Productivity posts

Quality products begin with detail-obsessed leaders
 -  It often feels like modern business is stuck in a loop. An idea is successful, there is a push to scale it as far and quickly as possible, and it’s optimised to within an inch of its life - but normally only in the name of profit. Usually this results...
Staying productive when everything feels urgent
 -  We’ve all been there. One day you’re in control, the next you’re racing from meeting to meeting, unable to focus long enough to move anything forward in any meaningful way - unless, that is, you start protecting your time. When everything feels urgent and your calendar is under siege, the...
Humanising AI encourages intellectual lethargy
 -  I recently stumbled upon a Hacker News thread around a series of X posts about ChatGPT’s o3 model. Researchers noted that it “frequently fabricates actions it never took, and then elaborately justifies those actions when confronted”, in one case claiming to have received an incorrect result by running code on...
The challenges and benefits of quitting Facebook and other social networks
 -  I’ve been sticking to several new year’s resolutions in 2019, including learning languages, staying fit, and working on geeky projects – and leaving Facebook has helped to give me the time and focus I’ve needed to stay on track. Normally my last post of each month goes off-topic and covers...
An introduction to the Agile project management framework
 -  Agile is unavoidable in modern corporate IT, and it is therefore an inescapable part of life as a cyber security professional. Here’s a brief introduction to the project management framework’s key priorities, players, and processes. While I’ve written about some interesting technical subjects (and will continue to do so), I...
How to approach your morning routine like a software developer
 -  In the last few months I’ve cut more than 30 minutes from my morning routine, freeing up time to sleep a little longer. When I thought about how my mornings have changed, I realised I’ve naturally followed a process used by software developers. Don’t worry – this isn’t one of...

Thinking about

Digital journalism
Coincidentally, in the space of a week I encountered both Zach Seward's article about Quartz and Craig Mod's excellent podcasts with Tim Ferriss. Both evoked fond memories of my time in journalism and the buzz surrounding digital journalism and media in the 2010s

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