John Zeratsky on How to Make Time for What Matters

Dec 24, 2021

John Zeratsky, author of *Make Time* and former tech designer, dives deep into rethinking how we use our time. He discusses the concept of 'The Busy Bandwagon' and the distractions of 'Infinity Pools' that cloud our focus. John emphasizes the importance of setting daily highlights to cultivate joy and meaning while sharing strategies for mastering task management and eliminating distractions. He advocates for questioning life’s defaults and making small changes that lead to significant improvements in our daily lives.

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ANECDOTE

The Blur of Time

John Zeratsky felt his time slipping away despite a successful career and good personal life.
This realization prompted him to rethink his approach to time management and focus on meaningful moments.

INSIGHT

Beyond Productivity and Goals

Neither productivity hacks nor long-term goal setting solved Zeratsky's sense of time blurring.
He discovered that focusing on meaningful moments, not just tasks or distant goals, added value.

ADVICE

The Daily Highlight

Choose a daily highlight, a meaningful activity to prioritize.
Structure your day around this highlight to give it focus and prevent it from being sidelined.

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John Zeratsky was a designer in the tech industry and became obsessed with the idea of re-designing time. He’s also the author of multiple books and his work has been published in The Wall Street Journal, Time, Harvard Business Review, Wired, Fast Company, and many others.

In this episode, Eric and John discuss his book, Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day

If you'd like to make 2022 a better year for you, bring clarity to what matters most, and discover the tools to help you become the person you really want to be, Eric can help you! To book a FREE, no-pressure 30-minute Discovery call to see if working with Eric is right for you, click here.

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John Zeratsky and I Discuss How to Make Time for What Matters and…

His book, Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day
Understanding the limits of will-power
Setting up our environment so it’s easier to make the right decisions
The two powerful forces that compete every day for our time
“The Busy Bandwagon” and the feeling you’re not in control of our time
“The Infinity Pools” of neverending options of distractions
Questioning the “defaults” in our lives and finding ways to change our behavior
Creating a highlight for everyday
Structuring your day around your “highlight”
Finding more meaningful moments
Taking back control of your time and energy
Creating barriers to distraction
The fundamentals of managing your energy
The importance of focusing on the process, not the outcome
Becoming aware of how our interaction with technology makes us feel

John Zeratsky Links:

John’s Website

Twitter

If you enjoyed this conversation with John Zeratsky, you might also enjoy these other episodes:

Time Management for Mortals with Oliver Burkeman

Being a Procrastinator with Tim Pychyl

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