The Lantern is a thoughtfully curated weekly email from Mike Vardy designed to help you craft a better relationship with time. Each edition brings you insights, inspiration, and practical tools through a simple yet powerful framework: Look (a thought-provoking video or visual), Listen (a compelling podcast or audio insight), and Learn (a deep dive into a key concept, article, or book). Designed to inform, inspire, and illuminate, The Lantern helps you navigate time with clarity and intention—without the overwhelm.
The timeless pull of newness
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Hello [FIRST NAME GOES HERE], Michael St. Pierre recently shared this about The Productivity Diet: “It’s rare to find a book on productivity that feels somehow new and accessible to just about everyone.” That phrase—feels new—really stuck with me. Because what feels new isn’t always something that is new. The Stoics proved this thousands of years ago. Their ideas endure because they find fresh resonance in every era. Arnold Bennett’s How to Live on 24 Hours a Day was first published in 1910, and it still feels relevant today. Not every passage holds up—his biases about class and gender are obvious—but his deeper invitation to see our relationship with time as something that stretches beyond the confines of the workday or workweek still feels prescient. Newness isn’t a matter of novelty. It’s about perspective. When we see something timeless through the lens of our current lives, it feels new again. Because newness isn’t about what’s next—it’s about what still matters. – Mike P.S. If you’d like to experience the kind of “newness” Michael describes, The Productivity Diet is where I’ve brought together timeless ideas and today’s realities. It’s available here. |
The Lantern: A Weekly Guide to Navigating Time with Intention
The Lantern is a thoughtfully curated weekly email from Mike Vardy designed to help you craft a better relationship with time. Each edition brings you insights, inspiration, and practical tools through a simple yet powerful framework: Look (a thought-provoking video or visual), Listen (a compelling podcast or audio insight), and Learn (a deep dive into a key concept, article, or book). Designed to inform, inspire, and illuminate, The Lantern helps you navigate time with clarity and intention—without the overwhelm.
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 31 | September 27, 2025 Hello [FIRST NAME GOES HERE], A friend of mine was feeling the weight of work recently. They’re a musician, so when I searched for words of comfort, I found myself speaking in their language. What came out was simple: “There’s a song in your struggles.” It wasn’t advice, exactly. It was a reminder. Musicians know that tension is part of the score — dissonance comes before resolution. Without it, music loses its depth. And the...
Hello [FIRST NAME GOES HERE], This is the final installment in my six-part series on payroll imbalance, executive pay, and the value of work. It’s not my usual territory, but I’ve written it because I believe these issues connect directly to how we use our time and attention—and to what I call productiveness. If you’ve followed along, thank you. And as always, if you have feedback or insights, just hit reply. I’d love to hear them. Over the past three weeks, we’ve explored: The Disparity...
Hello Reader, Nike made a bold move earlier this month. They’ve reframed their iconic “Just Do It” slogan into something new: “Why Do It?” That subtle shift caught my attention. For nearly four decades, Just Do It has pushed people toward action. But now, Nike is placing reflection before action—asking us to consider the why before we leap into the what. Action matters, but action without intention can drain us instead of driving us. When you put purpose before proceeding, you’re not just...