Deep Work Truths, What Boredom Teaches & Building Flow
September update with a 30-day deep work experiment, why boredom is a feature, three ways to kill distractions and a journaling prompt to stop what drains you.
Hey friends 👋
Autumn's here with shorter days, steady rain and mixed moods to be honest. But there's a bright spot: yesterday was my 2-year sobriety anniversary. If you’re curious about the backstory, I wrote about year one here: Quitting Alcohol.
I’ve also been deep in a few projects these past weeks, with some bigger announcements on the way soon. Stay tuned!
Apart from that, let's start with some new content from my end:
🎥 YouTube Video:
I Tracked My Deep Work for 30 Days — Here's What Happened
I put myself to the test. For 30 days, I tracked every minute of focus time and learned why some days soar and others stall. In the video I share the real numbers, what issues I ran into and a simple system to stack reliable deep-work blocks even on busy days.
✍️ Blog Post: What to Expect in Your First Coaching Session
Curious what actually happens in a first session? This is a plain-English tour of a how my coaching looks like—what we do, what you leave with and how my coaching differs from therapy and typical coaching.
📖 Glossary: 11 New Glossary Topics
My glossary keeps growing! I now cover 32 topics with many more to come.
Reflections & Insights
Boredom as a Feature
A line from a doc stuck with me: "As a child, boredom still existed."
Before the always-on internet, summer felt endless. We had Game Boys, sure, but there wasn't a feed demanding proof of progress. You could simply exist—wander, tinker, stare out the window—and no one asked what it "meant".
Boredom wasn't failure; it was space. In that space, attention resets, ideas surface and play returns without an agenda.
Today, the feed eats that margin and sells it back as "productivity".
Here's a little antidote to try at home: carve out a daily 15-minute boredom window—no inputs, no goals. Sit, walk or watch clouds. Notice the urge to check a screen ... and don't. See what shows up when you stop performing.
Distraction Kills Flow
While digging back into books on flow for my deep-work video, the following became even more eminent to me: distractions are the biggest flow breaker.
Flow needs an unbroken channel—clear goal, immediate feedback, just-right difficulty. Every ping, tab switch or shoulder tap resets that ramp and costs more time than it seems.
Therefore, if you want to remain focus, here are 3 tips to cut distractions fast:
- Out of sight beats "self-control": Put your phone out of reach—ideally in another room. If that's not possible, airplane mode + no badges.
- Single-task by design: Focus on one task only. Full-screen one app, one document. Use an app (e.g., Freedom) to quarantine everything else for 60–90 minutes.
- Batch communication: Set a status (e.g. "in focus mode, replies at noon"), close Slack/Email and keep a quick capture list for thoughts so you don't slip back just to "check".
Monthly Favourites
🎶 Song: Geschwisterliebe - The Water (Johnny Flynn)
I love Johnny Flynn and this cover hits right home as it's a scout group from my own organization performing it.
📚 Book: S.A. Chakraborty - The City of Brass
Another fresh fantasy read with lots of oriental folklore that differentiates it from the typical western fantasy stories.
📽️ Video: The Tension Between Rest and Living Fully
A nice reflection on what it actually means to "make the most" out of our time. As the first comment says: A full life is not the same as a full calendar.
Book Club
Interested in joining our book club?
Then hop into my Discord and check out the #book-club channel.
The next book will be announced shortly!
Monthly Journaling Prompt
What do I have to stop?
Every week during my weekly review, I ask myself this one simple question. It can be any kind of activity or (negative) habit really. It's the fastest way I've found to take back control of my time and energy.
If you don't mind sharing, I'd love to hear yours!
Just hit 'reply' and I'll get back to you as fast as possible.
Thanks for checking in—see you next month!
Best,
Robin