It's a public holiday here in Ireland today, and I'm sending this week's mail from (the Republic of) Cork in the South of Ireland.
Last week saw a record number of clicks on my growing collection of Journal Prompts, I hope people are finding them useful.
This week, I'm looking at how we filter out noise to get real focus, and I have a lovely musical recommendation as well as all the usual stuff.
I haven't asked for a while, so it would be great if you could forward Stuff on to one friend and get them to sign up - it'll keep our little community growing.
Thank you all for being here on our joint journey of curiosity.
Till next Monday, enjoy...
👓 The Big Stuff - how big is yours?
I have a massive Tsundoku. I've mentioned it before.
I'm not boasting, but I'm not ashamed. I love reading, and I love books and I buy many of them on impulse. (One-Click shopping is useful and dangerous!)
This week, I was deciding which books to read on vacation and I stumbled across this article from Oliver Burkeman, which suggests that reframing your 'to read' pile to make it seem like a place to look for something new, not a 'list' to be completed.
Treat your Tsundoku like a river not a bucket.
Burkeman then goes on to explain that many of the 'lists' we deal with feel overwhelming because we don't filter what goes into them.
In a world of effectively infinite information, the better you get at sifting the wheat from the chaff, the more you end up crushed beneath a never-ending avalanche of wheat.
This is especially true of our old favourite, the to-do list - just look at all those apps! With multiple (endless) inputs, we can end up crushed under the avalanche of wheat - even if we filter well.
Fortunately, we have great tools for deciding what to work on next, but nothing works better than having a clear view of your goals to stay focused on.
Oh - and for my holiday, I'm taking only fiction. The rest can wait.
🧠 The Other Stuff
- Procrastination: What to do about that thing you've been putting off. Some great advice in here.
- Accountability: Maybe what we really need is some Atomic Accountability.
- Digital Detox: A useful reminder of ways to eliminate your inbox addiction. Two of these #1 and #4 have been game changers for me.
- Stress: Five practical ways to reduce your stress levels. Bookmark this for when you need it.
🌞 The Little Stuff
- Bags: How the tote bag became a humble brag.
- Insta-hits: Self Care tips | Printmakers | Miami Colour | Pure Joy
- Mesmerising: How pencils are made in this little Japanese factory.
- Recommended: The Full Monty (Disney+) - not the film, super uplifting.
- Finally: Forget daily games, Big Ben is a different game EVERY SECOND.
Matt Rutherford
🎧 Aural Stuff
On the Stuff Speakers this week...
🎧 My audio treat this week is from Belbury Poly, a studio band, formed by Ghost Box records owner Jim Jupp.
The Path is something of a concept album, and difficult to describe, somewhere between electronica and prog rock and even jazz - with snippets of spoken word. As with all the Belbury Poly stuff, there is something that makes it feel very British - even with some more jazzy influences this time as the project expands to be a full band.
It's the second album in two weeks featuring a slightly disembodied voice (Headache), although this one is less AI influences - and it tells a story of 'The Path' which I won't spoil in any way but calls to mind landscapes.
Matt Rutherford
👂🏼 Stuff Someone Said
If 'no' is not an option.... then neither is 'yes'.
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