06 - Efficiency and Content
Through many trials and tribulations, I've unlocked a secret to gain time.
No, it's not a time machine (though this would also be pretty cool...)
No, it's not drugs either!
It all started with this tool: the Video Speed Controller (I've linked the Chrome extension here but it also exists for Firefox) - the most important add-on I've ever found and will ever care about using, regardless of what browser I ever move to.
Yes, yes, I know - this is going to be a hella controversial post, and I've had to defend myself MANY times for this...
...but I actually do believe that, if harnessed correctly, you can become more efficient in consuming content while preserving the enjoyment you get from it.
So, how does this all work?
The Video Speed Controller essentially allows you to control the speed of any content online that is served as HTML5 content (mainly YouTube and Netflix, but I've seen it work for many other things!). YouTube now has this as native functionality, but restricts you to 1x, 1.25x, 1.5x, 1.75x and 2x. This tool gives you granularity from 1x onwards, in increments of 0.1x.
I started using this tool on YouTube, because a lot of the videos I watched had people who spoke really slowly (Minecraft gamers and video essays) - I really wanted a way to speed it up, just like I could do with university lectures! I started slow (around 1.2x speed), and then slowly built up to 1.5x and then 2x, which is where I average these days.
I found out that I could then do this with podcasts (which is a LIFESAVER) - look at this:
Across my 24 full days of listening to podcasts, I've saved a full 8 days worth of content - in other words, I was able to listen to 8 more days of content in the same amount of time!
But why tho?!
To be honest, it started as a way to speed up watching YouTube, but it morphed into something more. I watch certain tv series on higher speeds - usually reruns and sitcoms where the story doesn't particularly matter - but I've been roasted for this as well. I don't find any drop in quality or enjoyment for what I watch, and I get to watch more if it in the same amount of time!
There's SO MUCH CONTENT out there - how else am I supposed to get through it all and still have a life??
There's literally too much great content out therre to consume, spread across multiple streaming services - Netflix, Amazon Prime, Stan, and now Disney+!
Anyway - usually, I'd use this in cases where I wanted to finish watching an episode in 30m, but it was a 40m episode - pushing it to 1.5x speed would allow me to do this, and then I just got used to it. As an example, when I was catching up with Game of Thrones (like 5 seasons worth!) I used this speed hack to get through it quickly.
It just works!
However, there are definitely tv series (usually dramas) and movies that I won't speed it up for - though there's not really a specific framework for exactly what I choose to watch quicker or at normal speeds...I feel like in some cases you're trying to consume content, and others you're trying to enjoy it.
Try it out yourself - see what happens
If you want to try this out, I'd recommend just seeing if you can watch a Netflix show or a YouTube video at 1.2x speed to start - this is an absolutely negligible speed up in terms of noticeability, but it shaves off 5 minutes from a 30 minute episode, and I mean...the more you binge/watch, the more those savings accrue! If you go any higher, it definitely becomes noticeable that you're watching something faster.
It's essentially an invisible way to save time, and your brain will adapt to the speed-up.
...
And no, if I'm talking to you in person, I don't think you're speaking too slowly!
Please let me know if you've tried it out, or reply to this email roasting me for my bad decisions :D
Chat soon :)
✔️ Real Life Recommendations
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The Great Hack - If you have Netflix, you've probably seen this already, but it's the story of Cambridge Analytica, and the investigation into how they used Facebook data to classify the US population to micro-target advertisements to help influence the outcome of the election. Fascinating watch.
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Osteria Ilaria - Whenever I got to Tipo 00 in the bare hope that there'd be a seat, well, there's never a seat. They always recommend you go next door to their sister store Osteria Ilaria, but I never thought it would actually be that great - I mean, Tipo is amazing! However, when a friend provided a glowing recommendation, I just had to try it, and it was surprisingly good! Pretty expensive, as you'd expect, but the pasta and other dishes were absolutely amazing - it definitely did not play second fiddle to Tipo! I recommend the nduja octopus, as well as the paccheri pasta - both packed a killer punch in terms of flavour; so good that for a moment I didn't even care about the texture! Also - the bread was SO GOOD. I love bread, and this place had some mouth-watering wagyu butter accompanying the bread rolls that we asked for two or three serves of before we could bear to leave. Highly recommended!
🚌 Adventures on the Information Super-Highway
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The Dark Forest Theory of the Internet - Based on The Dark Forest, the Liu Cixin sci-fi book that I recommended a couple of newsletters ago - this post has illuminated an idea of people retreating from social media spaces into their own 'safer' spaces - or, 'dark forests', away from the mainstream. I'm acutely aware that that's exactly what I've done by setting up this email newsletter, so I'm much closer to the implications of it. It's really interesting to think about.
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An ode to making mistakes - Linked by a good friend of mine, this is a nice short piece about why you don't have to glamorize 'failing fast' - sometimes, the slow play is okay as well :)
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DeepMind and Google - A great long-read about the founder of DeepMind and where this stealth startup is wanting to go with Artificial General Intelligence. It's something we've only really seen in science fiction, and these guys are actually building it. Crazy stuff!