7.2, love is always in the center
“If we want to master distraction, we must learn to deal with discomfort.” Nir Eyal
Friends:
This week, I put up my notes on Indistractable, by Nir Eyal. It’s been a really useful book in helping me to better manage my attention. I keep harping on about attention because our attention, like our time, is a precious and non-renewable resource. As Seneca, a Stoic Roman philosopher, wrote:
“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time, they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.”
Eyal talks about the importance of making time for traction, i.e.., the things that are important to you. I’ve usually been pretty mindful about making time for my values, but reading the book has helped me to become even more intentional, and to spend even less time on social media (Instagram is my particular vice). It’s a work in progress. I highly recommend Indistractable! Check out my notes for more lessons. Maybe it will prove useful to you?
In the meantime, I also really enjoyed these two songs from Ledisi:
Anyways, on with the links!
The Rundown
“the news cycle isn't about to become less panic-inducing, less filled with existential threat. Which means that figuring out how to consume news sanely – how to keep your head, when everyone on social media is losing theirs – is only going to become an even more critical skill for living a composed and purposeful life”
He Thought He Could Outfox the Gig Economy. He Was Wrong
Jeffrey Fang, a DoorDash delivery guy, left his kids in a van to chase a thief who stole his phone. Then, the van, with his kids inside, was carjacked. He then became the target of internet outrage for leaving his kids behind for a cellphone. Jeffrey's story is complicated and sad. #longread
“The rideshare years were, in some ways, a tragedy of my own making,” Fang says. “By all measures, I should be successful, but I’m not.”
Finding love for $300,000: Inside the business of a matchmaker to the rich and famous
They say you can’t put a price on love, but the elite matchmaker has put a price on finding it for you: $30,000 to $300,000 a year for her company’s services. “I know it sounds like a lot of money,” she says, “but it’s pocket change to the wealthy.”
It turns out my lifelong nosiness and curiosity has been a good thing all along! I think so many get the curiosity beaten out of them over time that it’s hard for them to grasp the benefits of asking (good) questions. What are your favorite questions?
"The wellspring of all questions is wonder and curiosity and a capacity for delight."
+Related: Only the Questions
The disastrous voyage of Satoshi, the world’s first cryptocurrency cruise ship
"The difficulty in starting a new form of government, said Friedman, was simply a lack of space. All the land on Earth was taken. What they needed was a new frontier, and that frontier was the ocean."
#longread
Below the Fold 👀
💃🏾 Dancers move to copyright choreography online
💍 Diamonds
📱 Black Mirror, Euphoria, and Technology's Double-Edged Sword
💏Loud and ruthless” sex is ruining New Yorkers’ lives
Tweet of the Week 😎 ☀️
Okay, folks! Be your best selves. Best of wishes for a great week ahead! Thanks for reading!
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