Back To Work

TOPIC: Preparation This week, Dan and Merlin talk about preparation. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock Over 30 million stock photos, illustrations, vectors, and videos [SPONSOR] PDFpen Scan+: Scanning and OCR for iPad and iPhonePDFpen Scan enables you to scan multi-page documents, articles, receipts, and more, using the iPhone or iPad camera. Scans are cropped, sized to standard paper sizes, and visually enhanced for legibility. PDFpen Scan includes OCR (optical character recognition), making it possible to copy the text in a scanned document for use in another document or email message, or to export a PDF containing searchable text to a variety of popular cloud services. Twitter / gruber: This CableCARD stuff is just ...This CableCARD stuff is just weird. Two hours after Comcast tech left, second card started working. Still no HBO ( 6 places germs breed in a plane - CNN.comA random sampling of 327 unnamed domestic and international aircraft cause

TOPIC: Traveling Like a Gentleman. This week, Dan and Merlin revisit the travails of air travel. How to prepare, how to survive--and how to be a better and more mindful person along the way. Also, some timely discussion of this morning's Apple product announcements. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Build a Website — Squarespace[SPONSOR] Air Display 2 for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch on the iTunes App Store[SPONSOR] Web Hosting Services, Reseller Hosting, VPS Hosting, and Dedicated Servers by HostGatorSquarespace for Musicians — The Official Squarespace BlogWith audio collections, you can upload music directly to Squarespace and easily share your albums from your website, complete with a beautiful, integrated player and album art display. To add an audio collection, log into your website and click “Add Page” under the Content area of your site manager. Select “Album”, then upload your album art and music files by dropping them directly into the collection. Squarespace recognizes the metadata of your audio fi

TOPIC: Learning the Wheres and Whens of Productivity This week, Dan and Merlin talk about learning from how you work to improve your basic productivity infrastructure, with specific attention to using Perspectives in OmniFocus. Whether it's consolidating shopping lists, eliminating task rot, or leveraging geolocation, there are innumerable tricks for lightly tweaking a system in powerful, non-fiddly ways. Also: learn Dan's Unified Field Theory of Grocery Shopping. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock[SPONSOR] Web Hosting Services, Reseller Hosting, VPS Hosting, and Dedicated Servers by HostGatorSquarespace for Musicians — The Official Squarespace BlogWith Audio Collections, you can upload music directly to Squarespace and easily share your albums from your website, complete with a beautiful, integrated player and album art display. To add an Audio Collection, log into your website and click “Add Page” under the Content area of your site manager. Sele

TOPIC: Special Guest, Matt Alexander This week, Merlin is joined by Bionic co-host, Matt Alexander. They discuss ““technology ecosystems,”” life as a self-described trans-atlantic, tech scenes that thrive and don't, dating someone from Florida (and her Mum), and getting back into Marvel comics. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceSquarespace is the easiest way for anyone to create an exceptional website. [SPONSOR] MailRoute: Email Protection - Spam and Virus Filtering ServicesMailRoute is a secure, hosted email filtering service that you can have up and running in minutes. There's no hardware or software to install - just sign up, change your mx record, and you're protected! Matt Alexander (mattalexand) on TwitterMatt Alexander@mattalexand Person on the Internet. Founder of Need (http://needlifestyle.com ). Coming soon. Dallas/London · one37.net 5by5 | BionicBionic is a show dedicated to the analysis of competing technological and media ecosystems. With a specific view towar

TOPIC: Grab Bag, plus Tasks vs. Calendar Items This week Dan and Merlin administer an epic grab bag episode, chockablock with new app, book, podcast, and music suggestions. Also, a return to the evergreen topic of where stuff goes. How to decide whether a given thing goes on a calendar, a todo list, reference files, or an alarm. Great ninja stuff. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Air Login, Air Display, Air Sharing: useful mobile apps | Avatron SoftwareNow you can connect to your Mac from anywhere! Plus, you can connect to any number of computers at the same time. [SPONSOR] PDFpen Scan+: Scanning and OCR for iPad and iPhonePDFpen Scan enables you to scan multi-page documents, articles, receipts, and more, using the iPhone or iPad camera. Scans are cropped, sized to standard paper sizes, and visually enhanced for legibility. PDFpen Scan includes OCR (optical character recognition), making it possible to copy the text in a scanned document for use in another document or email message, or to export a PDF co

TOPIC: Informal Background Self-Quantization This week Dan & Merlin discuss the merits of self-quantization. Which is fancy way of saying, "Merlin got a new Fitbit." Why is anecdotal self-reporting a sucker's bet? What are the benefits of making your life a little video game? And, why is Merlin's scale accessing APIs via the internet? Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] HostGatorHostGator is a leading provider of web hosting, reseller hosting, vps hosting, and dedicated servers. Over 8,000,000 websites trust HostGator for their web hosting needs. [SPONSOR] BusyCalBusyCal is an award winning calendar app that provides powerful time-saving productivity tools in a friendly, personalized, easy-to-use package." 5by5 | Amplified #72: I Have to Shiv a Guy at 7This week, Jim is joined by Back to Work's Merlin Mann to talk about hands-on experiences with Apple's new iPhone 5s and 5c and iOS 7. Including a deep dive on Touch ID; how easier security measures could boost iTunes sales; Jim's new-found photo skills w

TOPIC: Etiquette, Intros, and Endorsements This week, Dan and Merlin talk about the surprisingly complicated topic of email introductions. Who emails whom? Who gets cc'd and for how long? How much homework are we making (or accepting)? And, thorniest of all, how do you ““introduce”” someone you'd reeeeeeally rather not introduce? Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] SquarespaceSquarespace is the easiest way for anyone to create an exceptional website. Pages, galleries, blogs, e-commerce, domains, hosting, analytics, 24/7 support - all included. [SPONSOR] ShutterstockStock Photos | Shutterstock: Royalty-Free Subscription Stock Photography & Vector Art - Search and select from millions of high resolution royalty free images, stock photos, vector art, and stock photography. [SPONSOR] HostGatorSince its establishment in 2002, HostGator has been a world-leading provider of web hosting service. Unicode Character 'LONG LEFT RIGHT ARROW' (U+27F7)⟷ Calendars 5 - Smart Calendar and Task Manager with G

TOPIC: Fear of Your Own TODO List This week, Dan and Merlin cover a topic suggested by listener, @jeff_nordstedt: not wanting to look at your todo list. From capture to completion, there are a million ways to fall off the path. The boys take a deep dive on what those ways might be as well as how to get yourself straightened out and, as you say, back to work. Honestly. It's why people hate TODO lists. Well. That and the odor. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] SquarespaceSquarespace is the easiest way for anyone to create an exceptional website. [SPONSOR] Designer Frames & Online Eyeglasses - $95 Rx Glasses | Warby ParkerVintage-inspired prescription eyeglasses starting at $95. Image Metadata Importing — The Official Squarespace BlogWith this new feature, Squarespace can now autofill the Title, Description, and Tags for your images using the metadata you've already assigned to it in your editor. 5by5 | The Incomparable #157: Bros and ArrowsAn entire comic book about Hawkeye, the lesser Marvel superhero w

TOPIC: Joss Whedon GTD; Meeting Redux This week, Dan and Merlin talk about getting specific with your productivity and why every meeting needs an agenda. Now, take a drink. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] SquarespaceSquarespace is the easiest way for anyone to create an exceptional website. [SPONSOR] ShutterstockRoyalty-Free Subscription Stock Photography & Vector Art [SPONSOR] PDFpen by SmileMac PDF Editor - Edit, Sign, and Correct PDFs - PDFpen is a powerful Mac PDF editor Ungainly X-Mann Meetup! — Merlin MannA Nerdy SF Comics Event with Merlin Mann, hosted by Two Cats Comics in West Portal. How To Be Prolific: Guidelines For Getting It Done From Joss Whedon | Co.Create | creativity + culture + commerceThe writer-producer-director who made Much Ado About Nothing while editing The Avengers, and who’ll return to TV this fall with Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., knows a bit about “getting things done.” In fact, he cites David Allen’s book of that title as an important guide--even if he never finished reading it. 5b

TOPIC: Talk Shows, Baseball, and Inboxes. This week, Dan and Merlin cover a range of topics related to expertise, experience, professional repetition, and management, culminating in a tour of Merlin's current email filtering strategy. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceUngainly X-Mann Meetup! — Merlin MannA Nerdy SF Comics Event with Merlin Mann, hosted by Two Cats Comics in West Portal. Schumpeter: In praise of laziness | The EconomistYet the biggest problem in the business world is not too little but too much—too many distractions and interruptions, too many things done for the sake of form, and altogether too much busy-ness. The Dutch seem to believe that an excess of meetings is the biggest devourer of time: they talk of vergaderziekte, “meeting sickness”. However, a study last year by the McKinsey Global Institute suggests that it is e-mails: it found that highly skilled office workers spend more than a quar

TOPIC: How many keys do you really need? This week, Dan and Merlin return to the question, "What do you want ten times more of?" and weigh the risks and benefits of increasing the amount of complexity in your life. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceEditorial for iPadPowerful Markdown Editing and Workflow Automation for iPad Editorial for iPad: A Landmark in iOS Text EditorsIf that gets you curious, then read on. I have something wonderful to show you. Reinventing iOS Automation: Editorial ReviewOle Zorn knows how to push the boundaries of iOS. His latest app, Editorial for iPad, redefines the market of text editors for iOS, and, in many ways, sets a new standard for iOS automation and desktop-class apps. Editorial makes me want to work from my iPad. BusyCalBusyCal supports iCloud, Exchange, Google Calendar, and other CalDAV servers, enabling you to sync and share your calendars with other Macs running BusyCal or

TOPIC: Fraud vs. Failure This week, Dan and Merlin dive into what makes us feel like frauds and what makes us feel like failures. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceBatman: Year One - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia"Year One", later referred to as "Batman: Year One", is an American comic book story arc written by Frank Miller, illustrated by David Mazzucchelli, colored by Richmond Lewis, and lettered by Todd Klein. It originally appeared in issues Watchmen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaWatchmen is a graphic novel by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins. It was serialized as a limited series by DC Comics in 1986 and 1987, and collected in 1987. Watchmen originated from a story proposal Moore submitted to DC featuring superhero characters that the company had acquired from Charlton Comics. As Moore's proposed story would have left many of the characters unusable for future stories, managing editor Dick Giordano convinced Moore to create original cha

TOPIC: Power, Yelling, and Airport Kung Fu This week, Dan and Merlin continue their discussion of power and how it does or doesn't work. Do real leaders actually talk like the douchebags, serial entrepreneurs, and screamy travelers struggling to imitate them? Not really. That's one way you can tell they're leaders. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespacePint Of Code — Back to BelgiumSquarespace for Restaurants — The Official Squarespace BlogIntroducing Donations, Service Products, and Form/Product Integrations — The Official Squarespace BlogLet Us Now Praise Famous Walgreens - Let’s Make Mistakes - Mule Radio SyndicateMerlin Mann joins Mike and Jessie to talk about the differences between Walgreen’s they’ve known, and why everyone is always trying to email everyone else. Merlin says bespoke. New Template: Marquee - Squarespace PluginsSquarespace’s latest template, Marquee, helps tell your story in a dynamic, engagin

TOPIC: Delays This week, Dan and Merlin talk about delays, agency, power, and why yelling at people about your problems rarely helps anyone. Links for this episode:Yad - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaA yad, literally, "hand," is a Jewish ritual pointer, popularly known as a Torah pointer, used by the reader to follow the text during the Torah reading from the parchment Torah scrolls. Beyond its practical usage, the yad ensures that the parchment is not touched during the reading. There are several reasons for this: handling the parchment renders one ritually impure and the often-fragile parchment is easily damaged. Moreover, the vellum parchment does not absorb ink so touching the scroll with fingers will damage the lettering.[1] While not required when chanting from the Torah, it is used frequently and is considered a hidur mitzvah ("embellishment of the commandment" of reading the Torah). This Week in Tech 416 | TWiT.TVNew Music Videos | Watch Shows Online | Entertainment News & Celeb Gossip - MuchMu

TOPIC: Lists This week, Dan and Merlin talk about 3½ kinds of lists that can change your game. Merlin knows a lot about Productivity. Links for this episode:Interstate (typeface) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaInterstate is a digital typeface designed by Tobias Frere-Jones in the period 1993–1999, and licensed by Font Bureau. The typeface is closely related to the FHWA Series fonts, a signage alphabet drawn for the United States Federal Highway Administration in 1949. Brother's Little Helper/Quotes - Simpsons Wiki'Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! You can't just go ““OFF”” Focusyn!' Shiksa - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaPastebot — Command Copy & Paste for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad on the iTunes App StorePastebot is a powerful new clipboard manager that stores text and images copied from your iPhone/iPod Touch. Copy something you want to save, run Pastebot and it automatically gets imported for you to access later. Goodfellas - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaGoodfellas (stylized as GoodFellas)

TOPIC: Time Awareness & Scope Wormholes This week, Dan and Merlin talk about why we (and Frank) are terrible at estimating time, as well as what we can do to get better at it. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] TransporterTransporter (use code "btw" for 10% off) 5by5 | Back to Work #107: Pull Out Your DingusThis week, Dan and Merlin talk about compression. What happens when we don't account for how long something really takes to do? And, worse still, what if we don't think about what has to happen before we can even start it? Parasites in cat poop | barfblogEach year in the United States, cats deposit about 1.2 million metric tons of feces into the environment, and that poop is carrying with it what may be a vast and underappreciated public health problem, say scientists July 9 in the journal Trends in Parasitology, a Cell Press publication. Can Washroom Soap Can Make You Sick? - Blog About Infographics and Data Visualization - Cool InfographicsBattle Royale (film) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaBattle

TOPIC: Employers, Bosses, Leaders, and Managers This week—in what may easily turn into a multi-episode arc—Dan and Merlin talk about bosses. Whether we're looking at it from up or down, management is tricky business. The question is, what makes a boss a good manager, and what makes a good manager a great leader? Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceUse code "**`LITTLEKNIVES`**" for 10% off. So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love: Cal Newport: 9781455509126: Amazon.com: BooksIn this eye-opening account, Cal Newport debunks the long-held belief that "follow your passion" is good advice. Not only is the cliché flawed-preexisting passions are rare and have little to do with how most people end up loving their work-but it can also be dangerous, leading to anxiety and chronic job hopping. After making his case against passion, Newport sets out on a quest to discover the reality of how people end up loving what they do. Spending time w

TOPIC: How many Saturdays do you get? This week, Dan and Merlin talk about time. Its scarcity, its passing, its tyranny, and its possibilities. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Drafts - Agile Tortoise[SPONSOR] Build a Website — Squarespace[SPONSOR] Transporter | Data RedefinedEnding the Tyranny of the Open-Plan Office - BusinessweekThe key to making workers happy and productive is having a mix of spaces for different activities. Gensler found that workers spend more than half their time at work in deep focus and about one-fourth in collaboration, with the rest split between learning, socializing, and other tasks. Of course, office workers still spend most of the day at their desks, but when it’s time to do some hard-core collaborating or learning, moving to a different environment can help them shift gears. So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love: Cal Newport: 9781455528042: Amazon.com: BooksSatellite Sam #1 - Comics by comiXologyThe star of beloved daily t

TOPIC: There are Only Two Prices: Free and What It Costs This week, Dan and Merlin return to the classic lineup and some classic topics, including knowing your value, learning what to charge, and realizing what you can live with. Also: jury duty, traveling, bathrooms, the sliding scale of suffering, and what-have you. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Transporter | Data RedefinedTransporter is a private cloud storage device for syncing, sharing, accessing, and protecting your digital life. No cloud, no fees, no privacy concerns. Your files are only stored on your Transporters and computers and mobile devices that you authorize. [SPONSOR] Build a Website — SquarespaceSquarespace is the easiest way for anyone to create an exceptional website. Pages, galleries, blogs, domains, hosting, analytics, 24/7 support - all included. (Use offer code "**`BMO`**" for an additional 10% off) [SPONSOR] PDFpen: Mac PDF Editor - Edit, Sign, and Correct PDFsPDFpen is a powerful Mac PDF editor: add text, images, and signatures

TOPIC: The Chinese Symbol for 'Pants' Inside of The Chinese Symbol for 'Jury Duty.' This week, Dan's away, so Merlin goes solo, taking a break from jury duty to talk about the opportunities that can be hiding inside change, inconvenience, and tumult. Links for this episode:[SPONSOR] Stock Photos, Royalty-Free Images and Vectors - Shutterstock Over 25 million stock photos, illustrations, vectors, and videos [SPONSOR] 1Password for iOSHave you ever forgotten a password? 1Password can remember them all for you and keep them secured behind your Master Password. So Good They Can't Ignore You: Why Skills Trump Passion in the Quest for Work You Love: 9781455528042: Amazon.com: BooksiTunes - Books - So Good They Can't Ignore You by Cal NewportIn this eye-opening account, Cal Newport debunks the long-held belief that "follow your passion" is good advice. Not only is the cliché flawed-preexisting passions are rare and have little to do with how most people end up loving their work-but it can also be dangerou