Oliver Burkeman || Time Management for Mortals

What this episode covers

In this episode, I talk to bestselling author Oliver Burkeman about his latest book Four Thousand Weeks. On the surface, it’s easy to mistake it for another self-help book on time management. But instead of enthusing about productivity hacks, Oliver challenges his readers to confront the finite nature of humanity. By doing so, he argues  we can live fuller lives—without having to always carry the fear of missing out. We also touch on the topics of procrastination, positive psychology, flow, realism, deep time, and patience. Bio Oliver Burkeman is a journalist for The Guardian. From 2006 to 2020, he wrote the popular weekly column on psychology called “This Column Will Change Your Life”. He is the author of The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can't Stand Positive Thinking and Help! How to Become Slightly Happier and Get a Bit More Done. In 2015, he won the Foreign Press Association’s Young Journalist of the Year award, and has been short-listed for the Orwell Prize. His most recent book is Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals. Website: www.oliverburkeman.com Twitter: @oliverburkeman   Topics 00:02:03 The efficiency trap 00:05:34 Accepting human limitations 00:08:35 Why we handicap ourselves 00:13:07 How to be a better procrastinator 00:18:32 Each activity is paid for with your life 00:20:55 The joy of missing out 00:23:55 Harness more deep time 00:27:57 The common theme of Oliver’s books  00:32:02 Realism and doing the impossible 00:37:29 Productivity and self-worth 00:40:53 Embracing boredom instead of acceleration 00:46:14 Developing a taste for problems 00:50:21 Radical incrementalism 00:57:30 “Originality lies on the far side of unoriginality” 01:01:06 How time management distracts us from wonder 01:03:50 Oliver’s approach to new year resolutions See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.