Great piece. It reminds me of Montaigne: the historical poster child for trying to strike the right balance between action and reflection. I feel like today it’s easier to do both simultaneously but also choosing what to work on is a much harder problem
"Alternate between chopping and sharpening" is solid advice! I think there is a third, somewhat orthogonal failure mode too: something like "whenever you're chopping/sharpening, make you're actually doing the thing". I get that a lot with reading books - it often feels like chopping ("You're in a particular zone, and you want to leverage the existing context as much as you can.") when really it's a form of sharpening.
"When I spend some time chopping down the tree, it makes me feel productive. It silences that voice that tells me I should be more productive."
I'm the opposite Joshua. When I spend time sharpending the axe I trick myself into feeling productive but like you say, the key is to get the balance right between inputs and outputs.
I don't know how you got into my head, but this is how I feel ALL the time. Thank you for putting it into words. I constantly have this same struggle and am always second guessing every decision I make with my writing. I hate that you have to go through this too, but it does make me feel better to know I am not the only one who feels this way. Thanks for the great advice too. I will definitely put it into practice. :)
Great piece. It reminds me of Montaigne: the historical poster child for trying to strike the right balance between action and reflection. I feel like today it’s easier to do both simultaneously but also choosing what to work on is a much harder problem
"Alternate between chopping and sharpening" is solid advice! I think there is a third, somewhat orthogonal failure mode too: something like "whenever you're chopping/sharpening, make you're actually doing the thing". I get that a lot with reading books - it often feels like chopping ("You're in a particular zone, and you want to leverage the existing context as much as you can.") when really it's a form of sharpening.
"The most dangerous way to lose time is not to spend it having fun, but to spend it doing fake work." - http://www.paulgraham.com/selfindulgence.html
Oh man. That essay might be worth re-reading. That's such a great quote
Love this, Josh
Oh you're so kind, thanks Russell!!
"When I spend some time chopping down the tree, it makes me feel productive. It silences that voice that tells me I should be more productive."
I'm the opposite Joshua. When I spend time sharpending the axe I trick myself into feeling productive but like you say, the key is to get the balance right between inputs and outputs.
I don't know how you got into my head, but this is how I feel ALL the time. Thank you for putting it into words. I constantly have this same struggle and am always second guessing every decision I make with my writing. I hate that you have to go through this too, but it does make me feel better to know I am not the only one who feels this way. Thanks for the great advice too. I will definitely put it into practice. :)
I am so guilty of sharpening by axe until midnight, great read!