Back To Work

This week, Dan and Merlin determine that even the Chico Marx of notebooks is the right one if you're writing in it, failure is ALWAYS an option: fully committing didn't do Pickett any good, but you should commit to narrowing scope and deciding what success is. Why? Fact or Fiction: You can start a business on the side. Links for this episode:kung fu grippe - Robb Wolff on "Perfection"Letters of Note: PERSISTQPR: Jim Fairness and the 14-Second Work YearQPR: Commentary by Anton CantruskuPickett's Charge - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJek Tono Porkins - Wookieepedia, the Star Wars WikiWedge Antilles - Wookieepedia, the Star Wars WikiToward Better Master Passwords | Agile Blog B2W Squarespace Signup (coupon code: "backtowork7") AgileBits: 1Password kung fu grippe - Need a fast primer on storytelling? The Civil...The Civil War . In the Classroom . Using the Series . Episode Five | PBSkung fu grippe - “Disjointed” A View to a Kill: Just giving up.Programmers NotebookHypercritical #23: No

This week, Merlin and Dan share their Pick: The Macintosh Computer. Also, a 17-minute experimental startup sound, catching conflicts, shivving the stagecoach, machine-gunning with SoundMaster, the dangers of ResEdit, and the future of recumbent bike baskets. But not Charcoal. Are you KIDDING me? Links for this episode:Thoughts on (and pics of) the original Macintosh User Manual : peterme.comWelcome to AgileBitsToward Better Master Passwords | Agile BlogB2W Squarespace Signup (coupon code: "backtowork6")(NSFW) Mars bar party - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaWebstock '11: John Gruber - The Gap Theory of UI Design on VimeoUmberto Eco's piece on Mac and DOS, Catholic and ProtestantMusic Thing: TINY MUSIC MAKERS: Pt 2: The Microsoft SoundWelcome to The 1920's Radio NetworksBritish Sixties Radio: Your Time Machine to Swinging London! - Live on the InternetDaring Fireball: It's All SoftwareiCloud and Apple’s truth: can you win if you don’t play? | This is my next...ResEdit - Wikipedia

Merlin and Dan talk about the problem of permanent zeroes, desiring not to desire, why "hypocrisy" is killing you, stepping back on the path without apologizing, Merlin's new tattoo, and—yeah—going a little easier on yourself. Also, how almost everything is like a glass of water and John Siracusa is literally and uniquely Squidward.  Links for this episode:Heraclitus - The FragmentsSchadenfreude - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaThe Wire (TV Series 2002–2008) - IMDbSarlacc - Wookieepedia, the Star Wars Wikithe size of tiny changes in the heart[audio] Alan Watts: “Yet, here we are.”…"You are a wave of the stream itself. So, get with it!" - kung fu grippe[audio] Introduction to Buddhism by Alan Watts The Philosophies of Asia--Alan Watts (Introduction to Buddhism) The Sad, Beautiful Fact That We're All Going To Miss Almost Everything : Monkey See : NPRMaha-satipatthana Sutta: The Great Frames of ReferenceThe Agendas of MindfulnessBrahmana Sutta: To Unnabha the BrahmanRight Now by Thanissaro Bhikk

Merlin and Dan talk about getting started, putting on your shoes instead of shopping for pedometers, false dilemmas, doing as much work with your hands as you've done in your head, why you should leave some water in the pump, meta-fiddling, and getting better. Links for this episode:Yeah, THIS just happened. Breville. 1800 watts. Toast. BOOM!Photo courtesy of @e_shirt - mlkshkAmazon.com: Breville BOV650XL Compact 4-Slice Smart Oven with Element IQ: Kitchen & DiningHypercritical #21: Reading Playboy for the Articles - 5by5MaxFunCon: Merlin Mann on Doing Creative Work; The Sound of Young America“Outline” - MaxFunCon Talk | Flickr - Photo Sharing!Wampa - Wookieepedia, the Star Wars WikiAmazon.com: Writing Your Dissertation in Fifteen Minutes a Day: A Guide to Starting, Revising, and Finishing Your Doctoral Thesis (9780805048919): Joan Bolker: BooksAmazon.com: Ernest Hemingway on Writing (9780684854298): Larry W. Phillips: BooksPhotography, and the Tolerance for Courageous Sucking | 43 FoldersAmazon.com: Wher

Merlin and Dan talk about mindful tool adoption, screwdriver museums, why Vi users may (or may not) be cannibalistic insects—plus debate on whether a home video of a toy horse falling down in someone's bathroom is about Humanity. Also, Dan effs with Merlin's head. Again. Links for this episode:Maladroite Cheval. on VimeoVimeoTumult HypeYouTube - David Lynch - Funny MomentsHow and where not to do The Fishstick on VimeoThe most popular file utility for the MacintoshFetch SoftworksTextMate — The Missing Editor for Mac OS XDropboxElements — Dropbox powered text editor for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch from Second GearNotesyNebulous Notesvi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaIntroducing "?—": A Distraction-Free Writing Environment - kung fu grippeBare Bones Software | WelcomeCoyote Tracks - Text Editor InterventionSublime Text: The text editor you'll fall in love withAcorn, a great Mac image editor, built for humans.PixelmatorTweetbot — Tapbotsgoodiware.com :: products :: GoodReaderPanic - Shockingly G

Merlin and Dan talk about educating "That's Just a Button Guy," practicing more humane pushback, asking better questions, why laundromats don't accept "focus," plus what happens when you put WAY too much crap in your five-pound bag. Links for this episode:Mindfulness in Plain EnglishSponsored by iStockphoto and MailChimp.

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin talk about checking email under the table to catch up on your 27 high priority tasks, a good time to use the word priority, blowing cycles on meeting with Narnia's stakeholders, and getting tasks out of your dreamcatcher. Links for this episode:BONUS AWESOME: Too Close to the Metal Wallpapers (Chainmail for Manatees)ESSAY: Mud Rooms, Red Letters, and Real Priorities | 43 FoldersESSAY: GTD: Priorities don't exist in a vacuum | 43 FoldersESSAY: First, care. | 43 FoldersWIKI: The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Importance vs. Urgency)WIKI: Alan Lakein (Lakein's question: "What is the best use of my time right now?")CONCEPT: GTD & "The Four-Criteria Model for Choosing Actions in the Moment" - Google BooksROCKET: Estes 1948 Big Bertha Flying Model Rocket Kit (Amazon.com)CONCEPT: Time and motion study - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaWEBB: Cheaper by the Dozen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaSONG: Bacon Ray - Sundays In A RowBONUS AWESOME: C

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin aren't afraid of lawyers, dentists, negative feelings, or of not being afraid of something. Sponsored by Rackspace and Shopify.

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin are here to discuss the awareness of fear, asking yourself why, and knowing the problem instead of chasing fake confidence, patches, and hacks. Links for this episode:Hetty Green - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaNoble Eightfold Path - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaMindfulness - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaAudio Dharma - Gil Fronsdal's Dharma TalksAmazon.com: Mindfulness in Plain English: Revised and Expanded Edition (9780861713219): Bhante Henepola Gunaratana: BooksMindfulness In Plain EnglishAbba - "Knowing Me, Knowing You"MP3: Sometimes There’s a Man - Part II "Then, When?" - kung fu grippe Canonical Photo of Hetty GreenAlan Watts - "The Wisdom of Insecurity: A Message for an Age of Anxiety" YouTube - Joni Mitchell - "Talk To Me" YouTube - Joni Mitchell - "Blue"Sponsored by FreshBooks and OmniGroup: OmniFocus.

Merlin Mann joins Dan Benjamin to talk about problems that are impossible, problems that are boring, problems that you're scared of, and why you need to differentiate between fear and anxiety so you can be scared of something interesting. Links for this episode:5C6017AB.jpg 277×277 pixelsPrincess Ardala - Google SearchDo I love Terry Gross? - your monkey calledJeff Dee's Home PageDeities & Demigods - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaExpedition to the Barrier Peaks - [Merlin's favorite AD&D module]After Dark #20: After Back To Work 014 - 5by5 Sometimes There’s a Man (Part I) MP3 Download ... - kung fu grippe Sponsored by Webtrends and MailChimp.

Dan and Merlin talk about "Cranking" - Merlin's latest post at 43folders.com. Links for this episode:Cranking | 43 Folders100% New Zealand BaconNetflix: Bruce Springsteen: Born to Run: 30th Anniversary Edition: Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to RunNetflix: Cyrano de Bergerac» Chip Scanlan | Poynter.Male Answer SyndromeNetflix - Watch Louis C.K.: Chewed Up Amazon.com: The Triggering Town: Lectures and Essays on Poetry and Writing - Richard HugoBruce Springsteen - "Thunder Road" - London, 1975YouTube: Cyrano de Bergerac Theatre SceneThe Poetry of Project Management, by Jeffrey Veen "May I mambo dogface to the banana patch?" - kung fu grippe After Dark #18: After Back To Work 013 - 5by5 Sponsored by Worldview and Intuit.

Merlin Mann has some "followup" before he and Dan Benjamin discuss entrusting your agency to others, how to reclaim it, and picking the right balance between expertise and challenge instead of fixing your metadata. Links for this episode:The ASC -- American Cinematographer: Post Focus:002: Interview: Jonathan Coulton | The Merlin ShowDon't Run DOS - 30 Seconds with Phone Guy - Merlin MannKinda My Idea - 30 Seconds with Phone Guy - Merlin Mann_Inbox Zero_ cover - Merlin's Mockup ANH:R Change List | Star Wars Revisited NewsCsikszentmihalyi: Challenge vs Skill.jpegIn The Life Of...The Beatles: Purple Chick Discographykung fu grippe - RE: Chewie's MedalWIKIP: Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (That "Flow" Guy)Video: John Roderick on String Art Owls, Copper Pipe, and Bono's Boss | 43 Folders Of Sawdust and Mistakes - kung fu grippe Sponsored by Audible and MailChimp.

Merlin Mann joins Dan Benjamin to talk about futureproofing your passion by finding your obsession and voice, putting away your buggy whip and evolving, spreading your chips out across safe and risky investments, and taking smarter chances. Links for this episode:The Pipeline #49: Philip Elmer-DeWitt - 5by5Sponsored by Shopify and King of the Apps.

Dan and Merlin try to remove the airquotes from "inspiration" by talking about what it's great for (shipping better and more interesting stuff), what it's terrible for (getting started). Also covered: Dan's Old Testament name(s), part of Merlin's body that was once believed to be inspired by air, the problem with Some Hot Chick Typing in Her Underwear, TKTKTK writing tips, plus Batgirl. Always with the Batgirl. Links for this episode:Music Thing: Practice in front of a bush: Captain Beefheart's rules for guitaristsSalvador Dali Museum (thedali.org) / The official site of the Salvador Dali Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida, featuring a comprehensive collection of works by Salvador Dali.750 WordsTime Management, Productivity, & Project Tracking Software (Mac/PC) | RescueTimeLetters of NoteTSoYA: "With All Due Respect to the Seduction Community…" (Merlin Mann on Doing Creative Work)Amazon.com: MERLIN D MANN: WishlistWriter's Block 1 by =ScherbiusKick procrastination's ass: Run a das

Dan and Merlin improvise topics this week and get from Synechode, NY to dopamine, being scared and being safe, believing your thoughts and coloring your dreams, and solving problems by moving your hands instead of thinking. Links for this episode:Literature and LatteBetter - Merlin MannFour Years | 43 FoldersGreat Tools For Your Mac By Andreas Hegenberg » BetterTouchTool, BetterSnapTool & SecondBarYouTube - SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK : Official Trailer -- HDLouis CK - Turning 40 ("That's just a new *thing* you do")Amazon.com: Mac at Work (9780470877005): David Sparks: Books"Each time I sit down to write..." - Don MurrayAudiobook: "Writing Down the Bones" by Natalie GoldbergAmazon.com: Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting (9780060391683): Robert Mckee: Books Making the Clackity Noise - kung fu grippe MPU 023: Workflows with Merlin Mann « Mac Power Users (March 13th, 2010)Sponsored by MailChimp.

This week, Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin eighty-six their restaurant jobs—emptying grease traps, handling logs of meat, and sharing what they learned by bringing mostly bad food to America's table. Dan burns velvet hands, Merlin's Mom gives the guy with the coupon a kung fu, and old people want a monkey dish of sauce before they boost all your Sweet'N Low. Links for this episode:43F Podcast: The Perfect Apostrophe | 43 FoldersSponsored by Sourcebits and Audible.

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin relate to Richard–a listener in the middle of a quarter life crisis working jobs he doesn't like–with stories from their pasts, suggestions to combat the cascade of seriousness, and some first steps for breaking out of the vocational wheel. Links for this episode:Quarter-life crisis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaSaturn return - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaArtist's DatesThe Artist's WayMorning PagesWCA: "Paul's Case"Amazon.com: Writing Down the Bones eBook: Natalie Goldberg, Staughton Lynd: Kindle StoreNATALIE GOLDBERGMaking the Clackity Noise - kung fu grippeThe Artist's WayWhere Is the Ham? | You Look Nice TodayFL Driver's License; Summer, 1991 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!Excerpts from Natalie Goldberg/Writing Down the Bones and Wild MindDoodle: easy schedulingdaybooksAmazon.com: The Essential Don Murray: Lessons from America's Greatest Writing Teacher (9780867096002): Donald M. Murray, Thomas Newkirk, Lisa C. Miller: BooksVachina | Yo

Merlin Mann is back from Webstock and ready to recap with Dan Benjamin, which leads back to caring first, performance and fear, meditation, hypnotherapy, and why you really need the hard answer instead just more tips. Links for this episode:The Conversation #27: Missionless Statements - 5by5MacSparky - Blog - Mac Power Users - Workflows with Merlin MannIntroducing the Hipster PDA | 43 FoldersMacGuffin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaAmazon.com: Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware (Pragmatic Programmers) (9781934356050): Andy Hunt: BooksAmazon.com: The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master (0785342616224): Andrew Hunt, David Thomas: BooksBack to GTD: Do a fast "mind-sweep" | 43 FoldersBOOK: "Creating Flow with OmniFocus," by Kourosh Dini, M.D. (HIGHLY recommended by Merlin)Hivelogic - The Paleo Diet: A Link PrimerAUDIO: Quotidian Public Radio - "The 14-Second Work Year"VIDEO: Makebelieve Help, Old Butchers, and Figuring Out Who You Are (For Now) | 43

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin talk about the black art of paying attention to the right things, how lamps are no substitute, that it's hard whether you’re working from home or a cube, being honest about your expertise before looking for independence, and the need to move past inspiration. Links for this episode:Dunning–Kruger effect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaTheory of Forms - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaDreyfus model of skill acquisition - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Software Integrity Blog » Blog Archive » The Dreyfus Model - Back In The Spotlight? Sponsored by Shopify and King of the Apps.

Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin talk about trying to change other people, how things really aren’t that bad, balancing fear or being driven by fear, leaving capacity for when you get The Pitch, procrastination (eventually), and giving yourself permission to fail in an interesting way. You’re not gonna get black lung from a spreadsheet. Links for this episode:Why Wesabe Lost to Mint - Marc Hedlund's blogViktor Frankl - Wikipedia ("…finding meaning in all forms of existence…")Sponsored by MailChimp and Sourcebits.