Table of Contents

1. Preface

2. Main Article

3. Readers’ Favorite

4. Stuff

Preface

This week, we sold our car.

The one we bought almost two years ago when we came to the US.

We sold it for half the price it cost us.

Why, you ask?

First, we bought it when there was a car shortage in the US, so the prices were very high.

Second, we bought a relatively expensive car for its age because we wanted a car we could rely on while driving in the snow or the middle of nowhere.

Third, we sold it back to the dealership from which we bought it.

Do we regret buying this car? Absolutely not.

It was VERY reliable and allowed us to drive thousands of miles away from home and enjoy it. Look at me. Saying “miles” instead of kilometers. What happened to me? 😃 🇺🇸

So I spent a few hours vacuuming, washing, treating the seats with a stain-removal kit, and off to CarMax. 45 minutes later, they gave me a check and took care of all the paperwork. They even paid for my ride back home.

Bye-bye, US car 🚙 🇺🇸. It’s been quite a ride.

This week, we’ll discuss how I managed to gain an extra hour every day.

For some of you, it can be much more than that.

Number 103!

Let’s go!

Main Article

Last week, we discussed the power of listening to your own music. I also described an experiment I started by carrying a digital music player 📻 IN ADDITION to my phone 📱.

Let me start by saying that carrying 2 devices is very annoying.

And charging the battery 🔋 of 2 devices is even more annoying.

But after a few weeks of carrying a separate device for my music, my life changed.

I never realized the importance of having a device that JUST plays music for you.

A device you can look at without getting a notification.

You might wonder, “Why does it matter if I look at my phone’s screen while I listen to my music?”

I thought the same.

Well, until I started my experiment.

Do you know what the most important thing is when you perform CPR? 🩺

(For those unfamiliar with the term “CPR,” it means bringing someone back to life by compressing their chest to pump the heart).

The most important thing is being CONSISTENT with your chest compressions.

The longer you pump the heart without interruptions, the higher the chances you will save a life. If you stop for a few seconds, you lose what you accomplished.

My experiment made me realize that my focus and calmness are EXACTLY the same as pumping a heart. If I interrupt myself for a few seconds, it will take minutes to regain my focus. Sometimes, I lose it completely.

Just like CPR

What is the most common interruption?

My phone.

The moment I look at the screen, something will break my concentration. Usually, it’s that red dot on top of an icon that lets me know I have a message waiting 📩.

Even if I didn’t open the app, I had already lost some focus and calmness.

The developers of the smartphones and apps know this, of course.

They know that you won’t be able to resist that red dot 🔴 .

You will have the urge to get rid of it to “clean” your inbox. That red dot with the number inside was designed to break your focus.

The developers of these apps don’t want you to focus on your life. They want you to focus on THEIR APP.

I knew this is how it works for a while now, but I haven’t done anything about it.

Until recently.

So, what did I do exactly?

I rearranged my phone’s home screen.

It took me 3 minutes.

Here is how you can do it too, in 2 simple steps:

1️⃣ Move the Time-Consuming Apps Away

Each person will have different apps they consider “time-consuming”.

For me, it’s LinkedIn, Facebook, YouTube Studio, and Google Analytics.

I assume you know the first two. The last two are apps that help me manage my YouTube channel and website.

Every day, I found myself checking all these apps about 5-10 times a day.

Even more on weekends (this is when I publish my newsletter and post on social media).

The problem was that every time I looked at my screen to do something, I would see these apps and check them.

In other words, I didn’t MEAN to check them. I did so only because I saw those red dots on my screen.

So what did I do?

I moved them 2 screens over.

So now, I have to swipe my phone TWICE to see them.

The result?

I hardly see them anymore. I check these apps once a day or even once every two days.

How will it affect your life? Just do it and see.

I will NEVER change it back.

🏡 Take home message: Move the time-consuming apps away from your primary home screen.

2️⃣ Place the Positive Apps on Your Main Screen

The title speaks for itself.

You know which apps are more wholesome for you.

So put them where you will see them EVERY TIME you turn on the phone.

For me, the healthy apps are Readwise Reader (reading app), Readwise (quotes app), Notion (creative app), Garmin (sports app), Libby (reading app), Audible (audiobooks app), and Anki (flashcards studying app).

So whenever I raise my phone to read an email or answer a message, I see apps that remind me to read, create, or study.

If I feel like it, I study.

If I want to, I read.

When the muse lands on me, I create.

But if I don’t want to do any of these, I put the phone down, and maintain my focus.

🏡 Take home message: Decide what is most important to you in life. Then, put the apps supporting that on your MAIN home screen.

Happy focusing!

Readers’ Favorite

ChatGPT: A Tool or a Trap for Doctors and Scientists?

AI is a great tool, but it can become your worst enemy. Especially as a doctor or a scientist.

Read it here

Stuff

🧳 Gear I use - SwissGear Softside Luggage 29-Inch

We tried MANY kinds of suitcases, and over the last two years of fellowship, we packed like we had never packed before.

Among the bunch, SwissGear has always been reliable.

In general, I recommend a soft-side suitcase rather than a hard-side. It seems that hardside suitcases tend to break more easily. Which, of course, serves the companies that can now sell you a new one to replace it.

Epilogue

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That’s it for this issue.

Hope for better times.

Shay