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.
Why Do It?
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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 productive in the usual sense of getting things done — you’re product-ive, producing in a way that’s aligned with your why. It’s timely, too. We live in a culture that celebrates doing for doing’s sake. But the truth is, meaning is found in the choices we make before we act, and in the reflection we give afterward. That’s what sustains progress. So here’s a question for you this week: Why do it? Your answer might just change not only what you do, but how you do it. – Mike P.S. Nike may be reframing its iconic slogan, but I’ve had one of my own for years: Stop doing productive. Start being productive. It’s a reminder that action without intention isn’t enough. If you’d like to see where this originated, you can read my 2021 piece 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.
Hello Reader, This is the fifth email in a six-part series exploring wage imbalance, payroll decisions, and the value of work. I know this is a bit of a departure from what I usually write, but it connects directly to time, attention, and the idea many of you know well from my work: productiveness. If something here resonates—or misses the mark—hit reply and tell me. Your feedback is shaping this series as I go. We’ve talked about how productivity often defaults to what’s easiest to measure...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 30 | September 20, 2025 Hello Reader, This week, during The READY Retreat that we run in the TimeCrafting Trust community, I was working through Day Two, which features the phases that asks us to slow down and deliberately align things. It’s the point where choices narrow and commitments take shape. As I was mapping out what belonged where, Radiohead’s Everything in Its Right Place started playing in the background. It struck me how fitting that was....
Hello Reader, This is the fourth email in a six-part series exploring payroll imbalance, the wage gap, and what it reveals about how we value work. It’s not my usual lane, but the more I dig into this, the more I see how connected it is to time, attention, and productiveness. If you’ve got a story or perspective of your own, I’d love to hear it—just hit reply. When I was growing up, there was an unspoken deal: if you worked hard, stuck with a company, and paid your dues, you’d be rewarded....