about — and it’s not access [2:00] Top 3 Productivity Resources [2:50] The answer that made people swear off AI for good [6:45] The accountant who’d never opened a terminal, and the demo that flipped a skeptical senior dev [10:36] Assistant, workflow, agent: the three-level map that shows exactly where you’re stuck [19:29] The two-word question that beats hours of Googling “how do I…” [26:17] The “wedge” that turns an AI skeptic into someone who calls Claude their best friend [34:47] Why measuring AI adoption by token spend backfires — plus the Ford layoff cautionary tale [42:49] Links Upwork DripDrop — promo code TPS for 20% off Even Realities — promo code TPS Masterclass — at least 15% off annual membership 25X Productivity Coaching Recomendo newsletter Worse on Purpose Lenny’s Podcast — Building the most AI-pilled engineering team (Fiona Fung) Apple Sports Claude Claude Design OpenAI Codex Productivity Academy If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#622
July 22 · 7 min
You Are Drowning in Micro-Decisions
Decision fatigue is not about mental collapse. It is about subtle quality decay. The more choices your day demands, the more likely you are to procrastinate, default, or choose what is easy instead of what matters. Here are three rules to stop it. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Use promo code TPS at evenrealities.com to get 10% off Even Ring 1 and/or Even Clip when you add them to your Even G2 order. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Even Realities (Even G2) 25X Productivity Coaching Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#622
July 20 · 47 min
Break These Productivity Rules (If They’re Not Working) (TPS622)
Should you really eat that frog first thing every morning? We aren’t so sure, and in this encore episode, we’re throwing out four pieces of productivity advice so widely repeated that most people follow them without ever asking whether they actually work. From the classics to the modern assumptions, we make the case that some of the most popular productivity wisdom might be quietly holding you back. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Masterclass: Masterclass.com/TPS for at least 15% off any annual membership. Use promo code tps at evenrealities.com to get 10% off Even Ring 1 and/or Even Clip when you add them to your Even G2 order. For 50% less your first year, go to HomeServe.com/TPS. Void in Florida. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:31] Why the early risers really win — and the “time arbitrage” idea behind it [5:17] The “crazy” one-day meeting fix that gave back the whole week [11:16] What actually happened after every meeting moved to Wednesday [17:00] The productivity lever nobody in this industry talks about [24:12] No budget? How to buy back time when you’re starting from zero [35:00] The take that might get Brooks fired: skip eating the frog [39:56] Links Masterclass Even Realities HomeServe 25X Productivity Coaching Grailed Daylio Snapseed 8 Strategies for Waking Up Early and Becoming a Morning Person (TPS130) Scaling Up by Verne Harnish 6 Tips for Running More Effective Meetings (TPS195) TaskRabbit Instacart Whole Foods Market Bodybuilding.com WebMD How I Spend $5,000/Month to Win Back Time Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy Erin Chase — $5 Dinners Structuring the Day and Week w/ Erin Chase (TPS226) If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#621
July 15 · 9 min
AI Meeting Assistants: Stop Transcribing and Start Saving Time
Most AI meeting assistants create transcripts, but few actually save time. We rank the top tools like Otter, Fireflies, and Fathom based on ruthless practicality. Learn how to automate your follow-up, reclaim 10 to 20 hours a week, and close deals faster by eliminating post-meeting admin work. Visit www.asianefficiency.com for more productivity tips and tactics. Get 20% off your first order at dripdrop.com and use promo code TPS. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links DripDrop 25X Productivity Coaching Otter Fireflies Fathom Zoom AI Companion Granola Read AI Lindy Todoist Attio If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#621
July 13 · 45 min
Rethinking Email, Focus & Doing Less w/ Ari Meisel (TPS621)
How many good decisions do you actually have in you each day? Ari Meisel says the answer is about two dozen — which means your inbox, with its thousands of tiny choices, is quietly bankrupting you before lunch. In this encore conversation, the founder of Less Doing joins us to reframe email as a decision-making problem rather than a communication one, and to explain why he’s replaced almost all of his messaging with asynchronous voice. He shares how he runs a coaching business, closes sales, and stays close with far-flung friends without a single call on his calendar — and how those constraints made him more effective, not less. If you’re looking for genuinely unconventional ways to do less and get more done, this one’s worth your time. Get 20% off your first order: dripdrop.com and use promo code tps. Make the switch! MINTMOBILE.com/PRODUCTIVITY. Get 60% off personal and family plans at Keepersecurity.com/TPS. Listen to this episode (MP3) Cheat Sheet Top 3 Productivity Resources [1:43] The diagnosis that cut an 18-hour workday down to one [4:05] Forget “eat the frog” — the prioritization rule most people miss [6:32] Why your inbox isn’t an email problem at all [11:11] How he closed a $1,500 sale in 8 minutes of voice notes [19:40] Drowning in a new inbox? The four-times-speed fix [26:10] The hospital night that turned him into a data geek [34:59] The one non-negotiable he wishes he’d started sooner [40:35] Where to find Ari [44:39] Links DripDrop — promo code TPS for 20% off your first order Mint Mobile Keeper — 60% off personal and family plans 25X Productivity Coaching Voxer Smart Nora Emergency by Neil Strauss Less Doing Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy Double Double by Cameron Herold Vivid Vision by Cameron Herold Oura Ring Levels Dexcom Viome If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!
#620
July 8 · 8 min
Focus Isn’t the Problem You Think It Is
Why did reading twenty books a year suddenly become impossible? Thanh used to fly through books and podcasts without a second thought — until his ability to concentrate quietly started slipping away, and no amount of blocking notifications or silencing his phone fixed it. The distraction wasn’t coming from his devices. It was coming from inside his own head. In this encore episode, Thanh breaks down what actually happened, the strange mix of experiments he ran to fix it, and the concept of attention management that came out the other side — a shift in thinking that helped him concentrate for 90 minutes or more at a stretch. If you’ve noticed your own focus fading and assumed it was just a willpower problem, this episode makes the case that it isn’t. Get 60% off personal and family plans at Keepersecurity.com/TPS. Listen to this episode (MP3) Links Keeper Security 25X Productivity Coaching If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Overcast, Pocket Casts or your favorite podcast player. It’s easy, you’ll get new episodes automatically, and it also helps the show. You can also leave a review!

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