My Most Popular Articles On Productivity

www.RyanHoliday.net

Table of Contents

28 Pieces of Productivity Advice I Stole From People Smarter Than MePage 3

33 Ways To Be An Insanely Productive, Happy, Balanced PersonPage 9

The Perfect Spouse Is the Best Life Hack No One Told You AboutPage 14

Here’s Your Productivity Hack: Go The F*ck To SleepPage 18

28 Pieces of Productivity Advice I Stole From People Smarter Than Me

3

Like all people, I’d like to think I am a productive person. If I am, however, it’s because I’ve been ruthlessly efficient at one thing: stealing secrets and methods from people a lot smarter than me.

In my career, I’ve had the fortune of coming in contact with bestselling authors, successful entrepreneurs, investors, executives and creative people. Some I didn’t meet, but I found their thoughts in book form. Whether they knew it or not, I cased all of them and took from them what I thought were their best ideas on productivity.

Below are the secrets I learned from them. Thanks guys! You helped me get more done and be more creative.

Casey Neistat

From this popular YouTube filmmaker and artist, I picked up the trick of keeping a small Moleskine journal that I write in everyday: thoughts, reminders, notes, lessons. I prefer one that can fit in my back pocket, this way I always have paper on me. The last few months have been incredibly difficult and this journal helped me cope. More important, I learned how to keep track of these journals (and everything else I own) in case I lose them: In big letters write “If Found Please Return [INSERT NAME & NUMBER]”

Tim Ferriss

From Tim I learned the art of the to do list. A simple, straight forward one. One notecard, 5-6 big items and that’s it. Everyday, I cross these off and tear up the card. That’s it. That’s the system.

Robert Greene

Robert Greene, renowned author of the 48 Laws of Power, showed me how he creates books. His notecard system has changed my life. Every book I read, I fold the pages of and then go back through and transfer the information on to notecards which I then organize by theme in card boxes. At this point I have hundreds of thousands of these cards, which I always turn to if I need an anecdote, a fact, inspiration, a strategy, a story or an example.

Dov Charney

The first time I called Dov, I got his voicemail. It said: “I don’t use voicemail, email me.” This is a way better system. I’ve taken it a step further, I don’t even have a voicemail set up. If it’s important, they’ll call back. If I have time, I’ll return the missed call. Either way, having “6 unchecked voice messages” is something I’ve haven’t worried about in years…because they don’t exist.

Ramit Sethi

Ramit has built a 40-plus employee, multi-million dollar education business right before our eyes (he and I grew up in the same small town actually). One trick I learned from Ramit–after ignoring the advice several times–is

4

that if you’re going to hire an assistant, make sure they are older or more responsible than you. Too many people make the mistake of hiring someone young and cheap…which is ridiculous. Because it’s impossible for them to understand the value of time and organization and they will end up making you less productive, not more. If you’re going to have an assistant, do it right.

Tobias Wolff

In his book, Old School, Tobias Wolf ’s semi-autobiographical character takes the time to type out quotes and passages from great books. I do this almost every weekend. It’s a) made me a faster typer b) a much better writer c) a wiser person.

Robert Greene

From Robert I also learned that swimming is a great productivity tool. Why? Because it requires total isolation: no music, no phone, no possible interruptions. Just quiet, strenuous exercise. I’ve had some of my most productive brainstorming sessions in the pool.

David Allen & Merlin Mann

Inbox Zero. Never touch paper twice. Let these phrases sink in and use them.

Ramit Sethi

Another from Ramit. You don’t have to answer every email you get. The delete key is a quick way to get to inbox zero.

Napoleon

There’s a great quote from Napoleon about how he would delay opening letters so that by the time he did, the unimportant issues would have resolved themselves. I try to do the same thing with email and issues from staff.

Marco Arment

Instapaper changed my life. I don’t play games on my phone, I read smart articles I queued up for myself earlier in the day. I don’t get distracted with articles while I am working at my desk–because I can easily put them in the queue.

James Altucher

“No” is a powerful, productive word (he also wrote a book about it). We think we’re obligated to say yes to everything, then we wonder why we never have enough time. Learning to say no–“No, thank you” more specifically–will

5

energize you and excite you. Use it–as much as you can.

Montaigne

From Montaigne I also learned the importance of keeping a commonplace book. If something catches your eye, write it down, record it somewhere. Use it later. Simple as that.

Andrew Carnegie

He has a great line about “being introduced to the broom” at an early age. In other words, know even the most lowly tasks intimately. Doesn’t mean you have to do them still, but know them.

Aaron Ray

Aaron Ray was my mentor in Hollywood. He’s a hugely successful movie producer and manager, but I noticed one thing: He was never in the office. And he always had some ridiculous excuse why he wasn’t. Eventually, I realized why: He was avoiding the office BS that sucks up most people’s time. By staying away, he got way more done. He could see big picture. And as an extra bonus, everyone was always talking about him: “Where’s Aaron?” “Has anyone seen Aaron?”

Tucker Max

You wouldn’t guess it but Tucker has the biggest library you’ve ever seen. Why? He buys every book he wants. I don’t waste time thinking about what books I want, or where to get them cheapest. I buy them, I read them, I recommend them, I benefit from them. End of story. (see my library here) I’m never without something to read, and I’m always driven to read more–because the shelves are looking down on me as a reminder of what I have left to do.

Nassim Taleb

Speaking of books, from Nassim Taleb I learned about the “anti-library.” Don’t just collect books you have read, collect the books you haven’t read. It’s a testament to what you don’t know–and an on hand resource whenever you need it.

Samantha Hoover

From my fiancee, I got a nice little trick. Delete Facebook from your phone. Just do it. Trust me. (note: pretty sure she’s relapsed, but I haven’t)

Bryan “Birdman” Williams

6

The guy founded Cash Money records and is worth about $500M. I was shocked the first time I was supposed to meet him…at the studio…at 1am…on a Sunday. His day was just starting. He works at night, sleeps during the day. Like I said, at first it was weird, but then I realized: He picked the hours that were most productive for him–screw what most people think is “normal.”

Tucker Max

I think Tucker was the guy I stole listening to the same song over and over from. It lets you space out and get into the zone (or flow state). My iTunes playlist is embarrassing, but I don’t care. Listening to the same song hundreds of time is how I get so much done.

Samuel Zemurray

The entrepreneur behind United Fruit (and one of my favorite books) used to say: “Don’t trust the report.” We waste a lot of time trusting numbers and opinions we’ve never verified. Going backwards and doing something over ends up costing us far more than we saved by skipping over the work in the first place.

Tim Ferriss

Another one from Tim: you don’t have to be the first one to sign up for things. Wait a bit on the new apps and social networks. Wait for things to sort themselves out, let other people do all the trial and error, then when you come, just be the best.

Anonymous

I forget who gave me the idea, but never buy in-flight Wifi. Go off the grid for the whole flight. Catch up on stuff. Think. Read.

Adam Corolla

On Loveline Adam used to complain about how the producers wanted him to get their 15 minutes before the show started. His refusal was simple: every week that added up to an extra show–for free. Important people can get a lot done in “just 15 minutes” so they don’t give it away easily. And they don’t mind looking bad in order to protect.

Niki Papadopoulos

My editor always says: “Ok, well, try writing it then.” In other words, she means “Get started.” She usually says this right after you explain some big sweeping idea you have for a book or a chapter or an article. Planning it out is great, but productive people get moving.

7

Frederick Douglass

“A man is worked on by what he works on.” Steer clear of quagmires, toxic work environments, busy work and unsolvable problems.

James Altucher

Entrepreneurs and writers are nuts. To save yourself many wasted hours of time and insanity, find yourself a spouse who is better adjusted and balanced than you. James and his wife Claudia are an inspiring example of this important pairing.

Aaron Ray

As a talent manager, Aaron showed me why you never waste your time, or your own money, doing your own negotiating. This has served me well. I pass incoming inquiries to a speaking agent, book projects to a book agent, interview requests to an assistant, movie/TV stuff to Aaron, etc etc. Yes, this means I pay them a fee, but guess what? All valuable services have a cost. Only a fool represents himself or herself.

****

This piece originally ran on Inc.com.

8

33 Ways To Be An Insanely Productive, Happy, Balanced Person

9

We all try to be productive. We all have lots of stuff that we need to get done, for work, for our art, for our families. This is all good.

So maybe you’re too busy to get it all in. To write the book you’ve been meaning to write. Too busy to get to the gym. Or just drowning in email and want it to end. It doesn’t have to be that way. The right productivity tweaks can get you where you need to be–to help you get more done without adding more to your plate.

But you have to remember: It’s human being not human doing. With that in mind, here is some productivity advice that will certainly help you get more done, but more importantly, will help you get more done in a healthy, effective and balanced way. Some of these I have learned by virtue of working alongside people much smarter than me and stealing their tricks, others through my own trial and error.

****

-Keep texting for friends only. If there are too many ways for people to reach you, the day never ends and you’ll never have time to think. I try to not do any business texting–only email and only phone. When I get a text, I know it’s from a friend.

-Walk during all your phone calls. You’ll be happier for it.

-A small to-do list of 5-10 items, if completed day in and day out, will put you far ahead of everyone else.

-Save time in the mornings before you do email or social media. Write in a journal, have breakfast with your kids, take a long shower. Don’t jump immediately into the noise. Have some peace and thoughtful time first.

-Inbox zero. Inbox zero. Inbox zero. (but here’s the key: you don’t have to respond to most. Delete/archive is your friend)

-On that note, Napoleon used to deliberately ignore correspondence for weeks so the trivial stuff would deal with itself. I do that with things that are particularly frustrating or aggravating. What if you just thought: “Oops, I accidentally deleted that offensive email,” or “Oops, I guess I never saw it.” Chances are it would save you some anger.

-What’s your main thing? Ok, so why are you doing all these other things?

-Reading is work, important work actually. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

10

11

-If you’re struggling with something, print it out and go over it in physical form. The computer is a medium and not always the best one. Don’t feel stuck or wedded to it.

-Fire crazy people from your life. That is: people who send too many emails, people who stir up drama, people who can’t be counted on, people who waste your time with projects that don’t go anywhere. It’s not fair to you, it’s not fair to your clients/employer, it’s not fair to your family.

-To concentrate, listen to the same song over and over and over and over.

-Make commitments–short, regular deadlines that you have to meet. It will force you to ship and deliver results. This is how you will improve. It will also get you out of your own head.

-Use tools but don’t overuse tools. I really like Basecamp, 15five, Buffer and Google Docs. Yes, there are some other great ones out there: Scrivener, Evernote, Slack, Asana, Any.do, Timeful, etc. but you’re supposed to manage the tools, not be managed by them. How many different platforms can one have going on? Keep it simple and keep it straightforward. Don’t feel guilted into trying every single thing that other people rave about.

-Beware of both work addiction and work aversion. They are two sides of the same coin. Ask yourself: Why am I doing this? Am I avoiding anything in my life? Am I adrenalizing? Is this really that important?

-Get a goat (space/city provided)

-Don’t set up a voice mail. Or if you do, tell people to email you.

-Avoid conference calls, get-to-know-each-other coffee meetings, industry events and unless they’re really important, even interview/media requests that require meeting or Skype. Why? Because it puts you on someone else’s schedule and not yours. Email is best for all these things, even if it takes a little longer to actually do, for one reason: it’s on your terms. You can do it after you’ve done the other things you want or need to do, without interruption.

-Exercise will make you productive. It will clear your mind, process any negative energy, and give you a win every day.

-Don’t follow the news, particularly online. It’s mostly bullshit. Read people you can trust.

-There’s the old Benjamin Franklin line about being a penny wise but a pound foolish. It’s the same thing with time management. Most people get the little things right and the big things wrong–and then wonder why they

12

don’t get much done.

-Avoid stimulants. I include ‘passion’ as one of those dangerous drugs.

-Be wary of giving your time away just because some asked. Try asking them to pay. It weeds out the moochers and makes sure people will respect it and take it seriously.

-Don’t play cell phone games. They are designed to be addicting. Besides, you’re an adult. Read an article or pick up a book.

-Pick a set of clothes you like and are comfortable in and buy a lot of them. Everyone from the President to Steve Jobs realizes that this is a way to cut down on unnecessary decisions. It also means you’re focused on what is important (who you are vs how you look).

-Treat yourself like a startup. Register an LLC if you need to make it clearer. Now if your business needs something to be more productive–whether it’s a nice pair of headphones or a trip–you won’t think about money. You’ll be objective.

-Keep a journal if you like, but definitely keep a commonplace book. You’re essentially stockpiling information for when you’ll need it later. Saving you time and making you better prepared.

-Robert Louis Stevenson has a quote to the effect of “Thinking your work is terribly important is the first sign of insanity.” Remember…you’re not the president of the world here. Relax. It’s going to be alright.

-You think hiring a professional is expensive? Try hiring an amateur. When you hire help, don’t cut corners. You’ll pay for it, I promise.

-Don’t buy airplane wifi–take that time to get caught up, to think, to be ‘unreachable.’

-Put an inspirational quote or two above your desk. Not something like “Hang in there” with a cat photo but something that reminds you of your purpose and the major tasks at hand.

-What do you make in a year? Divide that by how many hours you work to get a true hourly rate. I’m not saying to not do anything less than that rate, but don’t lose track of that number. Let it weigh against your choices.

-One thing it will do is help you say ‘No’ to things. Which is critical. You need to say no more often. We all do.

13

-You have to know why you do what you do–what you prize and what’s important to you. Or you will be endlessly comparing yourself against other people, which will not only be a major distraction, it will make you miserable.

****

These are things I’ve learned over the last few years, I don’t always follow them but I always regret it when I don’t.Keep balance, keep working and stay happy!

****

This piece ran originally on Thought Catalog.

The Perfect Spouse Is the Best Life Hack No One Told You About

14

15

Two moments now stand out at me in my life. Driving home, by myself, after my high school graduation, thinking: I am finally free. And now, driving with my father, on the way to my wedding.

Such different feelings toward two similar life events, almost exactly a decade between them. One, excited to get away—anywhere, anything. Now, excited to be here—to be at peace, like heading home. The experiences feel so different, it is as if they are happening to two different people.

Of course, it’s because so much has happened between these two versions of myself. Not just in my relationship with my parents, which 10 years ago I would have doubted would be this way. But more importantly, I met a girl. Or rather, I met the girl.

It’s funny for me to think that my now wife and I met not long after that first moment. At a party, as sophomores in college, eight years ago. I was much closer to the first me. Young, ambitious, impatient. Driven by an almost manic intensity to do things, to prove certain points, to make a mark. Things are different now, if only by degree.

For all the productivity and success advice I’ve read, shaped and marketed for dozens of authors in the last decade, I’ve never really seen someone come out and say: Find yourself a spouse who complements and supports you and makes you better. Instead, we’re supposed to believe that relationships tie people down, that they are the death knell for creativity and ambition. When Cyril Connolly said that there was “no more somber enemy of good art than the pram in the hall,” he was voicing, in appalling clarity, the selfishness and self-absorption that draws many people away from love and happiness.

Maybe I worried about it when I was young and ignorant, but today, I don’t feel any shame in saying that I would have spun off the planet a long time ago if it wasn’t for her. We don’t have kids, but relationships take their own time and toll. Yet, I’ve been in one nearly the entirety of my working life and it’s accelerated everything I ever hoped to do.

It’s as if we don’t want to admit that we can’t do this alone, or that success may require dealing with the soft parts of ourselves, the uncomfortable, sticky parts we’d rather pretend weren’t there. We have trouble seeing the ramifications of our personal lives on our professional lives and that the best way to navigate the public world is to master and find contentment in the private one.

The myth is of the lone creative entrepreneur battling the world without an ally in sight. A defiant combination of Atlas and Sisyphus and David, wrestling a Goliath-sized mass of doubters and demons. In reality, I’ve found that nearly every person I admire—every person I’ve met who strikes me as being someone who I would like to one day be like—lives a quiet life at home with a person who they’ve teamed up with…for life. The reason this one person strikes us as special, I find, is because they’re really two people.

16

Why it took me so long to grasp the freeing truth of this, I do not know. Samantha and I met when we were 19 years old. We’ve lived in five cities together, published three books, traveled the world, started (and dissolved) companies, quit jobs, broke several bones and, of course, on the eve of our engagement, had most of what we owned stolen—including the ring. In that time we’ve faced and experienced things far beyond what most people so young should or could experience (mostly good rather than bad things—I’m not trying to be melodramatic), and yet it was the two of us that helped each other through it.

In my part of the vows, I said that marriage was essentially one of the few regrets I have in my short life—in that I wish I’d done it sooner. Because it feels like we have always been married—partners in it together. It’s been this way almost since we met, but without the legal status, the ceremony and of course, the acknowledgment or understanding of other people. I think we always knew we would get married, but there was some slight resistance or immaturity that held it back from being made real. With time that fell away, until what was left felt natural and necessary, this step and commitment.

Anyway, that’s what I said in my vows. In hers, she promised to continue to allow goats in the house despite my repeated objections. This is, after all, what makes her special and attracts me to her, that she is so inexplicably different. That she defies and baffles the order, logic and seriousness with which I tend to treat the world. At the end of her vows, she stated she would continue to manipulate me as long as she could, into whatever other ridiculous schemes and larks she’s decided upon. That she would be both my biggest supporter and even bigger distraction. Not that I don’t love it anyway, but if this is my fate, cleaning it up and dealing with the insanity of it all, will be a plenty fair penance to pay.

Penance? One of the most difficult things about starting a relationship as kids and getting married as adults is this: “stupid kid mistakes” didn’t happen to someone else, some unfortunate ex. It happened together, or to one of you. You grew up together, instead of coming together as more fully formed people.

Biologically, women mature earlier than men, which means one thing for young but sustained relationships: I’ve usually done the ridiculous things, held on to stuff and made issues where there shouldn’t have been any. And did this to her. A man nearing his thirties can only look back on his twenties—however successful they may have been—and think: Goddamn, I was an idiot. Or more likely, an asshole. I suppose the reverse is true for her too, that I put up with her growing phases, but that’s not really the case. Or at least it doesn’t feel like it.

There’s a line from Kurt Vonnegut where he says that at the root of every couple’s fight is this claim, which neither understands or can admit: You are not enough people. I need more people. In retrospect, I see how true this was over the years and only now, have we started to fully become enough for each other. It took trial and error to begin building the support structures necessary to allow these two different people to live and fully be together.

17

But in this moment, heading to the wedding, all is far from my mind. Seeing her come down the aisle with a baby bunny in a basket instead of flowers, it was her moment to be the center of attention, which she not only richly deserved but relished. There were ponies and baby animals. There were friends, some wealthy and well known, some old acquaintances from life phases nearly forgotten, and there was a cake shaped like an armadillo. And there was, thankfully, only a little bit of dancing.

****

This piece originally ran on the New York Observer.

Here’s Your Productivity Hack: Go The F*ck To Sleep

18

19

If you read a lot or are someone who gets a lot done, people will assume two things.One, that you’re a speed reader.

Two, that you never sleep.In my experience, neither of those assumptions are true. Or at least, they don’t need to be.

There’s no trick to reading a lot. But more importantly, no one can skimp on sleep—not for long anyway.

The philosopher and writer Arthur Schopenhauer used to say that “sleep is the source of all health and energy.”

He said it better still on a separate occasion: “Sleep is the interest we have to pay on the capital which is called in at death. The higher the interest rate and the more regularly it is paid, the further the date of redemption is postponed.”

But of course, that’s not the image we like to glorify. We want to see the bleary eyed programmer, six Red Bulls deep into some startup that will change the world or the CEO who hops off a redeye and heads straight into the office. We like the story of the writer who stayed up for three days writing a masterwork. We like the musician who works hard, parties hard and sleeps only when they can—usually at the end of a bender.

“Sleep when you’re dead,” we say. Like it’s some badge of honor how little time we allot to it.I think it’s time to call bullshit. Because the myth is destructive. The benefits minimal. And the claims are dishonest.

When work impedes on sleep, poor planning is to blame—not superior will power. The human body needs its rest, it needs to replenish and burning it out is, as Schopenhauer said, a ridiculously short-sighted strategy.

Can some people get by with way less sleep than others? Sure. (Though the research says that for every 100 people who think they need minimal amounts of sleep, only 5-6 are scientifically able to do it without trading performance). But this is not the badge of honor they think.

I’m much prouder to say I don’t think I’ve pulled an all-nighter, ever. Even when I was in college, even working three full time jobs, even when I was on book deadline, I got my seven to eight hours. I didn’t need to–because I handled my shit and had my priorities straight.

Not to say I love frittering away time under the covers but I’ll tell you this: Sleep is one of the most important parts of my work routine, period. If some emergency interrupts, I work around it and I bump less important things until I get caught up. I get my 7-8 hours (unless jet lag intervenes). This strategy not only hasn’t affected my output, it’s contributed crucially to my best work. It also means I get by hardly ever using stimulants–

20

basically no coffee, soda, or nicotine needed.

Sleep was something people used to brag about. Marc Andreessen—who essentially invented the internet browser—told the Wall Street Journal in 1999 that for him sleeping anything less than six hours a night was suboptimal and that “it makes a big difference in [his] ability to function.” Today, anyone who follows him on Twitter sees him up all night chatting away. Jeff Bezos has said that he’s “more alert and…think[s] more clearly” if he gets his sleep and that “I just feel so much better all day long if I’ve had eight hours.” Anders Ericcson, of the famous 10,000 hours study, found that master violinists slept 8.5 hours a night on average and took a nap most days. In fact, they slept more than lesser players. But no one seems to want to say that. The only person speaking out for more sleep is Arianna Huffington.

Yet even with these top performance stressing importance of sleep, Barclays Bank recently got in trouble for its ridiculous standards for young interns—demanding that they “be the last ones to leave every night… no matter what” and suggesting they bring a pillow to the office. Only after the death of a 21-year-old Merrill Lynch intern (after working 72 hour straight) did Goldman Sachs decide to cap their work days for new employees…at 17 hour days. This is insane, this is stupid, and anyone that would sign themselves up for this isn’t thinking.

You can burn yourself out in a few years for someone else at a high salary. OR, you can play the long game.

Because one of the most important concepts in economics is the law of diminishing returns. Almost everyone who brags about their long hours and endurance has pushed laughably past it. It’s not performance that keeps them going, it’s just ego and stubbornness.

If your job is simply a function of your body existing and being in motion—then sure, the more hours you can put in the better. That is—if you’re a security guard or a doorman or a factory worker or an Uber driver—the longer you can stay at it the more you’ll make (though of course, the risks of accidents increase). But increasingly, fewer of us are.

Instead, we work with our minds. The clearer we can think and the better our mental and physical state—the better we will do. Any employer that doesn’t understand that doesn’t have your best interests at heart. They will never be eliciting great work from you.

You won’t be your best self. I’ve seen it. I watched as Dov Charney, a brilliant entrepreneur and designer, slowly faltered under the unrelenting workload he subjected himself to. Any employee in any country could call him at any time—and he’d answer. It was a sign of his dedication and his accessibility as a leader, but eventually contributed, I think, to many avoidable mistakes. You know that tall tale about John Henry, the man who challenged the machine and won? People forget, that at the end of it he died of exhaustion.

21

There’s a great piece by Shane Parrish from Farnam Street in which after looking at all the research, he found that the single best productivity secret was this: Waking up early. Because there were fewer distractions and you had quiet time yourself—you’re in control, not the busy world. He doesn’t say deprive yourself of sleep to accomplish it, of course. But he’s urging you to examine the effects that something as simple as schedule can have on your output—both in terms of quantity but also quality.

The same goes for the amount of sleep and the priority you place on its role in your life. If sleep is a luxury, it will be the first to go when you get busy. If sleep is what happens only when everything is done, work and others will constantly be impugning on your personal space. But with boundaries and an understanding of the benefits of sleep—it becomes less optional and more about optimization.

We only have so much energy for our work, for our relationships, for ourselves. A smart person understands this and guards it carefully. Meanwhile, idiots focus on marginal productivity hacks and gains while they leak out energy each passing day. The greats—they protect their sleep because it’s where the best work comes from. They say no to things. They turn in when they hit their limits. They don’t let the creep of sleep deprivation undermine their judgment.

A young Paul Johnson, who would eventually become a great writer and biographer, once asked Winston Churchill, a man notorious for his insistence on eight hours a night plus a nap each day, even during the war: “Sir, to what do you attribute your success in life?”

Immediately, Churchill replied, “Conservation of energy. Never stand up when you can sit down, and never sit down when you can lie down.”

To that I would add: and when you can’t keep your eyes open, go to sleep. When you hit your limits, listen. Your body is telling you something.

Rest. Then start again the next day fresh.

Play the long game.

****

This piece ran originally on Thought Catalog.