A Productive Conversation

This was not the episode I had planned. I’ve shelved that planned episode for now but while sitting with the dilemma of what episode to deliver to you this time around, I believe I’ve come up with something will do the trick. A series called TimeCrafting Tactics.

Now this series won’t happen in consecutive weeks or in any sort of sequential order. After all, that’s not how most people listen to podcasts.

Instead, I’ll drop an episode in this series every once in a while, taking into account the season that we may be in and any other factors that would make the subject both timely and timeless.

This installment showcases the concept of The MVP Day. It’s a shorter episode and fits both the season and the series well. The only helpful links you’ll need are below.

Helpful Links

You Could Use An MVP Day

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

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I’m excited to welcome Thomas Frank to this episode of the podcast. Thomas is an author, YouTuber, musician, and podcaster who is passionate about helping people become more capable and productive.

Thomas does most of his work at College Info Geek, one of the world’s largest and best-loved resources for students. College Info Geek includes a blog, podcast, and a YouTube channel with over 1.7 million subscribers.

I’ve been looking forward to releasing this episode for a long time. As a matter of fact, it’s bizarre that I haven’t had Thomas on the show until now. (That’s probably why this episode clocks in as my longest to date, both in terms of length and amount of links in the show notes.)

There’s so much we talk about during this episode – as you can see and soon will hear. I hope you enjoy this lengthy and deep discussion that I’m thrilled to send your way.

Talking Points

When did Thomas decide that video was the route he was going to take?

Thomas talks about his inspiration to “do video” a little differently

When Thomas researches these videos, what does that look like?

Thomas shares how many videos he has in the making process at once

This is what his framework looks like

What does a typical day look like for Thomas?

Who inspires Thomas to make films?

Quote

“If you’re the kind of person who’s only ever reading productivity books and reading self help books you’re getting a pretty narrow world view.“

Helpful Links

Thomas’s Office Tour

Productivity Hacks with My Friend Mike Vardy of Productivityist (College Info Geek Ep. 39)

The Fizzle Show #356 How Thomas Frank grew his YouTube channel to 1.6 million subscribers and 91 million views

SPI 324: From College Nerd to Wildly Successful Personal Brand with Thomas Frank

Episode 290: Creative Menopause with Chase Reeves [Recorded LIVE at The BIG Ready]

Habitica

Episode 75: Level Up Your Life with Steve Kamb

Notion

The Good Place: The Podcast

Process

The Money Lab Podcast: Building A YouTube Engine with Thomas Frank

This is How Matt D’Avella Works

Jet Parker: Action Hero

Should You Add This To Your Workspace?

I tracked every minute of my life for 3 months.

The Best Book I Read in 2019

10 Great Gifts for the Productive Person in Your Life

The One Hour Morning Routine

Icicle Swords (Live Looping)

So Good They Can’t Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love

The Ultimate Study Music Playlist

Nebula

Baby Driver, by Edgar Wright (2017) – Opening credits

Potato Jet on YouTube

BEING Potato Jet // Working 70 hours a week to be a Youtuber

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World

Thomas Frank’s Website

The Productivityist Podcast Pick of the Week: College Info Geek

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

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On this episode of The Productivityist Podcast I’m sharing with you insights from my inactive daily podcast “3 Minutes of TimeCrafting”, which concluded after this run of episodes in April 2019.

Some of the insights I share on this episode include:

The importance of flexible frameworks

The concept of “necessary endings”

The focus pulling of push notifications

What noticing does for your productivity

The problem with hidden tasks

(And that’s just scratching the surface.)

This episode is loaded with three-minute bits of productivity and time management tips that you can adopt and adapt as you see fit. I hope you like what I offer in this slightly longer-than-usual episode.

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the program I’m joined by David Marquet, best-selling author, student of leadership and organizational design, former nuclear submarine Commander, and named one of the Top 100 Leadership Speakers by Inc. Magazine.

David’s new book, Leadership is Language, is a re-engineering of the language we use at work and a new playbook for leaders. “It’s time to ditch the Industrial Age playbook of leadership.” This book provides insights on how choosing your words can dramatically improve decision-making and execution skills for teams. 

We talk about the concept that David explores in this book (that leadership is language), why this is as much a playbook as anything else, what leaders need to work on in order to take their leadership skills to the next level, and much more. I enjoyed our conversation and I’m certain you’ll get plenty out of it.

Talking Points

What lead you to writing this book and why is it so important?

David explains the terms “red work” and “blue work”

Why do you consider this book to be a playbook?

What does David mean by the “be good self“ and the “get better self“?

What can someone do to start applying leadership as language today

Quote

“Start your question with the word ‘how’.“

Helpful Links

Leadership Is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say and What You Don’t

Turn the Ship Around!: A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders

Intent-Based Leadership

David on Twitter: @ldavidmarquet

Leadership Nudges

The Productivityist Podcast Pick of the Week: Help Me Pick Future Ones by emailing me at podcast at productivityist dot com

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’ve tried my fair share of fitness programs and plans over the years and have always found them to be more of a challenge than I’ve been willing to deal with. But the time has come for me to face the challenge that fitness presents and conquer it once and for all.

So on this episode I share with you the things I need to overcome this challenge on an ongoing basis, what I’ve tried before, and what I’m doing that I’m committing to for the foreseeable future.

Helpful Links

P90X

Body for Life

Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life

Episode 249: The Magic of Metabolic Profiling with Angelo Poli

Future

Episode 109: Whole Life Fitness with Dai Manuel

Episode 265: Bringing Gratitude with Karl Staib

Episode 286: Doing Project 333 with Courtney Carver

The Whole30 Program

Episode 116: The Power of When with Dr. Michael Breus

Centr

Derek Sivers: Keep your goals to yourself

How I’m Challenging Fitness

Couch 2 10K

DDPY

The Spotify Playlist I Use When I’m Running

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’m joined by David Allison on this episode of the program. David Allison is the founder of The Valuegraphics Database, the world’s first database that can predict and influence behaviour for anything on earth. He is a pioneer of ‘Values Thinking’ as the new best practice for organizational decision-making.

I’m thrilled to have met David recently and once we had a conversation about what we were working on, I knew I wanted to have him on this podcast. David has coined the term, and become a champion of, Values Thinking, the new best practice for organizational decision-making in a post-demographic world. I find the practice fascinating and definitely worth your attention.

We talk about why values thinking works, the difference between virtues and values, what led David to pursue this practice, and much more. David and I are aligned in our thinking in plenty of ways and I’m sure you’ll enjoy this conversation.

Talking Points

David explains what he does, how he got into it, and what “Valuegraphics” actually are

How valuable can data be in times of uncertainty?

This is what led David down this specific path

David explains why it’s important to get your values in check to be productive and take productive actions

Does David believe there’s a difference between values and virtues?

How validating does it feel for David when he sees something that is proof of his concept?

Quote

“We have these giant stereotypical ideas in our head of what people are like based on what they are and not who they are.“

Helpful Links

Valuegraphics

How Our Values Unite Us In Times Of Uncertainty

We Are All the Same Age Now

Who We Are is Very Important. What We Are is Not.

Episode 251: Being a Late Bloomer with Rich Karlgaard

Episode 234: Bolder with Carl Honoré

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this episode of the podcast I fly solo! I talk about why I’ve added a second episode to the podcast each week and present (nearly) all of the story of how I’ve built my business as per a request from a podcast listener.

While I’ve shared my story in bits in pieces both on this podcast and elsewhere, listener Jeffrey Fate wanted me to try to share how I’ve built my business in one fell swoop somewhere. I asked him if he’d like that somewhere to be a single episode of The Productivityist Podcast, and he loved the idea!

So I share my long and winding journey from Costco to today, with all (or most of) of the “built my business” highlights and waypoints along the way. I also discuss why I’ve decided to double the amount of episodes I produce per week and what that means for the future of this podcast.

Helpful Links

Jeffrey Fate and Me: The Twitter Thread that Led to This Episode’s Topic

Effing The Dog: The Podcast | Episode 3 from 2008 (Effing is short for Efforting)

The posts I’ve written for GTD Times

My posts at WorkAwesome

Articles I’ve authored for Cult of Mac

My posts at The Next Web

Check out what I’ve written for Lifehack

My posts at Lifehacker

What The — Happened to Lifehacker?

Time to Say Goodbye | My Lifehack Farewell Post

System.ly (from Greg Hickman)

The Daily Driver: Get my FREE daily paper planning tool

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this special episode I’m joined by Chase Reeves LIVE at The BIG Ready to talk about many things, including something Chase calls “creative menopause.” Chase co-founded Fizzle.co — the first education platform designed for modern indie entrepreneurship — as well as the Chase Reeves YouTube channel, where he makes 60 minute reviews of backpacks that somehow people love watching.

When I asked Chase to join us at The BIG Ready I knew that having him record a live edition of this podcast was the way I wanted him to present. Chase has a natural gregariousness that simply fit this model, especially in front of a live studio audience (of sorts).

We talked about productivity, his journey from Fizzle to creating a YouTube channel where he shares his insights and ideas on bags of all shapes and sizes, creativity, and much more. It’s an engaging, entertaining, and endearing conversation that I’m certain you’ll get a kick out of.

You may even learn a thing or two!

Talking Points

• Why did you choose the word Fizzle for your business?
• Chase talks about if he taps into or uses willpower at all in his life and work
• What was so promising to Chase about switching to do YouTube and bag reviews?
• How important is sitting with questions for Chase?
• Chase touches on letting go of things and how that can lead to moving on and making new things
• This is what the word BIG means to Chase
• How important is patience when it comes to work and knowing when to stop?

Quote

“We’re constantly stepping in without certainty.“

Helpful Links

• Corbett Barr
• The Productivityist Podcast #164: Faster Than Normal with Peter Shankman
• The Productivityist Podcast #54: Voice Lessons with Todd Henry
• Chase’s YouTube Channel

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Transcript provided by Transistor podcast hosting

As we head towards the end of March, I wanted to share another bonus episode of the podcast featuring every episode from March 2019 of my inactive daily podcast 3 Minutes of TimeCrafting. On this bonus episode you'll hear me discuss the following: How your to do list can be deceptive The concept of "overchoice" and how it can derail your productivity Why just getting through today is plenty productive Insights on wasting time The reason your to do list is a story ...and much more! This stretch of episodes also includes a mini-series called "Work By Mode" that deals with one of the primary elements of my TimeCrafting method and philosophy: Mode-Based Work. http://productivityist.com/fivedollars/ (Take my 30 Days of TimeCrafting fundamentals course) Want to discover some of the books mentioned in this episode on Scribd, my reading app of choice?https://www.scribd.com/g/9a8d8 (Click here.) If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using – or you can do so on a variety of podcast platforms by clicking https://productivityist.transistor.fm/subscribe (here).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Hyatt returns to the show for this excellent episode of the program. Michael is the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Michael Hyatt & Company. He is also the author of several New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling books, including Platform, Living Forward, Your Best Year Ever, Free to Focus, and his newest book The Vision-Driven Leader.

Michael has scaled multiple companies over the years, including a $250M publishing company with 700+ employees and his own leadership development company that has grown over 60% year over year for the past 4 years. Under his leadership, Michael Hyatt & Company has been featured in the Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing companies in America for three years in a row. He enjoys The Double Win with his wife of 40+ years, five daughters, and nine grandchildren. 

I spoke with Michael about the journey he took to get to this book, what it takes to become a vision driven leader, the importance of having a vision, and much more. As always, it’s fantastic to speak with Michael about his work – he’s someone who truly embodies everything that he delivers to the world – and I know you’ll get plenty out of this discussion.

Talking Points

Michael talks about why he wrote this book now and if it was a progression of his past books or if now was just the right time

What does vision mean to Michael?

We discuss the difference between a manager and leader

Michael shares whether or not you must use the steps to become a vision driven leader in order… or if that is not all that important

What can you do to help a leader who has so many ideas and visions execute those ideas and visions?

Michael talks about what he would do if someone isn’t really understanding (or interested) in “The Vision Script” that a vision driven leader attempts to bring to life

This is the person that Michael considers to be a vision driven leader that he looks up to

We talk further about the term “vision zag”

What are some things people can take away from the book that they can use if they are not running a company but simply want to run their lives better?

This is the first step to becoming a vision driven leader

Quote

“Leadership by its very definition means that you’re heading towards a destination and if you’re not clear on the destination you really aren’t gonna be leading people anywhere.“

Helpful Links

The Productivityist Podcast #239: Free to Focus with Michael Hyatt

Living Forward: A Proven Plan to Stop Drifting and Get the Life You Want

A Special Offer from Michael Hyatt for You (Bonuses available until 2020/04/04)

The Productivityist Podcast Pick of the Week: That Creative Life

Want to discover some of the books mentioned on the podcast? Check out Scribd, my reading app of choice.

If you enjoyed the episode, please leave a rating and/or review wherever you listened to the episode. Also don't forget to check out all of our podcast sponsors found on our podcast sponsors page.

And if you want to have easy access to the archives of the show and ensure you don't miss the new episodes to come then subscribe to the podcast in the app you're using.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices