This episode is brought to you by Your Clockwise Week—a personalized weekly structure built around your actual life, not an ideal one. If your week feels full but not fitting, you can learn more at mikevardy.com/yourclockwiseweek.

When I first heard the term conative, I was surprised I hadn’t come across it before. After all, I live in the productivity space. But after my conversation with David Kolbe, it became clear just how crucial it is to understand this third part of the mind—especially if we want to work more naturally and avoid burnout.

David is the CEO of Kolbe Corp and co-author of the book Do More, More Naturally: Empowering Effortless Success and the Freedom to Be Yourself. In this episode, we dive into how understanding your instinctive strengths—the way you naturally take action—can dramatically shift your productivity, your teamwork, and your overall approach to work and time.

Six Discussion Points

• What “conative” means and why it’s a vital (and often overlooked) aspect of how we get things done
• The three parts of the mind—cognitive, affective, and conative—and how each plays a role in productivity
• How to stop following one-size-fits-all productivity advice and instead lean into your natural strengths
• What organizations can do to allow employees to operate more naturally without sacrificing excellence
• Why balance isn’t about 50/50—it’s about harmony and nuance
• Practical steps for realigning with your natural way of working when feeling stuck or exhausted

Three Connection Points

• David's Website
• Do More More Naturally: Empowering Effortless Success and the Freedom to Be Yourself
• Reason plays a role in this. Give this a read if you want reason on your side.

David’s insights are a refreshing reminder that productivity isn’t just about what we do—it’s about how we instinctively do it. I walked away from this conversation with a new appreciation for nuance, individuality, and the value of building systems that work with our natural tendencies rather than against them. If you’ve ever felt like you’re working hard but still not in flow, this episode might be just what you need.

If this episode resonated, I’m exploring ideas like these more deeply in my upcoming book, Productiveness. You can follow along as it takes shape at mikevardy.com/productiveness.