Category Archive: Mindfulness

Big day today! Enrollment for the Fall cohort of Focus Course Live is officially open! Click here to explore the agenda and save your spot now. Plus, I’m offering a little something extra special for the next 48 hours… Fast Action Bonus: Everyone who enrolls before midnight Friday gets a 20% discount on their spot! […] »

A quarterly Personal Retreat is a great way to make sure that you continue to live your life in alignment with your vision and your values. In this post, we're going to dive deeper into the Personal Retreat process so you can make your next Personal Retreat more effective. »

Welcome to the monthly Focus Digest! This is for creative professionals and entrepreneurs looking to create a more ideal schedule, get organized, and stay in control of the things that matter. If you are new to the digest… here’s what to look forward to every month: A short article on a single concept around focus […] »

When I say the word “inbox,” what comes to your mind? For most people, it’s email, right? Email is the first thing that comes to mind when we think of checking our inbox. But the truth is that we all have multiple inboxes. An inbox is just anything that collects incoming bits of information that […] »

Napoleon Bonaparte was a famous military commander with some interesting information management habits. But he died about 200 years ago (1821), long before computers, the internet, and electronic communication. So what could we possibly hope to learn from his life about handling email in our digital age? »

According to recent statistics, the average American checks their phone 344 times per day (about once every four minutes). And before you say, “other people may struggle with this, but I've got it under control,” I dare you to go into your Settings and look at your Screen Time stats. The truth is, we all struggle with this stuff. And the deck is kind of stacked against us. »

I'm a big fan of digital journaling for personal growth, but I'm not a big fan of most journaling prompts that tend to focus on what you accomplished during the day. So for years, I've been using a different type of journaling in Obsidian called Daily Questions. In this post, I'll walk you through setting up the Shortcut I use to streamline my daily journaling process at the end of my day. »

Trying to use a single app for PKM is destined for failure. In this article, I'll explain why and share a simple framework for thinking about personal knowledge management that can help you get more out of the notes and ideas that you put into your PKM system. »

How to use an idea development system to prime the creative pump and set yourself up for success when it's time to create. »

Let’s take a look at Apple’s new Journal app for iPhone and how it stacks up to one of the perennial apps on the App Store. The app has a long way to go, but it has some very intriguing elements to start. »

In this post, I'm going to show you how I use Obsidian to facilitate a process I call a personal retreat to gain the clarity I need to take consistent action and regularly achieve my goals. »

When I say the word “inbox,” what comes to your mind? For most people, it’s email, right? Email is the thing we think about when we think of checking our inbox. But the truth is that we all have multiple inboxes. An inbox is just anything that collects incoming bits of information that need to […] »

In a world of distraction, focus is hard. But that doesn't mean we should fight to protect our attention. In this post, I want to share some tips for staying focused — and what to do when the inevitable distractions come. »

Inbox Addiction is an urge to continuously check our news feeds, social feeds, and message inboxes despite undesirable and even negative consequences or a desire to stop. »

As someone who basically writes for a living, I find it very important to have undistracted time to actually do the work — the writing. This may seem obvious, but just because the time itself is set aside in my schedule or during my day, that doesn’t always mean that it’s going to be productive time. Being able to focus for an extended period of time without any distractions is actually becoming a very rare skill. This means that if it’s something you can figure out how to do, it actually can be to your competitive advantage. »

Have you ever looked up the dictionary definition of “overwhelm”? It’s actually pretty intense: bury or drown beneath a huge mass defeat completely give too much of a thing to someone If you’re feeling overwhelmed, then perhaps you feel as though you have been given too much. In fact, you’ve been given so much that […] »

I’ve tried just about every time blocking method out there. I’ve done it Fantastical (my calendar app of choice), followed Shawn in planning my day using GoodNotes on my iPad using a custom template, experimented with time blocking in Obsidian, even crafted my own analog bullet-journal-based hybrid productivity system. For the past 6 months or […] »

I've been a heavy user of Do Not Disturb as a way of eliminating distractions on my Mac and iOS devices for a long time. But if you don't want to completely block the outside world, the Focus modes feature built into macOS & iOS is surprisingly powerful. »

Do Not Disturb is a life saver. You can set it up on all your devices and it silences all your notifications. You can set it to turn on a set schedule, turn it on for meetings, or when you need to go “heads down” on an important project. »

As a chronic maximizer, here are a few reminders that I need from time to time. You don’t have to take action on every idea. There’s no need to push every project to the max; ship when things are useful. You can make a decision without knowing every last detail and option; action will bring […] »

Way, way back when, Shawn showed off one of his cool tricks for spurring the creative juices each morning. Rather than sitting down cold turkey at the computer to begin work for the day, Shawn would leave a note right in front of his keyboard the prior evening outlining the next step, the next idea, […] »

This week, we are kicking off our next Focus Booster inside the community. And it’s a Complete Guide to Margin. How to go from busy and overwhelmed to…. not busy There are only two ways you can restore margin to your life. And they’re actually quite simple… As part of our upcoming Margin Reset — […] »

How would you describe your average day? Is it busy and overwhelming? If so, here's why. »

You need input, advice, and inspiration in order to make decisions, come up with new ideas, and take action. »

This is your annual reminder to reevaluate the technologies you use on a daily basis. »

A while back, I reviewed the reMarkable e-ink tablet. There's a lot to like about this incredibly thin tablet: it's thin and light, has incredible battery life, and offers a great writing experience for a digital tablet. But the software was lacking, and I found myself consistently bumping up against the limitations of the device in frustrating ways. »

Quick wins are rarely the elements of a long-term strategy. If you search for quick wins, you’ll find them. But they won’t add up to anything substantial over time. Instead, focus on being consistent with smaller actions you can stick with over a long period of time. Here’s why… The two types of goals (and […] »

How to stop the “just checks” and keep your bias toward action. »

After teaching more than 15,000 people about productivity and time management, we’ve identified four failures to productivity (and the solutions to each). These four failures are easy to avoid. And that matters a lot because, as you can see from the image below, the four failures work together in a flywheel. A failure of one […] »

I recently came across an app called Book Tracker that helps you catalog your library and manage your reading list. As a Bookworm myself, I had to give it a try. »

I recently re-read (listened?) the Audible Original How To Train Your Mind by Chris Bailey about the productivity benefits of mindfulness meditation. The short version is that you gain back an average of 7 minutes for each minute you spend meditating. This obviously only works up until a certain point, but this statistic has rekindled my motivation to make mindfulness meditation a regular practice again. »

I had heard of the Light Phone before and was intrigued by the idea, but I write so much about iOS apps that I just couldn’t justify making the switch. But recently, my son turned 13 and we needed a way to stay in contact with him so he could reach us in case of […] »

When I first saw the reMarkable 2, I immediately saw the appeal from a mindfulness perspective. In this Mindfulness Monday post, I consider the pros and cons of "the world's thinnest tablet." »

For the days when I have nothing interesting to write down, or when I just don’t feel like writing in Day One, I’ve got two easy ways to “phone it in” so to speak. »

This is a free video lesson from our Simple Habits course In this video, we’re going to take a look at the mechanics of habits and explain how they work, then show you a way to use this in order to replace negative habits with positive ones. All habits follow the same four-step pattern: Trigger […] »

They say money can't buy you happiness, but sometimes it can buy you a little joy. »

The first things we learn about in Focus Course Academy is the importance of values. Our values should guide the decisions we make and be the filter we need to say yes to the right things and no to the wrong things. And so, one of the initial (and, frankly, one of the more difficult) exercises we go through in the Focus Course Academy is to distill our individual values down to just two Core Values. »

Last week, I presented a paid workshop here on The Sweet Setup called Your Creative Flywheel. In the workshop, I walked through the process that I use for creating (I call it The Creativity Flywheel). Here's a quick recap. »

Affirmations is a simple app with a singular purpose — to provide compliments and reminders to help make self-care a little easier. »

Don't be like me and spend years of your life doing productivity-whack-a-mole while you try to get this stuff figured out. I have condensed and cultivated everything I know about focus, time management, productivity, and work-life balance into this new, 4-week cohort: Focus Course Academy. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, Nick Milo of Linking Your Thinking joins us to talk about note-making, idea emergence, the hold of the screen, and breaking free of rigid systems Meet Nick Milo Nick Milo is the creator of the Linking Your Thinking YouTube Channel, where he makes a lot of helpful videos about using […] »

I've been thinking a lot about Personal Knowledge Management lately and the path information takes as it enters and exits my PKM system, and I've noticed that information tends to fall into one of three buckets »

In our productivity flywheel, the fourth stage is to celebrate your progress. But sometimes this feels counterintuitive or inconvenient. Because when we want to be super duper productive, we often think that speed and efficiency are what matter most. Thus we get stuck in a loop of doing, doing, doing... without ever pausing to celebrate. »

I'm a big fan of the mindfulness I gain from journaling, but have been searching for years for the perfect set of prompts that could completely eliminate the friction from my daily journaling workflow. I've tried many different prompts (and many different apps) over the years, but have settled on a practice called Daily Questions which has just clicked for me. In this post, I'm going to share how I implement my Daily Questions inside of Obsidian. »

David Smith (of Widgetsmith fame) just publicly released a great mindfulness app with an incredible backstory. It’s called Ian’s Awesome Counter, and was originally developed for and with his son to help manage his attention. The app is pretty genius in its simplicity. You just respond to a simple prompt at each time interval and […] »

This is a video lesson from the new Time Tracking module in our Simple Time Management course. It’s 20% off during launch week. On iOS, we can easily create an automation that allows us to start a timer anytime we open an app. This is one of many tricks I use to help me track […] »

This is a video lesson from the new Time Tracking module in our Simple Time Management course. It’s 20% off during launch week. In this video, I’m going to show you how you can use Timery on iOS to set up a time tracking dashboard using widgets in iOS, which can not only make it […] »

In this article, I’m going to share two very important things for how to use your calendar: why your task list should be on your calendar, and how to get it there by using time blocking »

We all want to get things done. We all wish we could be just a little more productive. Our specific reasons may vary, but we are all motivated to solve a common problem: We never seem to have enough time for the things that are truly important. Today we’re going to look at two very […] »

Some recommendations for working tunes to keep you focused and in the flow. »

Personal Knowledge Management (PKM) is all the rage. Here's what you need to know to make the most of your PKM and do your best creative work. »

Today we updated our best habit tracking app pick for 2021, and it’s a doozy. The updated article now has over 6,000 words in an increased effort to help you find the perfect habit tracker for you. It’s only been a year, but a lot has happened. First, we’ve gotten the addition of widgets in […] »

Regardless of the tool you decide to use, journaling is a worthwhile habit to establish as we leave this year and get ready for the next one. »

A few weeks ago, I participated in the ReadWriteMap, a virtual event put on by Bigger Plate for anyone interested in reading, writing, or mind mapping. There were several speakers who presented on a variety of topics, and it was a lot of fun. »

Learning guitar is challenging and a lot of fun, but hand-written music sheets make the learning process easier and more permanent. »

On Friday I shared with you my simple framework for keeping things on track. Lifestyle habits Daily Routine Process for focus Thanks to my habits, routines, and process I was able to survive an extremely difficult 8-weeks where we thought my wife might have Stage IV cancer. And, more than that, these things make up […] »

iOS 14 introduced Widgets to the iPhone, which has allowed for some very creative home screens to be created to suit an individual’s preferences and personality. Here’s a look at my current iOS 14 Widgety Home Screen, and the thought process that went into designing it. Remember Why You Came I don’t know about you, […] »

Sometimes in life you get to choose which area of life you'd like to focus on. And other times, life chooses for you. »

In this post, we share how time blocking works, why you should consider using it to plan your day, and how my time blocking routine is supplemented by my use of Roam Research. »

In the midst of the craziness that is 2020, here are a few things for which we're grateful. »

There are some folks who say you ought to know your goals inside and out or else you’ll never accomplish them. Others advise against setting goals at all because you might not even accomplish them. Well....? Which is the right approach? Let's take a closer look. »

The hard truth about focus and overcoming the fear of missing out. What are you actively choose to do, or more importantly, NOT do? »

The last thing you want when it comes to your email is what we call “Dual Focus”. Dual Focus is a waste of your time. Dual Focus is frustrating and annoying. For example: Dual Focus is when you are trying to have a Zoom meeting and your toddler busts into the room. Dual Focus is […] »

I’ve always had a love-hate relationship with email (and Twitter, too, for that matter). I love how they’ve allowed me to connect with folks, build friendships, and make things over the years, but I hate how email (and Twitter) can be such a draw for my attention and a distraction during my day. »

Over the summer, there were a few days when my Apple Watch didn't charge, and it ruined my 2-year streak of perfect activity. »

Several months ago, I took all the apps on my Home screen and moved them over by one so that my first Home screen was blank. Now I’m trying something similar but different. I’ve placed just a few apps on the first Home screen, none of which have inboxes or infinity pools. »

It's fun for me to find new and better ways to do things - especially if it involves Apple-branded technology. I love trying new apps and making my devices dance. But with everything going on in the world the last couple of months, I've also found it to be especially difficult to navigate emotionally, which is a big reason why I’ve started doing a lot more with pen and paper. »

If you tend to journal or document standard or recurring events in your Day One, entry templates are an easy way to save time. They also provide a cohesive, standard, and consistent look for all like-entries across your entire Day One. For those of us with a perfectionist tendencies, templates are the key to consistency. »

We've arrived at the assumption that work only gets done on the computer. Humans have survived thousands of years without computers and accomplished some pretty incredible feats. Why is it we now assume computers equal getting work done? »

This interview is one of the many bonus interviews included in our new course, Simple Habits. The course is 25% off until Friday, May 29th. Your name and a short bio / info about you I’m Mike Schmitz, Executive Editor here at The Sweet Setup. I live in Wisconsin with my wife and have five […] »

This Mindfulness Monday post is a video from Shawn Blanc, founder and editor-in-chief of The Sweet Setup In this short video, Shawn talks about: Maintaining momentum and motivation after the “honeymoon” period is over The role of automation in creating sustainable habits The balance of goals and habits in creating positive outcomes If you want […] »

For the past month I have been waking up at 6am to spend the first hour of my day writing without distraction. »

Instead of going to Hawaii, we are staying home. My wife and I recently cancelled our 15-year anniversary trip to Hawaii. We’d been planning and saving for this trip since our 10-year anniversary. Alas, with the current state of the planet, we knew we’d have to cancel it, but we were putting it off. I […] »

This Mindfulness Monday article is a guest post by Chuck Frey, creator of mindmappingsoftwareblog.com and author of several books on creativity including MaxThink, a creative ideation system that can help you be more creative and get unstuck. In this article, Chuck shares the key pieces of his own ideation system. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, podcast and D&D enthusiast Dave Caolo joins us to talk about resisting the pull of social apps, his unique approach to apps earning their way onto his Home screen, and what baking cookies from scratch can teach us about focus and intentionality with our tech. »

Over the past year, even before the current crisis, my wife and I have been slowly optimizing our bedroom to try and create an oasis of rest. Together with a more intentional bedtime routine, this series of subtle changes has utterly transformed our quality of sleep. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, YouTuber Matt Ragland shares about the boundaries he's established to maintain intentionality with his tech, his bullet journaling practice, and why he starts every project using analog tools. »

Rosemary is a tech lover and frequent contributer here at The Sweet Setup who lives in Vienna, Austria. During the day, she works as a web developer, but she can also be found at RosemaryOrchard.com and hosting Automators, a podcast about automation, and Nested Folders, a podcast about productivity. She loves to experiment with new apps and workflows, and the more automation included, the better! »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, Executive Editor Mike Schmitz shares his moment of clarity with intentional technology use and how he continues the fight to shift expectations around email. I’m Mike Schmitz, Executive Editor here at The Sweet Setup and co-host of the Focused and Bookworm podcasts. I’ve asked quite a few people to share […] »

Recently, I shared with a couple of friends about the new mind mapping course we just released, and one of them (Brandon Wentland, who previously shared his sweet setup here started telling me about some of the cool ways he uses mind maps to run his digital marketing agency. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, Mike shares part 3 in his series on capturing and developing ideas using mind maps. »

I've been sharing recently about the system I use for capturing and developing ideas, and at the heart of this system is a mind mapping habit. Mind Mapping helps me develop my ideas so that I don't deal with writer's block and saves me a ton of time by making it super easy to get started whenever I sit down to write. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk to Blanc Media Production Manager Isaac Smith about his intentional limitations, fighting the urge to stay connected, and his 6-month "dumb-phone" experiment. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we look at how to to maximize our intentional technology use by doing a digital declutter. This post originally appeared on our sister site, The Focus Course. If you want to join in by doing your own digital declutter, check out the 30-Day Digital Declutter Kickoff. I’ve long been a […] »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we consider how to leverage our technology to create intentional habits. Last week, we published an interview with bestselling author James Clear about starting and building better habits. There’s some great insights in the interview about how habits work, and James shares some great tips about how to create them. […] »

With the New Year at our door, I asked James to share his advice about how to start and build better habits. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk to our Editor-in-Chief Shawn Blanc about how he uses his computers for creating, working with a remote team, and avoiding procrastiworking. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk about how to use your technology to develop your ideas and turn them into action. »

As the pace of our everyday lives continues to increase, it's only natural to look for an escape. As information and commitments are thrown at us without discretion at breakneck speed, we covet every opportunity to hit "pause" and disconnect. »

Creativity is not based on your artistic ability. It has nothing to do with your natural talent. It depends entirely on your perspective, and is vital to embracing an intentional approach to technology. We must all learn to flip the switch from mindless consumption to conscious creation if we want to reach our full potential. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk to Joe Buhlig about how his Shabbat impacts his use of technology, his ongoing fight against email, and his intentional iPhone habits. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk to author and speaker Chris Bailey about how he uses forced constraints to stay conscious of how he spends his time. »

Regardless of the app you choose to use, we highly encourage you to consider creating a mindfulness meditation habit. There's an abundance of great options to choose from, so you're sure to find something that suits your personal style. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we share how using Sleep Cycle can help you wake up well-rested. When I was 18, I had a seizure while standing in line at a McDonald’s. Fortunately, there was a nurse nearby and she kept me safe until the ambulance arrived and I was rushed to the hospital. When […] »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we share some tips on how to set yourself up for NaNoWriMo success. »

Brain.fm is a special kind of music service designed for the brain to enhance focus and relaxation within only 10 to 15 minutes of use. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we look at how to reinforce positive technology habits through automation using Streaks and Shortcuts. There is no shortage of high-quality habit trackers for iOS. Whatever you’re looking for, you can find it. There are options for tracking your habits across multiple platforms, options for ramifying your habit tracking, and […] »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we take a look at Duolingo and why you might want to use it to apply intentionality to your downtime on your iPhone. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we take a look at how you can create a gratitude habit using Templates inside of Day One for iOS. »

Forest is an interesting iPhone app that actually encourages you to use your phone less. »

When it comes to juggling all the things in life, it can be a challenge. And so, who better to learn from than David Sparks? David — a.k.a. “MacSparky” — has a lot of spinning plates. David is a solo attorney, a prolific podcaster, a blogger, an author, a screencast tutorial maker, a dad, and […] »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we talk to video game developer and podcaster Shahid Kamal Ahmad about the steps he takes to stay out of the Infinity Pools and stay focused on what's important. »

It’s 6:34 am. The sound of your smartphone alarm startles you awake. (Actually, it’s the sound of the fifth alarm you’ve set because you’ve gotten so used to snoozing them that it now takes several to finally get you out of bed.) You instinctively reach to grab your phone from the nightstand and perform your […] »

For this week's Mindfulness Monday post, reader Nick Sweetman shares how he keeps his iPhone home screen free from distractions. »

A look at how a constrained browsing experience on your iPhone can keep you focused on what's important without losing any of the fleeting thoughts and questions that come up during the day. »

Moodnotes is a simple iOS app that helps you track and understand your emotional state. »

In this Mindfulness Monday post, we deconstruct the concept of a distraction-free phone. »

Journaling is one of the best habits you can create. It allows you to distance yourself from the emotion and business of the day by reflecting on the events that happened so you can achieve clarity on the situation and see things from the proper perspective. »

Over the next several weeks, we’ll be looking at apps that help facilitate a mindful approach to your technology. »