Head Space

Calm productivity for academics

Tag: attention

  • Managing academic reading lists

    Managing academic reading lists can feel overwhelming. Rather than trying to read everything, treat your reading list like a river – selectively sampling valuable content while letting less important items flow past. This mindset shift helps create a more sustainable and effective approach to managing academic literature without the guilt.

  • [Note] Write what the reader wants

    “Great writing requires you to position your idea in a way that will resonate with the reader. Average writers start with what they want to say without considering how it will land with the reader. Great writers understand the journey starts with what the reader desires.” – Farnam Street

  • [Note] Learning something new is difficult

    “Learning a new city and institution requires a lot of effort and puts a lot of cumulative strain on our brains. Our brains are forced to create new patterns of familiarity by the simple act of navigating a new learning management system or new city. Those small tasks add up quickly. When setting research and…

  • [Note] The laziest thing I can do at any moment is what I should be doing

    “I try to make sure that the laziest thing I can do at any moment is what I should be doing.” – Matt Might

  • [Note] When information is cheap, attention becomes expensive

    “When information is cheap, attention becomes expensive.” – James Gleick

  • Attention is your most valuable resource

    Your attention is your most valuable resource. Choose carefully how, where and when you will allocate it to do your most important work.

  • Writing regularly changes what you pay attention to

    I often find my attention being hijacked by whatever happens to show up in my feed. And in the moment, that content may very well be interesting. The problem is that so much information can be interesting while still having relatively little value. When I’ve set aside 1-2 hours of writing time every day, my attention…

  • Device ‘notifications’ are really ‘interruptions’

    Instead of trying to manage “notifications”, the better approach is to manage “interruptions”. Start by taking an audit of the notifications on your devices and ruthlessly eliminate anything that isn’t essential. Then be intentional about setting boundaries around when and how you’ll allow your focus to be interrupted.