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's Your Procrastination Persona?
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Hello Reader, Did you know that we’re smack dab in the middle of National Procrastination Week as I send you this? Indeed, this week serves as a timely reminder that none of us are immune to the allure of procrastination. Interestingly, the term ‘procrastination’ originates from the Latin ‘procrastinare’, which literally means ‘to defer until tomorrow’. Historically, this wasn’t always seen in a negative light; it was simply part of planning and prudent delay. However, over time, the concept of procrastination changed. Maybe ‘tomorrow’ became too vague, too undefined, leading procrastination to morph into the often negative connotation it holds today? No one really knows how this shift in procrastination’s reputation happened. But it’s crucial to remember, not all procrastination is detrimental. In fact, understanding your unique approach to procrastination can unveil powerful insights into how you work best. This is why I’ve crafted a short quiz to help you discover "Your Procrastination Persona." It’s free, quick, and not only illuminates your procrastination style but also offers a fun peek into your productivity character. As we make our way through a week that explores procrastination further, here’s to embracing and understanding our procrastination – turning what may seem like a flaw into our superpower. See you later, P.S. Listen to Nir Eyal's insights into the misunderstood world of distractions complement our exploration of procrastination on this recent episode of A Productive Conversation. Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, my YouTube channel, or visit the episode page 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 took two weeks off this summer. No livestream. Nothing humming along in the background. And when I sat back down, the first thing my brain offered me was a hole to dig out of. Then I caught the assumption underneath it. Falling behind means there was a race, and that I agreed to run it. I hadn't. I'd just stopped. Those are different things. One carries debt. The other doesn't. We collapse the two all the time. A vacation. An illness. A launch. A stretch where life mattered...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 2, Issue 22 | July 25, 2026 Hello Reader, My son turned a year older this week — a little deeper into his teens, a little closer to the door. The house has been quiet most of the month, the kids off living their own summer, my wife and I rattling around in the early draft of a life we'll be living full-time before long. So maybe it's no accident I've had an old Jim Croce song stuck in my head: Time in a Bottle. Croce wrote it in 1970, the night his wife told him...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 2, Issue I21 | July 18, 2026 Hello Reader, You probably know the story. An American businessman is standing on a pier in a small coastal village when a fisherman pulls in with a few good fish. The businessman asks why he doesn't stay out longer and catch more. The fisherman says he has enough — enough for his family, with time left to sleep in, play with his kids, nap with his wife, and wander into the village at night to play guitar with his friends. The...