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.
You need more of THIS in your "productivity diet"
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Hello Reader, I hope this message finds you well. Today, I want to explore a concept that goes beyond traditional ideas of productivity. It’s about reaching the quintessence in our tasks, projects, and overall approach to being productive. Quintessence, a term rich in history and meaning, originated from the medieval Latin ‘quintessentia’, which itself descends from the Latin ‘quinta essentia’, meaning “fifth essence”. Historically, this concept was pivotal in ancient and medieval philosophy, representing the purest, most essential substance that transcends the four classical elements of air, earth, fire, and water. In modern usage, quintessence refers to the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class. It embodies the utmost purity and concentration of essence in any substance or idea. The evolution and philosophical implications of this term are fascinating. Why Quintessence Matters That's where quintessence comes in. Embracing quintessence in our work is like discovering an essential element in our productivity diet—it enriches and fulfills beyond ordinary measures. I invite you to reflect on this concept of quintessence in your daily routines. Where can you see quintessence in your work? Perhaps it’s in the careful crafting of a client proposal, the innovative approach to a routine task, or the way you structure your day to align with your peak energy levels. So... how do you believe you can elevate your tasks to embody this richer, more fulfilling form of productivity? Feel free to reply to this email and let me know – especially if it will hold you accountable to adding this important element to your "productivity diet." I'd love to hear from you. See you later, P.S. Quintessence not only enhances our productivity but also brings us closer to achieving true quality and fulfillment in everything we do. For more insights on integrating such profound elements into your daily routine, I highly recommend Scott H. Young’s new book, “Get Better at Anything.” It’s packed with strategies to help you elevate your approach to work and life, aligning perfectly with our quest for quintessential productivity. |
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 19 | July 5, 2025 Hello Reader, We talk a lot about hard work. And smart work. And sometimes even deep work. But there’s another kind of work that often gets overlooked—maybe because it doesn’t look like work at all. It’s the kind of work you do not because you have to, but because you want to. The kind that lights you up instead of wearing you down. It might be writing a line you don’t plan to publish. Or mapping out a new system not because it’s...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 18 | June 30, 2025 Hello Reader, Last year, my 50th birthday didn’t quite go as planned. We had renovations happening—dust in the air, timelines shifting, rooms half-done. The idea of a big celebration faded quickly into background noise. And for a while, I felt a little disappointed by that. But as the day came and went, I realized something: maybe it wasn’t the party I missed. Maybe it was the marker—a moment to pause and say: This matters. I’ve made...
The Lantern by Mike Vardy Vol. 1, Issue 17 | June 21, 2025 Hello Reader, Sometimes the fix isn’t finesse—it’s force. Not reckless. Not violent. Just… assertive. Immediate. Intentional. There’s a term for this in the physical world: percussive maintenance. You’ve likely done it. A smack on the side of an old TV to fix the reception. A gentle nudge to a stuck printer. That calculated tap to get something—anything—working again. It’s not precision engineering. But it works. The most famous...