Mindfulness on the go 🚶♂️
This article was a single thought, and I was mindfully following other ideas, which evolved into a long read article. Put 🎧 headphones on and play something beautiful, my favourite 💖 Wind on the Water — Shook
⌨️ The keyboard on the mobile
Your keyboard is the input to the cyberspace. Make it easier to go through. Every meat tap you do counts.
My win-win things are to have a performance keyboard. For that, I’m using my google keyboard. Vibration level on keypress is on super low, like 3 ms and delay for typing is around 100–110ms. That what I’ve learned during the stay in South Korea.
I’m using black themes where I can. I’ve had a grey keyboard background, but I’ve switched to the dark one, to better concentrate on my thoughts. I’m not obsessed with dark mode, but where I can, I add dark grey and neon stuff — something like Hotline Miami or vapourware style.
Also, leverage suggestions. Google Keyboard has some machine learning built-in. You often use your favourite phrases. Google keyboard can remember them automatically, so write a long sentence is just a few taps, each tap, one word. So it could save you like 20–30 seconds for more extended thought.
📋Clipboard — a massive increase in text processing which you need put on other places. We often struggle to put text from one place to other input. But Android phones have just one slot for the clip. What if you want them like 5? Yes, Google Keyboard can do.
👆Space bar 🧙♂️magic — you can use space bar for moving the cursor in text, try it!
🔙 Backspace — slide over your finger to the left to delete words.
🤚 One-hand mode — ever tried to write something with one hand? Train it more with this feature 🤗
👀 Cut distractions and clutter to have the perfect workspace
On Mac, I’ve gone Zen mode where I can. I’ve set dark mode, removed menu bar, using tiling manager for windows. On the table, my workspace, I’ve cleaned and dropped most of my things, the only greenery is allowed and something with a memento. Also, I’ve added lights behind monitor, it helps a lot, during cloudy and rainy days. It’s warm white for now. Our brain is designed to react and seek distractions, don’t allow it.
🌿 Surroundings
First to do is to have noise-cancelling headphones 🎧. I’ve got my Bose QC35 II. Best buy I can confirm. The second best thing I’ve done is to turn off voice prompts. Simply giving away another input to your brain, daily. It will save more mental energy for another thing. Now you can have your pretty personal space, everywhere. Next step, I’m considering get Bose 700, it got eight 🎙 microphones in total. 6 🎙 for Active Noise Cancelling, 4 🎙 for Voice Pickup ( 2 are shared with ANC ).
👌PROTIP, you can get Bose QC35 I for like 200€, the same things as II, except one button.
🚰 Hydratation — Water bottle
I’ve used to have Blender Bottle I, but I’ve bought another new model with capacity 750ml. You will be curious, that’s a lot, but you never know, how much thirsty you will get during the day, even during winter times. Often in our co-working Progressbar in Bratislava, we’ve got water fountain with mineralization, reverse osmosis, UV filter, and carbon filter to have clear water putting daily in my body. It’s just 10 meters from the table, handy and I will save on the commute, daily.
Drink at least 3L water daily. More water will raise your concentration and focus level.
🎻 Music
Listen to calm music, for your thoughts, aim for long-term, it will pay off in a massive increase in the quality of your life and dreams. Here is my new assembly at Spotify, called Investor Deck feel free to follow me. Named because I’m fundraising for our space startup called 🌍🛰 StarMesh 🤞
Also if you are a fan of Original Motion Soundtracks, Kurzgesagt released one recently Vol. 6
I’ve learned the Spotify algorithm to offer me the best picks in my Spotify discover weekly. I’ve been gender fluid, but now I’m hovering around EDM music which calms me with downtempo and makes me dream and think more deeply about my thoughts, browse my abstraction on various topics in my head, it’s just matter of training
🎒 Backpack
I love Ozuko backpacks. It’s 🇰🇷 South Korean brand, pretty handy. I’ve had a previous model combination messenger with a rollup with a front opening. It was 35L.
Now I’ve got another one. It’s model 2017, better nylon, so things do not get wet, it got rollup as well, chest strap, two side zip pockets, two side pockets for bottles with extra straps on each side, two pouches from front and place to put your jacket outside. Feels like 40L, I like how it looks like an urban backpack, and I can pack there for 4–5 days of travel.
Next backpack I plan to get, would be most probably this one
📝 Notes
I’ve used Google Keep or Wunderlist previously. Fair, but there was always missing something. I’m using Notion for a year or so, but people are also using OneNote from Microsoft. I don’t have any recommendations, how to handle your notes, find what works for you well and make yourself new routine and habit.
⌚️ Smartwatches
I’ve got Garmin Forerunner 645. They track my 😴 sleep. Deep Sleep, REM, Light and Awake, Stress levels time, it’s fair for that what I need plus I’ve got chest strap which add precisions during my sports activities. I do mountain bike, hiking regularly and sometimes snowboarding. You can follow me on Strava as well.
Watches lasts around a week per charge, I’m considering upgrading to 945, because of battery would last up to 2 weeks and 36hours of activity so I don’t need to think about charging that often, may worth of investment.
🪔 Infrared lamp
I’ve bought an excellent cheap infrared light to avoid Seasonal affective disorder. It works.
You start your day with proper mood, even you tend to be moody, and you are not aware of it.
It works well before sleep. I have then much better-relaxed sleep and more weird lucid dreams.
I recommend something between 5–15 minutes. Infrared light works even better for me as a meditation practice slash habit. Try it!
🦸♂️ Superpowers
I’m continually experimenting with new supplements. Right now I’m using happy pills, sharp mind, gut care and daily sunshine from Ahead.
- Gut care — is simply probiotics, which can help your overall mood and focus. It fixes your wellbeing autonomously where you are making mistakes. Long-term is the must. It adjusts your digestion problems if you have any. I’ve had, and now they’re gone. It contains 18 living bacterial cultures and 15 billion CFU. Core things here are Inulin from chicory, oligofructose, Calcium. Calcium contributes to the normal function of digestive enzymes. Zinc contributes to the normal functioning of the immune system.
- Bright mood — It contains amino acid L-Tryptophan and 5-HTP as an extract from the Griffonia seeds. This is core. They are direct precursors of serotonin. It will help you raise social interactions, be more in the mood to tap into social things, cheerful, more jokes, and you name it. Also, it includes B6 and B12 for the nervous system. Without causing a habituation effect. You will be less neurotic if you have a more significant load. They also add Riboflavin which protects from the oxidative stress. All in with high bioavailability. Mayor role plays here Reishi 🍄extract.
- Sharp Mind — It contains Citicoline Cognizin, a precursor of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, in conjunction with phosphatidylserine, Brahmi (Bacopa Monnieri) extract and Phosphatidylserine. It has got zero caffeine, it’s free of stimulants, so there are no side effects as tremors. Bonus on the top, it includes Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR). Acetyl-L-carnitine is a form of carnitine, supplemented by an additional acetyl group. In this form, the substance can cross the blood-brain barrier and work in the brain. Carnitine plays a crucial role in the fat metabolism of the mitochondria, which, as the energy plants of the cells, provide the body with energy.
- Daily Sunshine — Literally it has 1000 IU of Vitamin D in each drop. It’s dissolved in MCT oil from coconut. Vitamin D is excellent to maintain healthy bones and teeth. As it’s suspended in a fat matrix made from MCT oil from sun-ripened coconuts, it has maximum bioavailability. It’s of course, vegetarian, gluten-free, without magnesium stearate, without artificial additives.
- USB-C — yes, it’s a superpower. I don’t like dongles so that I can escape the dongle world, at least for this decade. I have a USB-C monitor with built-in charging where I often operate, home & work. I have USB-C phone. (I’m cheating here and charging wireless 20W 😅). I plan to acquire USB-C headphones (Bose 700), in-car I have Android Auto through USB-C. Of course, MacBook Pro is USB-C for few years. I have a USB-C microphone for podcasts too. My power bank 🔋🏦 Aukey PB-XD26 26800 mAh is USB-C with USB-PD 3.0. PD stands for power delivery, it can operate at 46W max, and in various power modes 5V/3A, 9V/3A, 12V/3A, 15V/3A, 20V/2.3A. As MBP has capacity 5086mAh at 11.41V, it can charge MacBook at least once, mobile phone at least six to eight times.
🧠 Mental health awareness
- Deactivate Messages — Turn off all notifications. Where you can. It’s melting your brain. Most things can be done in a few hours.
- Write down everything — It helps free space in my mind, I can come back to it later. The more thoughts, ideas or tasks floating around in your head, the more difficult it becomes to concentrate on one task.
- Use Fewer Tools — Reduce the things you use daily.
- Better Time Management — Focus on things that bring you to value, filter jobs. Excellent time management not only benefits your productivity — you can also achieve better results in the shortest possible time.
- Focused work — Prepare your list of actions day before, avoid to be hectic. Don’t multitask. At multitasking, we achieve less and make more mistakes. An hour of focused work without distractions is more valuable than when you work three hours, but still, let yourself be interrupted and distracted.
- Start the day with quick success — I listen to books, then I go often on the bike, I do something which pleases me.
- Take advantage of the early hours — First 3–4 hours are tended to be your most valuable time in the day, don’t schedule meetings here. If you are unsure which task to start with, ask yourself this question: If you could only do one job today, which task would give you the highest satisfaction at the end of the day? You should start your day with this task.
- Limit working hours — Work smart, not hard. Best performers work non-stop at 90-minute intervals. Best performers worked no more than 4 hours in a day
- Always keep moving — Low-intensity exercise, walking, standing, sitting or gardening.
- Spend time with people who make you happy — We are an average of 5 who we are spending time with.
- Eating healthy — Great nutritions can bring you far. Many healthy snacks even do without preparation time: walnuts, almonds, cashews, baby carrots, edamame, apples, bananas. When preparing a delicious meal, the feel-good hormone oxytocin is released. This short feel-good break can help you get back to work with full energy
- Improve productivity with music — You can raise your productivity levels with the right music. A study launched by Spotify looked at the benefits of certain types of music. The researchers found that a musical pace in the range of 50–80 beats per minute can help induce alpha in the brain, making the head calm and alert and increasing concentration.
🔁 Habits & Routines
It seems the annoying part, but it is very crucial for your daily functioning. I’ll go deeper down in another Biohacking mental models article.
For, i.e. I don’t set any meetings before noon, it could stress me out. I woke naturally. I turn on my infra lamp to prepare mood for another day, start listening 🎧📚 audiobook. Afterwards, I’m making notes for later spaced repetition. I brush my tooths. Then I choose if I go to the 🚴♂️ bike or get some 👨💻 work done before lunch. Both are great options, no matter what I want.
For good inspiration here is the book The 5 AM Club. You will learn from there 20/20/20 routine.
✊📚 The Willpower Instinct
Willpower allows you to take back the reins and control your life. You can make better decisions about everything, including money, health, relationships, and career. For that reason alone, increasing your willpower is a vital part of life.
How does it feel when you give in?
To do better, you need to learn your specific way of failing. We all have our nuances, so how do you fail, and how does it feel? By understanding this, you can learn your specific triggers and work to minimize them or kick them out altogether. Self-knowledge is vital in any journey towards self-development. How can you change something about yourself if you don’t know how you react or what your triggers are? Take the time to understand yourself and what makes you tick and behave.
Will, won’t, or want — which do you listen to the most?
The brain has three sections that control your impulse reactions: “I will”, “I won’t” or “I want”. These need to work together to avoid impulsive actions, but are you more inclined towards one area? When making a decision, try to answer all three queries, to avoid giving in to something you don’t need in your life.
A busy brain makes poor choices
When you’re working or stressed, you’re far more likely to give in to impulses or make bad choices. Before making any decisions, slow down and think for a second. This should be enough to stop you merely making a snap choice which has no greater good attached to it.
Meditation could be the key to greater self-control and calmness
Do you regularly meditate? If not, it’s time to learn. Studies have shown that the more you meditate, the easier it becomes. Besides, meditation helps to develop a myriad of areas connected to self-control, helping you to avoid impulsive decisions.
Fight or flight, or pause or plan?
The fight or flight response is the typical stress response the body kicks into action whenever it senses an external threat. But, what if a warning isn’t external, what if it’s internal? For instance, you’re deciding whether to eat another slice of cheesecake. Pause, plan and make a choice. By waiting, you’re far more likely to make the right decision.
Slow down your breathing for greater self-control
When you’re in the fight or flight stress response, your heart rate is pumping, and your variability is on the down-low. You need this to be the other way around. You can do that by slowing down your breath to about 4 or 6 per minute. Use this whenever you need to kick out stress and be more self-aware.
Flex those self-control muscles for extra strength
The more you use your willpower and self-control, the less you’ll have. Instead, you need to think of self-control overall as a muscle; you need to give it a workout, to make it stronger. Pick one thing you can work on every day and commit to doing it. The stronger your “muscle”, the healthier you’ll be internal.
Know your depletion time, and plan your day carefully
Identify the time of day when you notice your self-control running low. You can then cleverly plan your day to avoid temptation, e.g. things which you know you struggle with in terms of impulsive choices, and therefore side-step difficult decisions.
Snack carefully to boost your self-control
You might think that a sugary snack is all you need to increase your blood sugar levels and boost your willpower as a result. Wrong. This will make you crash in a short amount of time. Instead, snack on items with a low glycemic index, to keep you full of energy for longer.
Your brain is lying to you, but it has good intentions
Your mind cares about you, physically and emotionally. Whenever it senses that you’re low, it tries to steer you in the direction of something it thinks will make you happy. The problem is, it misinterprets what happiness is, and instead leads you toward something which gives you a sense of arousal, usually causing an impulsive choice. Welcome to dopamine!
Trick your brain away from rewards, and towards healing
Your mind falsely thinks that a short-term hit, i.e. an award, is going to make you happy. Instead, you can trick your brain into releasing right feed-good hormones, which promote healing and calm. Try sports, exercise, socializing, reading, creative activities, and listening to music.
You’re only human after all
Sometimes you’re going to give in to impulses and avoid making a sensible and robust decision. If you do, realize that you’re human, forgive yourself, move on and do better next time. Beating yourself up will not create a positive outcome.
Do you put off until tomorrow, what you really should be doing today?
Procrastination runs riot in the modern world, but in reality, it is causing an uncertain future. If you avoid doing a task today simply because you’re feeling tired, promising yourself, you’ll do it tomorrow, and you’re making tomorrow more hectic. Understand when you’re choosing instant gratification, i.e. putting something off to feel better.
Could waiting 10 minutes to change your tomorrow?
When you’re tempted to put something off, wait for 10 minutes. Studies have shown that the longer we have to wait for a perceived reward (not having to do something), the less attractive it seems. In that case, you’re more likely to get on and do it, creating a better day tomorrow.
Is willpower catching?
Just like seeing someone yawn makes you yawn back, watching someone exercise their willpower could be just as contagious. Surround yourself with people showing a large amount of self-control, and you might find yourself doing the same.
Are you surrounding yourself with the right people in your life?
Do you tend to mirror other people? For instance, if your friend decides to have one more drink but you know you shouldn’t, what do you do? If you go for it, you’re probably mirroring. Ask yourself whether you should be spending time with people who cause you to reflect their poor decisions.
Attempting not to think about something, actually makes you think about it more
Have you ever tried to suppress a thought or feeling, only to find that it’s all you can think about? This is something called “ironic rebound”. The answer? Stop trying to suppress and let it be!
Pause and question your decisions, for a life full of control
It’s not possible to avoid impulsive actions and decisions all the time, but you can do your very best to work toward most of the time. By doing this, you’ll avoid more and more impulsive choices, and make your decisions consciously instead.
🤔 Conclusion
This list of tips on how to increase your productivity may seem like you have to turn into a boring robot to be productive. But that’s exactly the trick.
If you take a close look at the everyday life of most top performers, athletes, best-selling authors and CEOs, it usually looks disappointingly dull. And that is precisely the ultimate lifehack.
So: remove everything unnecessary. Automate decisions. Take care of your health. That’s all.
🎬 Thank you for reading this long article
Since I’ve changed myself towards huge self-development, I have more thoughts than ever before. I want to release at least one long report every six weeks. I’ve listened to 23 📚books in the last 25 days. There is more to come, and I’m ain’t no stopping here.
You can follow me at
The article hasn’t been proofread, and my English is not perfect 😅 Working on it.
