The Shortness of Life by Oliver Berkman

Oliver Burkeman joins me to talk about the problem with the narrow concept of time management and how we mere mortals ought to think about managing our time instead.

Show Notes

• Time management for 4-year-olds
• The narrow vs broad meaning of time management
• The importance trap and the temptation to “clear the decks”
• Anti-skills, negative capability, and the superpower that is emotional tolerance
• The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Thinking
• Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic
• The relationship between expectations and control
• David Kane’s Raptitude
• Weirdly modern conceptions of time
• Meditation teacher Joseph Goldstein
• Are all expectations unhealthy?
• Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
• The case for wasting time and atelic activities
• Oliver’s to-do list recommendations
• Cal Newport’s Deep Work
• James Hollis’ Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life
• Susan Jeffers' Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway and Embracing Uncertainty
• What’s wrong with the self-help genre?
• The wounded healer
• Jesse Singal and cranky self-help
• David Brook’s The Second Mountain
• Marilynne Robinson
• “Will this choice enlarge me or diminish me?”
• Douglas Harding’s On Having No Head
• Seneca’s On the Shortness of Life
• Mary Oliver: “Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?”

Learn more about Oliver and his work here:

• Oliver’s book: Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals
• Oliver’s website and (excellent) weekly newsletter: OliverBurkeman.com

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