I’m Mike Vardy, and I help people build a better relationship with time — not by controlling it, but by working with it. Through my writing, courses, and community, I explore how intention and attention shape a more meaningful life — one rooted in the original idea of productiveness over productivity.
650 episodes. But that's not even the whole story.
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Hello Reader, Episode 650 of A Productive Conversation dropped during the last week of March — and while that number means a lot to me, it's actually a little misleading. Because 650 is just this show. Before A Productive Conversation (formerly known as The Productivityist Podcast), there was Mikes on Mics. And WorkAwesome. And more within this space... and some well outside of it. Add it all up and I've hosted well over a thousand podcast episodes across more than a decade — and somewhere along the way, crossed six million downloads. I've never really stopped to say that out loud. So consider this me stopping. Here are three episodes worth your time — starting with the milestone itself: Jon and I got into why the people who care most about their goals are often the ones most likely to stall on them. It's one of those conversations that makes you rethink something you thought you already understood. The most recent episode. Erin makes a distinction between routines and rituals that I keep coming back to — it reframes what "being productive" even means. Ep. 598 — Routine, Creativity, and Paying Attention (with Austin Kleon) One of the most-listened episodes after we renamed the show. Austin has a way of making you feel like slowing down is actually the more ambitious choice. Over the years, the show has featured conversations with James Clear, Seth Godin, David Allen, Cal Newport, Gretchen Rubin, Tiago Forte, Ryder Carroll, Michael Bungay Stanier, James Clear, and dozens of others who've shaped how people think about time, work, and what it means to be productive. And we're not slowing down — I'm starting to do solo episodes with more regularity (and Mark Manson is coming up soon). Thanks for being part of this. It means more than the numbers do. PS. New episodes drop every Wednesday. If you want a heads up when a new one goes live, click here and you'll get an email. Would you rather skip the email and just keep on top of the podcast in your podcast app of choice? Then click here to subscribe. |
The Practice of Productiveness
I’m Mike Vardy, and I help people build a better relationship with time — not by controlling it, but by working with it. Through my writing, courses, and community, I explore how intention and attention shape a more meaningful life — one rooted in the original idea of productiveness over productivity.
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 2, Issue 11 | May 9, 2026 Hello Reader, You may have noticed this arrived a little later than usual. That was intentional. At 1:40pm on Friday, I got an email about something called the Mind Over Manuscript Challenge — a free 5-day writing challenge running this week through Pages & Platforms. It resonated immediately. I had something to say about it. So I wrote a broadcast email and sent it Friday evening, sharing three things that TimeCrafting gave me that...
Hello Reader,This morning my head was full. Not overwhelmed. Just... swirling. So I went for a walk. No headphones. No agenda. Just outside. I wasn't treading water out there — I was treading ground. There's a difference. Treading water keeps you from sinking. Walking actually moves you somewhere. When you're swirling or when you're stagnant, the steps you take by walking can help you recognize the next steps you must take — the ones that don't involve walking at all. You don't need long. You...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 2, Issue 10 | May 2, 2026 Hello Reader, I've had "The Circle Game" stuck in my head for three days now. Which is fine — it's a great song. But it's been bothering me in a specific way that I can't leave alone. It's not a circle. Joni Mitchell wrote about seasons coming and going, about children becoming adults, about time spinning us around and around. The imagery is a carousel. A circle. You leave, you come back, you're where you started. Except you're not....