Sunday Musings - The Things We Get to Do!
October 9th, 2022
Happy Sunday Friends!
Here is your Sunday Musings, a quick dose of what I’m exploring and thinking about. Please feel free to forward this along to friends.
This Week’s Recommendation
80,000 Hours, Have a Positive Impact on Your Life and Career
If you work for 40 years at 50 weeks a year and 40 hours a week… that’s 80,000 hours (yay math?). That’s half of your waking working life and nearly 20 percent of your entire waking life! Picking the right career is not only a big deal, but it is likely your largest opportunity to make a difference.
I found this nonprofit during my internet delves and I’ve enjoyed their efforts to help people find an impactful and fulfilling career (or second career?). It boils down to this… Get good at something that you can effectively contribute to big and neglected global problems that you find value in. I especially like the evidence-based advice concepts they have in there.
They’ve put a lot of free energy and time into it; it’s worth a look. (No, this article isn’t sponsored by them, but, 80,000 hours, if you’re reading, drop me a line!)
Technology I’m Looking At
Baseline Audio and Video Technology
Like I mentioned in the last newsletter, I’ve decided to put my last two decades of experience in the fifth domain to positive use; by putting it out on the internet (I’m sure there’s a better way to put that, but hey, I’m new here). So that means figuring out what I need to create audio and video that (hopefully) you’ll watch and listen to.
For camera, I’m debating between the Canon M50 Mark II and the Sony ZV-E10. Both seem great, leaning towards the Sony.
For audio, I’m debating on using my Blue Yeti, or swapping to the NTG4+. I like the idea of never having the microphone in the view of the camera, but also understand that most of us are used to seeing one in the frame.
Have thoughts, ideas, recommendations? Drop me a line, I’d love to hear!
Productivity
Is it a farce?
I think there are ways to ensure you are being more efficient, but you can efficiently fail. I think there are ways to be effective, but you can be effectively unproductive. I wonder if many of us think of “productivity” as some kind of Tony Robbins-like self-help remedy. If I just find this productivity hack… I’ll be better at life.
Is it possible that productivity is like happiness? It’s all subjective. As I research, I can’t stop thinking about The Mexican Fisherman and the Investment Banker parable
An American investment banker was taking a much-needed vacation in a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. The boat had several large, fresh fish in it.
The investment banker was impressed by the quality of the fish and asked the fisherman how long it took to catch them.
The fisherman replied, “Only a little while.”
The investment banker then asked why he didn’t stay out longer and catch more fish?
The fisherman replied he had enough to support his family’s immediate needs.
The investment banker then asked: “But what do you do with the rest of your time?”
The fisherman replied, “I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my friends: I have a full and busy life.”
The investment banker scoffed: “I am an Ivy League MBA, and I could help you. You could spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat, and with the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats until eventually, you would have a whole fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to the middleman, you could sell directly to the processor, eventually opening your own cannery. You could control the product, processing and distribution.”
Then he added: “Of course, you would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City where you would run your growing enterprise.”
The fisherman asked, “How long will this all take?”
To which the investment banker replied: “15–20 years.”
“But what then?” asked the fisherman.
The investment banker laughed and said, “That’s the best part. When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You could make millions.”
“Millions? Then what?”
To which the investment banker replied: “Then you would retire. You could move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your friends.”
Quote I’m Musing About
“Well-being is realised by small steps, but is truly no small thing.”
-Zeno of Citium
Often, I find myself, and many of those I engage with struggling and intimidated by a massive undertaking; and while there are multitudes of quotes and concepts, Zeno’s, combined, perhaps, with Winston Churchill’s “Nothing but perfection, may be spelled ‘paralysis’” sticks with me. The overwhelming undertaking (creating a platform to speak to the internet for example) can be broken down to a series of small steps from our routine. Get to work, do that small thing and make progress. Remember, you chose to do that daunting endeavor because you see value in it, make a little progress every day and you’ll have accomplished the massive undertaking simply by living a life with design.
I would love your feedback!
Which musing is your favorite? What else do you want to see or what should I eliminate? Any other suggestions? Please let me know. Just send a tweet to @erichaupt on Twitter and put #SundayMusings at the end so I can find it. Or, eric@erichaupt.com for long form email.
Have a wonderful week, I’ll see you Sunday.
-e
