The Productivityist Podcast: Ideas And Tools For Personal Productivity | Time Management | Goals | Habits | Working Better

My guest on this episode is my friend Justin Jackson. I wanted to revisit this conversation from April 2017, so I pulled it from the vault to share it with you once again. Justin is a ton of things. He's a dad, a husband, an entrepreneur, and a coach. He's the founder of Megamaker, cofounder of Transistor.fm, and cofounder of Meeps. He's also the author of Jolt, the creator of Marketing for Developers and Tiny Marketing Wins, and an overall serial maker. He aims to help people through the things they create. And he does a great job at that. On this episode, we discussed the processes of making and/or modifying. We spent time going over his systems and approaches in the different initiatives and creations he is working on. Relevant Links: Connect with Justin: Website | Twitter | YouTube | Instagram Looking for a podcast hosting solution? Check out Transistor.fm Justin's Email Newsletter: (It's Self-Titled) Justin is also on Twitch: Right Here Related Conversation: Episode 290: Creative Menopause with

Change is never easy. And it's constant. It's one of the things that we can rely on... even if we can't rely on what it might hold for us. That's why you're seeing the phrase "change management" so much more than ever before. You can't really lead change; you can only manage it. Or can you lead it? That's what Michael Diettrich-Chastain and I talk about during this episode of A Productive Conversation. Michael is a bestselling author, leadership coach, facilitator and professional speaker. Michael and his team are passionate about helping organizations, leaders and teams become experts on change management, communication and emotional intelligence. So he knows a thing or to about not just managing change... but leading it to where you get the best outcome possible. We talked about certainty and uncertainty and how the acronym he uses (CHANGES) can help organizations and their personnel deal with both. There's a lot more that we get into surrounding the concept of change and I believe after listening to this c

As the author of "Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life," Luke has spent plenty of time and energy researching the power of desire. I absolutely loved getting into the book and wanted to spend some time getting into the nuts and bolts with Luke about why "wanting" has so much power... and what to do with that power. We unpacked a lot during our discussion – from impostor syndrome to needs and wants becoming one and the same (or appearing to be) to attempting to avoid choosing the wrong things to desire. I learned a lot from this conversation, making it incredibly productive. I trust you'll learn a lot, too. Show Notes Connect with Luke: Website | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn Luke's Book: Wanting: The Power of Mimetic Desire in Everyday Life Luke and I both use the Monk Manual: Get 10% off one here with the code TIMECRAFTING I also use this journaling app: Reflection Luke chatting with Ryan Holiday: The Daily Stoic Podcast Related Conversation: Episode 189 of A Productiv

Who is Thomas Anderson? Better still, who is Thomas Anderson to write a book on vulnerability? I ask this question during my conversation with him on this episode of the podcast. Do vulnerability and productivity go hand-in-hand? I think so. Setting boundaries, sharing limitations, dealing with overwhelm, are all part of them both. I know that once you're done listening to our conversation that you'll see the relationship between productivity and vulnerability. And you might just be closer to the aim of being productive rather than "doing" productive, too. Show Notes Connect with Thomas: Website | Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn Thomas's Book: The Vulnerable Man Vulnerability + Ted Lasso: The art of vulnerability with Ted Lasso Another book I loved spawned from journaling: Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey Related Conversation: Episode 146 of A Productive Conversation Related Blog Post: Why I Journal (and Why You Should Too) Thanks to all of the sponsors of this episode. You can find all of the

On this bonus (and sponsor-free) episode of A Productive Conversation with Mike Vardy, Mike is joined by his good friend Charlie Gilkey of Productive Flourishing to talk about Momentum, the productivity app that he and his team are developing. Mike asks him why in the world we need another productivity app, what Charlie is hoping to see happen with the Kickstarter campaign for Momentum, and much more. This audio is from a livestream that Mike had with Charlie on his YouTube channel so it'll sound different than our regular episodes. (Not bad... just different.) You can check out the Momentum app Kickstarter campaign here. Want to watch the recorded livestream? Here you go. Want to support the podcast? You can subscribe to the show wherever you listen to podcasts. Click on any of the links below to make that happen. Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Stitcher You can also click on this link to paste the podcast feed into your podcast app of choice. Thanks again for listening to A Productive Conversat

Over the past 7+ years of hosting this podcast, I noticed something: I've never gone back into previous conversations and revisited them with you. So I decided to make that more of a thing going forward. The first episode of this podcast that I felt deserved to get pulled out from the vault was the one where noticing was the topic of conversation. Rob Walker knows a thing or two about noticing. I've gone back to his book a few times since I was first sent a copy to read for our discussion back in May 2019. Considering that I focus on the importance of both intention and attention when it comes to time management and productivity, noticing is a natural thing for me to explore further. Noticing is a habit that I need to nurture. As Rob so aptly put during our conversation: "It is not about your skill at noticing, more on the habit of noticing that sort of forces you to see differently and to see things that you weren’t looking for.” I'm getting better at noticing. I trust after you listen to this conversation –

Perrine Farque and I had a conversation that revolved largely around her area of expertise: inclusion. That's also the title of her book, which came up quite a bit during our chat... and for good reason. You see, within its pages lies the ultimate secret for an organization's success. We get into acronyms (we're both fans of them) and Perrine explores one of them with me in greater depth. Other things we get into include a way to think of yourself than can help promote inclusivity, the ever-present problem of "impostor syndrome", and how to break through beliefs that integrating an inclusive culture into the workspace isn't as overwhelming as some make it out to be. Perrine drove the strategy at companies such as Facebook and is on a mission to make the workplace more inclusive and diverse. After listening to this conversation, I think you'll see that she is well on her way to accomplishing that mission. Show Notes Connect with Perrine: Website | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter Perrine's Book: Inclusion: Th

Becca Ribbing knows a thing of two about, well... giving things thought. She's the author of The Clarity Journal, so clarity is something she givers a lot of attention to. The change to the way I kick off each episode was the result of me getting clear about what I wanted to achieve at the start of the show, so I wanted to talk with Becca about the importance of clarity and mindful productivity. Becca has been a coach for over a decade, helping women going back and forth with the big, seemingly endless question of what to do next. They also may not be entirely aware of what they're getting into. As she says during our discussion: "When people area ready to jump to a new level, they don't always take stock of everything that's going into it." When Becca steps in, anyone she works with can stop going around in circles and finally figure out what they truly want... and create the clarity and momentum they crave. During our discussion, Becca goes into how she came up with the concept for The Clarity Journal. She

Productivity makes Stacy Tuschl tick. In addition to being a Small Business Growth Coach, Stacy is a bestselling author, and founder of the Foot Traffic Formula - helping small businesses around the world get more customers in the door, more profit in their pocket and more happiness in their homes. Stacy's started a bunch of prosperous ventures – including turning a company she started in her parents' backyard at the age of 18 into a multi-million dollar enterprise that she still runs today. As I went through her new book, I found myself "dog-earing" it relentlessly. The book is titled The Implementation Code: Unlocking The Secret To Getting It All Done and when I was able to secure another conversation with Stacy – she's been on he podcast before as you'll see in the show notes – I knew we'd have plenty to discuss. Stacy and I talk about the things people don't want to do but that we all need to do. Then we discuss the importance of maintenance, as illustrated in these words from Stacy: "Without maintenance

Find out how to move from survival to thriving with your business with economist-turned-entrepreneur John Meese. John is on a personal mission to eradicate generational poverty by helping entrepreneurs create thriving businesses which is why he wrote ‘Survive and Thrive: How to Build a Profitable Business in Any Economy (Including This One)’. John is CEO of Cowork.Inc, Co-founder of Notable, and host of the Thrive School podcast. It was great having John back on the show to discuss his latest book. We discussed how to embrace problems, strategies of growing a business, being around like-minded people, and the power of coworking spaces.   Talking Points His process of writing the book  The profit-first mindset The theme of service throughout his research The five ways of growing a business Having the right people around you John’s coworking space Moving from the survival to the thriving state of your business Quote "As an entrepreneur, the world is counting on you to solve problems." Helpful Link

As co-founder of the altMBA, Wes Kao helped create the modern cohort-based education movement with Seth Godin.  Wes has led over 150 launches for Fortune 500 brands and startups, and is recognized as a leading expert in B2C marketing. Now she’s taking the category she helped create to the next level with her new startup Maven, the world’s first digital platform for cohort-based courses. I learned heaps from this conversation as Wes unpacked all things cohort-based learning. Tune in to find out more about creating an engaging course, how the best courses evolve, growing your community, and the power of beta-testing.   Talking Points The rising trend of learning cohorts Some common mistakes made by first-time course creators Why it’s never too late to start a cohort-based learning course The impact of people working from home How to make the most out of online learning Repurposing evergreen content into cohort-based course Quote "The less tools you have, the less things will break." Helpful Links A

Dr. Michael Breus, Ph.D., is a Clinical Psychologist and both a Diplomate of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine. He is one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have passed the Sleep Medical Speciality board without going to Medical School. Dr. Michael Breus was recently named the Top Sleep Specialist in California by Reader’s Digest, and one of the 10 most influential people in sleep.  Michael is also ‘The Power of When’, ‘The Sleep Doctor’s Diet Plan: Lose Weight Through Better Sleep’ and ‘GOOD NIGHT: The Sleep Doctor’s 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health’. In this episode, we explore his most recent book, co-authored with Stacey Griffith, ‘Energize!: Go from Dragging Ass to Kicking It in 30 Days’. Tune in also to learn more about energy management techniques, knowing your body type, morning stretches, his unbelievably simple sleep program – and being a wolf. Talking Points How your body type and type of exercise affects your sle

Brain.fm creates music that sounds different – and affects your brain differently – than any other music. Their science-first approach helps steer you into a desired mental state. How Dan joined the company is an interesting story, which you’ll find out in this interview. Fast forward to today, he is now the CEO.  It was fascinating to learn about how music affects our mental state and productivity. Join us as we discuss the scientific effects of function music, how Brain.fm works, finding your ‘power song’, and what he’s learnt from practising martial arts.  Talking Points How what you listen to has an impact on your productivity Their science-first approach to functional music How Brain.fm compliments other productivity ‘hacks’ Active working and planning The difference between binaural beats and Brain.fm Power songs Quote "The better tools you have, the better you can dive into a task." Helpful Links David Bennett Piano Brain.fm/Productivityist Want to discover some of the books mentioned on

Ron Friedman is an award-winning social psychologist who specializes in human motivation. He is a frequent contributor to HBR, CNN, Fast Company, and Psychology Today, as well as the author of multiple books including ‘Decoding Greatness: How the Best in the World Reverse Engineer Success’. Find out how athletes, artists and entrepreneurs succeed so you can create your own breakthrough formula. Ron is on the show to discuss keeping score of success, how to creatively copy, finding your meaningful metrics – and Macklemore’s ‘Ten Thousand Hours’. Talking Points How to reverse engineer greatness The stigma of copying The curse of creativity and the confusion with originality The Scoreboard Principle Setting desirable and undesirable metrics Why reverse engineering extends to all areas of society Quote "Make an established idea different." Helpful Links ‘Decoding Greatness’ by Ron Friedman ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ by Oliver Burkeman  Cal Newport – ‘Take Control of Your Time’ DecodingGreatnessBook.com

Juliet Funt is a renowned keynote speaker and tough-love advisor to the Fortune 500 who is regularly featured in top global media outlets, including Forbes and Fast Company. She is a white-space warrior as the founder and CEO of The Juliet Funt Group, helping business leaders and organizations to unleash their full potential by unburdening talent from busywork. Juliet has earned one of the highest ratings in the largest speaking event in the world, and she has worked with brands such as Spotify, National Geographic, Vans, Costco, Pepsi, Nike, Wells Fargo and ESPN. Juliet shares some key insights from her book ‘A Minute to Think: Reclaim Creativity, Conquer Busyness, and Do Your Best Work’. We also discuss finding your spark, making time for mental space, why we fill time, the humane element of productivity – and increasing the sales of salmon tips.  Talking Points Performative busyness The curse of insatiability How to not confuse activity with productivity What is white space? Time sketching Taking

Personal finance expert, speaker, and business leader, Jesse Mecham is the Founder of You Need A Budget (or YNAB if you are very busy and important). He is also a podcast host and best-selling author of ‘You Need A Budget’. He is deeply passionate about teaching individuals, families, and business owners to help them gain total control of their money. Jesse first developed the YNAB method and original spreadsheet as a broke, newly married college student who really needed a budget. Now, YNAB has a growing team living and working all around the world, and has built a thriving remote culture that earned recognition as Fortune’s #1 best small company to work for. Jesse shares YNAB’s Four Rules, and how we can all master money management. I’m such a huge fan of the tool, so I also explore with Jesse the power of simple tools, building a community, being clear with your expenses, and Alexa requests. Talking Points Launching YouNeedABudget.com as a spreadsheet business How to start budgeting your finances Emb

Pieter Geldenhuys – also known as PG Geldenhuys – facilitates hikes and retreats in South Africa and abroad to help you turn your focus inward, through his business Shoshin Walks. He’s also learnt that big shifts come from having a beginner’s mindset.  PG’s adventurous spirit is infectious. He shares his travel tales and his philosophy with hiking and being in nature. In this productive conversation, we also discuss meditative walks, writing novels, cliches – and observing ducks.  Talking Points What is Shoshin? The power of meditative walks Navigating uncertainty  How writing badly helped PG write a novel Lessons learnt from completing the Camino de Santiago PG’s group tours that include the Inca trail and Kilimanjaro Quote "Structure will set you free." Helpful Links ‘Offsides’ by PG Geldenhuys The Way (2010) ‘Four Thousand Weeks’ by Oliver Burkeman Multiplicity (1996) About Time (2013) Shoshin Walks PG’s LinkedIn Shoshin Walks Facebook Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the

Jeff Harry combines positive psychology and play to help teams and organizations navigate difficult conversations and assist individuals in addressing their biggest challenges through embracing a play-oriented approach to work.  For his work, Jeff was selected by BambooHR & Engagedly as one of the Top 100 HR Influencers of 2020 and has been featured in the NY Times, Mashable, Upworthy, & Shondaland. Jeff has worked with Google, Microsoft, Southwest Airlines, Adobe, the NFL, Amazon, and Facebook, helping their staff to infuse more play into the day-to-day. I had a really fun time catching up with Jeff. In this episode we explore rethinking how people work, historical innovators, the power of curiosity and long-term thinking – and John Steinbeck quotes. Talking Points Jeff’s definition of play  Building a psychologically safe place for your company Measuring quality over quantity Building trust with your staff How certain environments unlock play and flow Identifying your play value Quote "Play is t

Kristoffer Carter is a spiritual teacher at the intersection of consciousness and business. He is the founder of This Epic Life, a website and podcast devoted to conscious living, which has created a daily meditation practice for thousands. He is also an author, international speaker and executive coach. In his latest book ‘Permission to Glow: A Spiritual Guide to Epic Leadership’, he reveals how to lean in to what makes us all ‘glow’. I had a great time catching up with Kristoffer, and hearing about his relationship with fear. We also spoke about the four types of permission such as feeling ‘the feels’, the power of compounding effects, how to overcome ‘work for work’s sake’ – and some interesting parallels with WrestleMania.  Talking Points Why we need to give ourselves more permission The four types of permission Lessons learnt from wrestlers Leaning in to your big scary dream Working with coaches and the power of practising Quote "Learn to dance with the ever-presence of fear." Helpful Links

Eric Partaker coaches and mentors entrepreneurs and leaders throughout the world, helping them reach peak levels of performance, in both their businesses and lives. He draws from his world-class work experiences at McKinsey, Skype, and Chilango, cutting-edge research and behavioral science from Stanford University, and the approaches and techniques used in the worlds of elite sports and the military – areas where peak performance is key. In this conversation, we uncover some key insights from his latest book ‘The 3 Alarms: A Simple System to Transform Your Health, Wealth, and Relationships Forever’. We also discuss peak performance traps, visual reminders, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs – and the cost of a plane landing in an emergency.  Talking Points What Eric discovered from his near-death experience The IPA triggers What we mean by ‘antifragile’ The power of the words we use and how identity drives behavior What the superhero version of you looks like Eric’s Three Alarms Quote "In some shape or fo