Oliver Burkeman is a British writer and former Guardian columnist best known for Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals, exploring how accepting life’s limits beats chasing productivity hacks.

We recorded this right before Oliver’s show, crammed into his dressing room at the Assembly Rooms. It’s intimate, honest, and very Origin Story: where did these ideas come from, and how do they shape a life you’re proud of? Oliver (author of 4,000 Weeks) takes us past productivity hacks to acceptance, attention, and the power of choosing enough.

In this episode

The efficiency trap: why getting faster just attracts more work

“Life task”: finding your next right thing with the resources you actually have

Planning that breathes (navigation, not micromanagement)

Daily-ish over streaks—the kinder path to consistency

Hobbies done for their own sake (the case for atelic joy)

Attention over productivity: designing a week that actually feels good

AI, inboxes, and why “caught up” is a myth

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Tell me in the comments: what would you cut this week if you truly accepted you’ll never be on top of everything?

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