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.
Personal growth spurts aren’t like the other kind
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Hello Reader, Most of us remember what a physical growth spurt felt like. Awkward. Uncomfortable. A little disorienting. Your clothes didn’t fit. Your coordination was off. You needed more rest than usual. And crucially—you didn’t cause it. You didn’t hustle your way into it. Your body just grew, and you had to adapt. A personal growth spurt works the same way—but we often treat it very differently. Instead of accommodating it, we try to capitalize on it. We add goals. Announce intentions. Raise expectations. We confuse growth with acceleration. That’s the mistake. Here’s how to work with a personal growth spurt instead of fighting it:
Growth spurts aren’t moments to exploit. They’re phases to respect. Handled gently, they change you for good. Handled aggressively, they collapse under pressure. See you later, P.S. If you’re feeling slightly out of sync lately, that may not be a problem to fix... it might be growth asking for room. |
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. II, Issue 3 | March 14, 2026 Hello Reader, For years we’ve been told the same story about technology: Each new tool promises the same thing: This will save you time. Email was supposed to do it. Smartphones were supposed to do it. Productivity apps were supposed to do it. Now the promise belongs to AI. But a recent study from researchers at UC Berkeley Haas found something curious after observing a technology company for eight months: Generative AI wasn’t...
Hello Reader, When a company like Bending Spoons acquires another platform, something interesting happens. People start asking the same question: Is this still the tool I want to rely on? Sometimes the product improves, the direction shifts, or it slowly becomes something else entirely. That’s the nature of software. Tools change. Owners change. Pricing changes. Priorities change. Which is why it’s worth remembering something simple: The real system isn’t the app. It’s you. Apps are...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. II, Issue 2 | March 7, 2026 Hello Reader, Have you heard this line before? “Pressure makes diamonds.” It’s a line that can be heard everywhere. Locker rooms, keynote stages, motivational posts meant to remind us that hardship produces greatness. Except there’s one problem: Coal doesn’t become diamonds. Diamonds form deep in the Earth’s mantle, from pure carbon under extraordinary heat and pressure. Coal forms much closer to the surface from compressed plant...