Back to Work

Latest Episodes:

Episode 223: Normal is Whatever is There Jun 02, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Interstitial time and why you want it back.

This week, after some preliminary discussion of smoking and the children who throw rocks and run track, Dan and Merlin answer questions from listeners.

Links for this episode:

Sponsored by Lynda - visit http://lynda.com/backtowork for a free 10-day trial, and by Squarespace - use code ITSYOURSHOW for 10% off your first purchase.

Episode 222: Full-Stack Obsessive May 28, 2015

Show notes

Merlin and Dan use The Aviator as a jumping-off point to talk about OCD as it relates to perfectionism, creativity, and drive in the workplace. They discuss rituals and their consequences, the importance of mise en place, and eliminating disruptive processes.

Also, Merlin invokes the term "workflows".

Links for this episode:

5by5 | Back to Work #221: Minimally Viable Interruption
TOPIC: Time, Stones, and Giving Yourself a BreakJust…give yourself permission to not feel like a dick today. Especially if you think you don't deserve it.
Outside the Lines: An Artists' Coloring Book for Giant Imaginations: Souris Hong-Porretta: 9780399162084: Amazon.com: Books
Netflix June 2015: What's Coming? What's Going?
The Aviator (June 1): Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio team up for a sweeping Howard Hughes biopic.
Stanley Kubrick's Boxes (TV Movie 2008) - IMDb
Stanley Kubrick: A Life in Pictures (2001) - IMDb
Mise en place - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
a French phrase which meant "putting in place", as in set up. It is used in professional kitchens to refer to organising and arranging the ingredients (e.g., cuts of meat, relishes, sauces, par-cooked items, spices, freshly chopped vegetables, and other components) that a cook will require for the menu items that are expected to be prepared during a shift.
For A More Ordered Life, Organize Like A Chef : The Salt : NPR
The system that makes kitchens go is called mise-en-place, or, literally, "put in place." It's a French phrase that means to gather and arrange the ingredients and tools needed for cooking.
Ratatouille (2007) - IMDb
Johnny Carson: The First King Of Late Night - Esquire
nervous
How It All Began: A Brief History of the Kitchen Brigade - Food - The Austin Chronicle

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Episode 221: Minimally Viable Interruption May 19, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Time, Stones, and Giving Yourself a Break

Just…give yourself permission to not feel like a dick today. Especially if you think you don't deserve it.

Links for this episode:

Sponsored by Citrix GoToMeeting (Visit the link and click the “TRY IT FREE” button to get a free 30 day trial and have your first meeting up and running in minutes), Wealthfront (Visit the link to get $10,000 managed for free), JustWorks (Visit the link and get 15% off your first year of HR, benefits, and payroll needs by using the code 'backtowork'), lynda (Learn something new today by visiting the link for free 10 day trial access to their 3,000+ courses).

Episode 220: Canadian Gentle May 12, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Hopeless and Impossible.

This week, Dan and Merlin, delve deeper into the impossibly hopeless nature of email.

Links for this episode:

Sponsored by Harry's (Use the code COMICS for $5 off your first purchase), Squarespace (Use the code ITSYOURSHOW for a free trial and 10% off), lynda (Visit the link and get 10 day free trial access to their 3,000+ courses), and Wealthfront (Visit the link and get your first $10,000 managed for free).

Episode 219: At Sixes and Sevens May 05, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Jumping Over the Precipice.

This week, Dan and Merlin talk about what to be courageous about and when. It's rarely as easy or as simple as it seems.

Links for this episode:

Inside Amy Schumer - Pretentious Hotel - YouTube
At sixes and sevens - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
To be "at sixes and sevens" is a British English idiom used to describe a state of confusion or disarray.
Axolotl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
John Cleese on Creativity - YouTube

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Episode 218: The Tigers in Your Kitchen Apr 28, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Fear, Anxiety, and Existential Whack-A-Mole

This week, Dan and Merlin talk about Color Guard, the science of binge watching, and the uncertain future of podcasts.

But, mainly, they talk a lot about fear and anxiety. Deep dive here. How are fear and anxiety different? What's a habitual thought feel like? And, what are some little ways to start gently climbing out?

Links for this episode:

TeeVee | Daredevil Rewind: Episodes 4-6 (Episode 64)
In this episode we crest violent bloodshed and flow with universe building. Characters are further fleshed out as the tides begin to rise again. Merlin “The Hammer” Mann and Dan “The Anvil” Moren bring their pipes to help Hell’s Kitchen.
Color guard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Queen & David Bowie vs. Taio Cruz - Dynamite Pressure [DJ Tripp] - YouTube
5by5 | Cash's Corner #3: A Psychic Ability
5by5 | Back to Work #1: Alligator in the Bathroom
In the inaugural episode of Back to Work, Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin discuss why they’re doing this show, getting back to work instead of buying berets, the lizard brain, and compare the Shadow of the Mouse to San Francisco, and eventually get to some practical tips for removing friction.
5by5 Showbot
11 LET ME SEE YOU - YouTube
Mashup (music) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A mashup (also mesh, mash up, mash-up, blend, bootleg[1] and bastard pop/rock) is a song or composition created by blending two or more pre-recorded songs, usually by overlaying the vocal track of one song seamlessly over the instrumental track of another.

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Episode 217: The Worst Most Advanced Teenager Apr 21, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Take it personal and make it personal.

This week, Dan and Merlin talk about culture, solipsism, hiring, and needle-moving things.

Links for this episode:

Ungainly X-Mann Meetup #8 — Merlin Mann
Steve Albini: State of the Music Industry 2015 - yewknee
? A Few Good Men Introduction - YouTube
John Gholson on Twitter: "Recolored KILLING JOKE looks like a totally different book. http://t.co/wcKz73nhHH"
#19 Underdog — Reply All — Gimlet Media
5by5 | Hypercritical #12: Nothing Is So Perfect
John Siracusa and Dan Benjamin turn a critical eye towards last week's episode on criticism, then try to pick the single biggest challenge facing three different wildly successful companies: Google, Facebook, and yes…Pixar.
Hypercritical: OS X Reviewed
Nearly 15 years ago, I wrote my first review of Mac OS X for a nascent “PC enthusiast’s" website called Ars Technica. Nearly 15 years later, I wrote my last. Though Apple will presumably announce the next major version of OS X at WWDC this coming June, I won’t be reviewing it for Ars Technica or any other publication, including the website you’re reading now.
5by5 Showbot
Mr. Show - "The Five Voices" Sketch
"He takes it personal and MAKES it personal."
Here's What It Really Looks Like When Classic Comics Get Recolored
Earlier today, Marvel unveiled its "remastered" edition of the 1977 comic adaptation of Star Wars. Many were unhappy to see the art of Howard Chaykin redone with a modern comic's color palette, including writer John Gholson, who took to Twitter to show how much a comic loses when it's recolored.
Scrum Sprint Planning Meeting
After the sprint review meeting, the team and the ScrumMaster get together for the retrospective meeting. During this meeting, the team considers what went well, what didn’t, and what improvements could be made in the next sprint. Team members should be able to speak frankly about the sprint’s successes and failures. It’s an especially important opportunity for the team to focus on its effectiveness and identify strategies to improve its processes. Moreover, it allows the ScrumMaster to observe common impediments that impact the team and then work to resolve them.
After fifteen years, Ars says goodbye to John Siracusa’s OS X reviews | Ars Technica
Standard WordPress cannot handle a Siracusa review.

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Episode 216: Safety Sword Apr 14, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Kremlinology and Verbing

This week, Dan and Merlin follow-up on Dan's neighbor and The Trailer Incident. They also undertake a rather circuitous exploration of how little we understand about how stuff gets made. This leads to a semi-useful discussion of how the verbs we verb do and don't constitute the nouns we noun—and when we realize that.

Links for this episode:

5by5 | 5by5 at the Movies #3: The Big Lebowski - "A Life of Achievement"
Dan Benjamin and Merlin Mann talk about The Big Lebowski, which is just, like, their opinion, man.
5by5 Showbot
What is Catastrophizing? | Psych Central
Catastrophizing is an irrational thought a lot of us have in believing that something is far worse than it actually is.
Pain catastrophizing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kremlinology - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Episode 215: Legacy Cat Apr 07, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: With great power comes…uh, uh, what-have-you.

This week, Dan and Merlin cover a lot of ground. What makes a great comics movie. What movies to show (and not show) your kids. The majesty of The Big Lebowski. And, what exactly Dan should do about a construction trailer and a crawfish-pinching doctor.

Links for this episode:

5by5 | Getting There #33: Merlin Mann Shows Us His Panacea
In which we talk with the brilliantly undefinable—yet always gracious—special guest: Merlin Mann. Best known as a cornerstone of the classic indie band Bacon Ray, he’s apparently also a prolific podcaster, renowned blogger, sometimes-comedian, and index card enthusiast. However, he’s here today because of his (and all joking aside) amazing insight into, advice about, and dissection of the areas of productivity, motivation, and, well, just trying to get there. As he tackles our listeners' questions (as well as our own), we get a couple hours of some classic Merlin-Mann-ing.
5by5 | Getting There #33: Merlin Mann Shows Us His Panacea on Huffduffer
huffduff-video
Extracts the audio from videos on YouTube, Vimeo, and many more sites and sends it to Huffduffer.
Kieron Gillen Talks WATCHMEN Could you... | kung fu grippe
Women in Refrigerators
Batman: The Killing Joke - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Death of the Family - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
5by5 | Cash's Corner #1: Double Thumbs Up
kung fu grippe - "Phone’s Ringin’, Dude"
Scratching my own itch, here’s the ringtone from The Dude’s portable phone. As .m4r, .m4a, and .mp3.
5by5 Showbot
Honest Trailers - Interstellar - YouTube
The Making of "The Big Lebowski"
Part 1.
PeterExline.com - The Big Lebowski
So, I'm telling the story about my car getting stolen and finding a kid's homework in the car, then tracking the kid and calling his folks. Lew and I went over there. Lew had a briefcase and inside it were baggies filled with stuff from the car. One baggie had a Whopper wrapper, another the kid's homework. The kid's father lived in the living room in a hospital bed. Older guy. Don't think he and the kid played a lot of baseball in the backyard. Turns out he had a thirty year career in Hollywood.
Kieron Gillen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kieron Gillen (born 1975) is a British comic book writer and former computer game and music journalist. He is known for his creator-owned comic Phonogram, created with artist Jamie McKelvie, published by Image Comics, and for numerous projects for Marvel Comics, such as Journey into Mystery and Uncanny X-Men.
Amazon.com: Watchmen (9781401245252): Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons: Books
5by5 | After Dark #515: After Back to Work 215

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Episode 214: Destroyed by Farm Equipment Mar 31, 2015

Show notes

TOPIC: Youth as exception.

This week, Dan and Merlin talk about chess, the problem with SEO, and why getting old is normal (if you're lucky).

Links for this episode:

I'm a Lebowski, You're a Lebowski: Life, The Big Lebowski, and What Have You: Ben Peskoe, Bill Green, Scott Shuffitt, Will Russell: 9781596912465: Amazon.com: Books
Search results for the big lebowski on Can I Stream.It?
Dudeism - Ordination by the Religion of The Big Lebowski
iTunes - Movies - The Big Lebowski
Amazon.com : Aqua Notes - Waterproof Notepad 40 Sheet Mountable Pad : Memo Paper Pads : Office Products
Amazon.com: No Stress Chess: Game: Toys & Games
Amazon.com: Monopoly Junior Board Game: Toys & Games
Expressed as a Vest | You Look Nice Today
Unhealthy ligatures, a course of Prednisone, “I’m not following you!”, obscure chess moves, smoking for the cure, misused orifices, we pass as nosies, Karl Van Hœt.
TV Talk Machine | Werewolf Don Draper (Episode 27)
Expressed as a Vest — You Look Nice Today — Overcast
Time management - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Eisenhower Method"
Varsity: Pilot Pen
Mozart of Chess: Magnus Carlsen - YouTube

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