Nir And Far: Business, Behaviour and the Brain

Latest Episodes:

How to Make Sure Working From Home Doesn’t Mean You’re Always Working - Nir And Far Mar 28, 2022

Show notes

When large swaths of the U.S. population transitioned to work from home in March 2020, they lost that critical physical boundary between their work domain and other life domains. As a result, those facets of life have bled into each other, with work often taking precedence.

A September 2021 study showed Americans’ work week has gotten 10 percent longer; it determined the length of a workday based on when employees sent their first and last messages each day.

What does that mean?

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: How to Make Sure Working From Home Doesn’t Mean You’re Always Working https://www.nirandfar.com/work-from-home-productivity-tips/?swcfpc=1

Nir And Far, a podcast about business, behaviour and the brain by Nir Eyal. If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe on iTunes and leave an iTunes review. It will greatly help new listeners discover the show. Please visit my website Nir and Far for other info about my writing, books and teaching: http://www.nirandfar.com/

Planning Ahead Is the Key to Living With More Spontaneity -- Nir And Far Mar 21, 2022

Show notes

It may seem counterintuitive, but spontaneity often can’t happen without a bit of advanced planning

In a 2020 study, 72% of people said they feel happier after a spontaneous act. Those who described themselves as a “spontaneous person” were 40% more likely to consider themselves a “happy person.”

Of course, free time for spontaneity is hard to come by. That’s why I say the key to spontaneity is timeboxing, a powerful method for getting things done that involves planning out periods of time each day to focus on distinct tasks.

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: Planning Ahead Is the Key to Living With More Spontaneity https://www.nirandfar.com/planning-for-spontaneity/

To Fix Your Problems, Find the Root Cause - Nir And Far Mar 14, 2022

Show notes

Do you play pool? I sure don’t. But I know enough about the game to use it as a metaphor for the hidden reasons we don’t do what we say we will.

The object is to get balls into pockets using a big stick. However, you can’t just hit the balls into the pockets with the stick directly, you first have to get a white cue ball to smack the right ball in just the right way.

So here’s the question: What causes the balls to go into the pocket?

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: To Fix Your Problems, Find the Root Cause https://www.nirandfar.com/find-the-root-cause/

One Question to Help You Get More Done - Nir And Far Mar 07, 2022

Show notes

It was 9 a.m. and Wendy, a freelance marketing consultant, knew exactly what she needed to do for the next hour: be in her office chair to write new client proposals, the most important task of her day.

She fired up her laptop and opened the client’s file on her screen, eager to win new business. As she held her coffee mug with both hands and took a sip, a fantastic addition to the proposal entered her head. “This is going to be great!” she thought to herself.

But before she had a chance to write down the idea—“Ping!” Her phone buzzed with a notification.

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: One Question to Help You Get More Done https://www.nirandfar.com/one-question-to-get-more-done

The Pursuit of ‘Flow’ Is Overrated - Nir And Far Feb 28, 2022

Show notes

That magical zone is great when you can find it. But what happens when you can’t?

The idea of flow is considered by many to be the epitome of productivity. Also known as “being in the zone” or “hitting your stride,” flow captivates us with its promise of becoming so absorbed in what we’re doing that we tackle tasks effortlessly.

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: The Pursuit of ‘Flow’ Is Overrated https://www.nirandfar.com/the-pursuit-of-flow-is-overrated/

How to Survive in a World of Information Overload - Nir And Far Feb 21, 2022

Show notes

Pursuing knowledge is great until it becomes a distraction

We live in a world of too much information, and it’s nothing less than a blessing.

Throughout most of human history, access to knowledge was limited. Power equated to how much information you had access to. Kings built great libraries, and texts were rare and valuable things.

You can read the Nir And Far blog post on: How to Survive in a World of Information Overload https://www.nirandfar.com/dealing-with-information-overload/

Nir & Far, a podcast about business, behaviour and the brain by Nir Eyal. If you enjoy this podcast, please subscribe on iTunes and leave an iTunes review. It will greatly help new listeners discover the show. Please visit my website Nir and Far for other info about my writing, books and teaching: http://www.nirandfar.com/

How to Get a Friend to Put Away Their Phone Without Being a Jerk - Nir And Far Feb 14, 2022

Show notes

Digital distractions can get in the way of being fully present with the people we love. Here’s how to (politely) do something about it.

Are we ever exclusively in our friends’ company? Our phones are almost assuredly present and ready to interrupt us with a poorly timed notification. Who hasn’t seen a friend divert their attention, mid-conversation, to reflexively check their phone? Most of us simply accept these interruptions as a consequence of our times.

You can read the Nir And Far blog post o: How to Get a Friend to Put Away Their Phone Without Being a Jerk n https://www.nirandfar.com/how-to-get-a-friend-off-their-phone/

How to Tame Your Wandering Mind and Actually Get Some Work Done - Nir&Far Feb 07, 2022

Show notes

Researchers believe that when a task isn’t sufficiently rewarding, our brains search for something more interesting to think about.

You have a big deadline looming, and it’s time to hunker down. But every time you start working, you find that, for some reason, your mind drifts off before you can get any real work done. What gives? What is this cruel trick our brains play on us, and what do we do about it?

You can read the NirAndFar blog post on: How to Tame Your Wandering Mind and Actually Get Some Work Done https://www.nirandfar.com/taming-a-wandering-mind/

If You Don’t Plan Your Time, Someone Else Will - Nir&Far Jan 31, 2022

Show notes

Most people are stingy with their money and generous with their time. Here’s why that’s backward.

Have you noticed how we use the same words to describe our relationship to time as we do our relationship to money?

We spend time, just as we spend money.

We make time, just as we make money.

We pay attention, just as we pay with dollars and cents.

You can read the NirAndFar blog post on: If You Don’t Plan Your Time, Someone Else Will https://www.nirandfar.com/plan-your-time-or-someone-else-will/

You Don’t Need a Mentor. You Need a Buddy. - NIr&Far Jan 24, 2022

Show notes

Finding an accountability buddy is a simple and highly effective way to keep yourself going.

When you’re struggling to achieve your personal or professional goals, do you ever wish you could speak with a famous mentor? If only you could connect with a super successful business leader like Jeff Bezos or Meg Whitman, then you’d have the answers you’re looking for. Surely they’d point you in the right direction, right?

Think again.

You can read the NirAndFar blog post on: You Don’t Need a Mentor. You Need a Buddy. https://www.nirandfar.com/you-need-an-accountability-buddy/