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.
What if you could "pop" the days?
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Hello Reader, Years ago—eons ago, it feels like now—I had a calendar made of bubble wrap. Every day was a bubble. At the end of the day, you popped it. Sometimes I’d pop it with satisfaction. Sometimes with relief. Sometimes with a little frustration that the day didn’t quite become what I hoped. But here’s the thing: once it was popped, it was done. No saving it. No hoarding it. No pretending it could be reused. Time... made tactile. Later on, that idea evolved into something more structured—more durable—when we created The TimeCrafting Calendar in partnership with NeuYear (you can see it here). Same spirit, different form. Less pop, more presence. Still, I find myself thinking about that bubble wrap calendar from time to time. Because there’s something honest about it. You can’t stack days. You can’t bank them. You can only meet them—then let them go. I remember reading that some people would pop the bubble at the end of the day, like a quiet closing ritual. Others would pop it at the start, as if to say, this one’s mine—let’s see what happens. Both approaches work. What matters is noticing the moment when the day becomes real. Maybe that’s the invitation here—not to rush through time, or try to optimize it—but to acknowledge it. To mark it. To feel it pass. One day at a time, one bubble at a time. See you later, PS: If the idea of a literal bubble wrap calendar speaks to you more than ours ever could, you can find one 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.
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 48 | January 24, 2026 Hello Reader, There’s a moment in our relationship with time when efficiency stops being the problem. The systems work. The habits hold. The work gets done. And yet something feels thin. The question shifts from “How do I get more done?” to “What am I actually responsible for?” That’s where auteurship enters. An auteur takes responsibility not just for making the work, but for its intent, its shape, and the time it demands. Not...
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Hello Reader, Every year on January 18, I resurface an old SNL sketch that’s very much not safe for work. The punchline? Everyone has already abandoned their New Year’s resolutions by that date. Darkly funny. Uncomfortably familiar. Yesterday also happened to be Blue Monday—that so-called low point of January where motivation dips and optimism wobbles. You can debate the science (and you probably should), but the feeling? That part’s real enough. So if the year hasn’t gone the way you...