View your to-read list not as a bucket to empty but as a river flowing past you.
Pick the most appealing items as they float by without guilt about what you miss.
It's impossible to consume everything, so focus on enjoying what you choose.
Don't feel bad about not reading everything; it's like feeling guilty for not reading every book in the Library of Congress.
This shift in perspective helps manage the overwhelming feeling of information overload.
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Transcript
Episode notes
When people think about living more fully and making better use of their time, they typically think of finding some new organizational system they can structure their lives with.
Oliver Burkeman says that what you really need instead are perspective shifts — small, sustainable changes in how you view and approach your day-to-day life. He provides those mindset shifts in his new book, Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts. And we talk about some of them today on the show, including why you should view life's tasks and problems like a river instead of a bucket, stop feeling guilt over your "productivity debt," make peace with your decisions by embracing an unconventional reading of the poem "The Road Not Taken," aim to do your habits "dailyish," be more welcoming of interruptions, and practice "scruffy hospitality."