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.
Three Free Tools I Shared at the Grand Productivity Group
|
Hello Reader, Yesterday in the Grand Connection’s Grand Productivity Group I shared three free tools that can help you work with more intention — not by adding pressure, but by giving your thoughts, your focus, and your habits a clearer place to land. I wanted to pass my choices along to you as well, because each one serves a different layer of how we relate to our time. No overlap. No noise. Just three calm companions you can try without spending a cent. Here they are. Amplenote: For thinking, planning, and reflectionAmplenote is where ideas go to stretch out. It blends notes, tasks, and a simple calendar so your thoughts don’t get stuck in one corner of your life. If you want a place to write, explore, map out projects, or keep a gentle reflective practice, the free plan is more than enough. Think of it as a personal studio for your mind — a room with the door slightly open, inviting you in. Super Productivity: For focus, tasks, and deliberate executionThis one is wonderfully honest. Super Productivity is open-source, distraction-free, and built for people who want structure without feeling system-heavy. You get tasks, project lists, time-tracking, and focus timers in one lightweight workspace. When you’re ready to sit down and actually do the work — not admire it, not organize it — this app meets you where you are and helps you follow through. Atoms: For building one meaningful habit (or more)James Clear’s habit tracker might be my favourite of the trio because of its simplicity: you can track one habit for free, forever. That makes Atoms perfect for choosing one habit you want to carry into the new year — not a dozen resolutions, just one shift that feels honest. (If you want to go deeper, you can track more habits in the 30-day free trial of the Pro plan, but you don’t have to.) Atoms is a quiet nudge toward becoming the kind of person you’re aiming to be. Together, these three tools form a kind of rhythm:
Different roles. Different purposes. A balanced trio you can test without committing to anything long-term. If you try any of them, I’d love to hear what lands, what clicks, and what feels unnecessary. Your relationship with time is personal — these tools are just scaffolding. The architecture is yours. See you later, P.S. As a Grand Connection group leader, I'm able to offer you a free Guest Pass. It gives you access to your first three events at no cost — a great way to experience a global business community built on generosity, collaboration, and real connection. You can claim your pass here. |
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.
Hello Reader, I’ve been thinking about John Lennon again — not the icon, but the man who kept reminding us that time isn’t something you conquer. It’s something you learn to move with. There’s the line everyone knows: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.” Quoted to death, sure, but only because it keeps proving itself right. Lennon wasn’t warning us; he was inviting us to loosen our grip. But the line that hits me most now is this one: “Time you enjoy wasting was...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 41 | December 6, 2025 Hello Reader, You may be familiar with the phrase “it is what it is.” A shrug dressed up as wisdom. A way of stepping back when life doesn’t bend. But there’s another line — harder, steadier — that Robert De Niro delivers in The Deer Hunter. Holding up a single rifle round, he says:“This is this.” Not resignation. Recognition. Where “it is what it is” lets you drift away from the moment, “this is this” places you squarely inside...
Hello Reader, Every December seems to carry a strange kind of whiplash. One moment we’re rushing — to wrap things up, to get things ready, to tend to the endless little pieces that somehow all become “urgent” at the same time. (If you were paying close attention to my emails yesterday you might've caught a glimpse of me falling prey to that too.) And then, almost abruptly, we’re supposed to pivot into rest. Into stillness. Into presence. It’s a familiar tug of war. And if we’re honest, most...