Contexts, Friction and Distractions | Marginalia

I get significantly more work done when I unplug my computer from the Internet. It’s not that my productive output drops to zero when I’m plugged in, but more like 70%. Despite many of the tools that I use requiring a connection, and certainly the Internet containing a wealth of information that might expedite my work, these benefits are drastically outweighed by the wealth of distractions also available. It’s very appealing, when the code is compiling or the docker containers restarting, to s...
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Top 30 Leadership TED Talks | Justin Mecham

These are not only the top rated Leadership TED talks. But also the top 30 that have changed so much for me. And for millions and millions of others. Very wide range of Leadership topics to level up. They are FREE, so no excuses - enjoy! Dan Pink: The puzzle of motivation Sheryl Sandberg: Why we have too few women leaders Dan Ariely: What makes us feel good about our work Margaret Heffernan: Dare to disagree Drew Dudley: Everyday leadership Roselinde Torres: What it takes to be a great leader...
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Bonhoeffer on Stupidity

Taken from a circular letter, addressing many topics, written to three friends and co-workers in the conspiracy against Hitler, on the tenth anniversary of Hitler’s accession to the chancellorship of Germany… ‘Stupidity is a more dangerous enemy of the good than malice. One may protest against evil; it can be exposed and, if need be, prevented by use of force. Evil always carries within itself the germ of its own subversion in that it leaves behind in human beings at least a sense of unease. ...
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Be strong enough to be gentle | Joe Duncan

It's easy to act tough, talk tough, be feisty and make a lot of noise. In fact anyone can make a lot of noise, carry on and pretend to be strong and brave but true strength comes from within. True strength is the power to be gentle and to act with grace and come from a pure and loving place in your heart. Be strong enough to be gentle and show your courage through understanding and compassion and kindness. The world doesn't need another tough talking fool with no heart, what it needs is more...
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Plan B | KSR

Stores are bottlenecks, being distribution centers and not that numerous. You kick them in the balls when you attack their distribution centers. Their stock price drops at news of such attacks, and they have no way to counter that. And their valuations are already at historic lows. Of course, police might arrest and prosecute, but that doesn't bring the share price back up. A hundred thousand dollars of physical damage can leverage a hundred million dollars in lost asset value. Big pension funds...
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When Your Parents Are Dying | Mary Gaitskill

(From "Take My Advice: Letters to the Next Generation from People Who Know a Thing or Two", contribution by Mary Gaitskill, Writer) My advice here is very specific and practicable. It is advice I wish someone had given me as forcefully as I’m about to give it now: When your parents are dying, you should go be with them. You should spend as much time as you can. This may seem obvious; you would be surprised how difficult it can be. It is less difficult if you have a good relationship with the ...
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Remembering climate change (2071) | KSR@ted

The 2020s were a crux in human history. They began with the first pandemic, a slap to the face of everyone, as they had to acknowledge that they were a single civilization on a single biosphere, utterly dependent on science to keep them alive. Civilization is a fragile thing. And although people started the '20s hoping to ignore that profound truth, even after the first pandemic, the great heat waves of 2023 torched any such hope. Humans cannot survive combinations of high heat and high humidity...
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Crossing the Truth | Greenlights

God, when I cross the truth give me the awareness to receive it the consciousness to recognise it the presence to personalize it and the courage to live it First, we have to put ourselves in the place to receive the truth. This noisy world we live in, with its commitments, deadlines, fix thises, do thats, and expectations make it hard to get clarity and peace of mind. So we have to consciously put ourselves in a place to receive that clarity. Whether that’s prayer, meditation, a walka...
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The 65-second attention span | irishtimes.com

: Technology has stolen our ability to focus. Can we get it back? by Johann Hari | Jan 9, 2022 | 9 min read Our ability to pay attention and focus is in free-fall. The average college student now focuses on any one task for just 65 seconds. The average office worker focuses on any one task for just three minutes. I was so concerned by this slow acid being poured on our attention that for my new book, I spent three years researching the reasons this is taking place, interviewing more than 200 o...
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Aim at the Highest Good, Take Incremental Steps (JBP)

I said at the beginning of the lecture series that the Bible is a hyperlinked text, and everything refers to everything else. There’s utility in reading it in linear order, but it’s not a linear document. There’s an infinite number of pathways that you can use to walk through it. All of the document expands upon and refers to all of the rest of the document. And so I’m going to switch to the Sermon on the Mount, which I think is probably the key document in the New Testament. I think it’s the ...
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Introduction

Hello world! The primary intention of this casual micro-blog is to collect other people's writings that resonate with me and are share-worthy. A scrap-book of sorts. I am aware that doing this is not an original idea. Content could be quotes, snippets / paragraphs from books, whole comment sections, blog-posts from others or whole polished articles. Attribution / citation / source link in all cases possible. Permission where appropriate. Usually mirrored here as is. Sometimes with formatting e...
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