The Most Counterintuitive Productivity Hack You’ve Likely Ever Seen
Plus, insights on true self-growth, Power, protein, and sunlight’s full power. Also, 3 YouTube gems — and a deeply revealing question
Welcome to the 18th edition of the Manximize-360° newsletter — that shares fortnightly insights on productivity, fitness, and 360° excellence. Plus, free access to my best articles, book picks, and more.
I first sent this to my 8000+ subscribers a week ago. To get these editions fresh in your inbox, subscribe here.
⏳Proven Productivity — The Counterintuitive Hack
One novel productivity hack/habit/idea + steps to practically implement it.
What if I told you deliberate “unproductivity” will actually boost your productivity?
The keyword is “deliberate” here. Let’s throw in “scheduled” as well.
The idea isn’t to waste time (and brain cells) scrolling Instagram and binging Netflix. Instead, it’s to…
Permit yourself to not have to do anything — but you can do anything, including nothing.
This will unlock spontaneity and serendipity — that can lead to epiphanic answers and solutions. Worst case, it’ll at least be recharging leisure.
Win-win.
Be it shower thoughts or toilet-seat epiphanies, it’s this counterintuitive power at play. To practically leverage it…
- Set aside a block of 2–3 “unplanned” hours a day. Start with 30 minutes to test the waters.
- Block digital distractions for the duration — be it social media or Netflix. The idea is to block unconscious Consumption — to free ourselves for Leisure, Production, or Conscious Consumption.
- Have a rough list of potential activities for this duration — reading, writing, phone-calling, running, napping, sky-watching, hugging your mom, journaling, filming, photography, nature walks — tons of options.
- But let Life and the Present take the final call — even staring at the wall, ceiling, or sky is a “good” use of time. Again, Leisure, Production, or Conscious Consumption — that’s our goal.
This will prove a necessary relief from choking calendars and scheduled productivity.
Try it out and let me know how it goes.
⚡️Excellence Epiphanies
3 concise insight bullets to aid your holistic 360° self-development
⚡️Epiphany #1 — A Reverse-Equation For Life
The default approach for most of us for most things in life (including exercise):
Volume (How Much) > Intensity (How Hard) > Frequency (aka How Often)
But for optimal and realistic long-term results, the order is actually the reverse…
How Often (Frequency) > How Hard (Intensity) > How Much (Volume)
Exercise, habits, productivity, goals — applies to them all. Thoughts?
⚡️Epiphany #2 — Self-Growth > Self-Improvement
Self-improvement is deliberate, forceful, and rigid.
While it leads to some growth, it’s counter-productive after a point.
Hence, Self-growth — a more holistic, fluidic, and changing paradigm.
Recognize and heed the direction life is pulling you from, not the direction you want to push in.
“Grow as the flower grows, unconsciously, but eagerly anxious to open its soul to the air.”
— Mabel Collins, Light On The Path
⚡️Epiphany #3 — The Power of Power Vs. The Force of Force
“Put a dent in the universe!” ambition and “Dream big!” goals are strenuous…
As you’re pitting your will against nature and 8 billion other wills. Even if you’re a Force of nature like Elon Musk or Mike Tyson, it’s a constant challenge.
Power (of surrender) on the other hand?
It turns Life fluidic, easy, and successful — without all the Forceful struggle. As Prof. David Hawkins explains in Power vs. Force,
“It (Force) must always succumb to Power…because Force automatically creates counter-Force. Force always moves against something. Power doesn’t move at all.”
This paradigm shift is deep(ly powerful). Read Power vs. Force to fully understand it.
Fitness Findings
2 nuanced findings to help you (naturally) achieve peak all-round fitness
Finding #1 — You Don’t (Anywhere) As Much Protein…
“1g of protein per lb of your body weight”
A blatant lie — perpetrated by gym bro culture and greedy supplement companies.
0.6–0.8g per lb of your lean body mass will prove enough. At 168 lbs and ~14.5% body fat, my lean mass would be ~144 lbs — so 86.4 to 115.2 grams of daily protein will suffice for me…
That’s ~50–70g less than what I’d have to eat with the 1g/lb lie!
P.S. More protein isn’t bad, it can be helpful. But if you can’t (spiritually, ethically, or financially) afford it? Go with the 0.6–0.8 x Lean_Mass number.
Finding #2 — The (Many Many) Benefits of Sunlight…
Vitamin D is only one of them:
Myostatin blocking. Better insulin resistance. Spike in testosterone, serotonin, and dopamine baselines. Cardiac/cancer risk reduction. Immunity improvements. Many many benefits:
Get at least 15 minutes of direct AM sunlight exposure a day. Thank me later!
Story Spotlight:
Free paywall-bypassing Friend link to my best Medium article of the fortnight.
🎁 Bonus #1 — YouTube Gems of The Fortnight
These are hard-hitting and anti-conventional. So brace yourself:
- “It’s all real. The attraction. The benefits. Here’s my truth.” by Masculine Theory.
- “The Sick Truth About Self-Improvement (Why I Quit)” by Andrew Kirby.
- “What they don’t tell you about purpose” by Aanghel
🎁 Bonus #2 — A Telling Question To Meditate Upon
If your money needs were handled for life, what would you do in life?
Sipping pina coladas on Bali beaches gets old mighty quickly. Ask Andrew Kirby, he knows.
What would you do — once all the vacations, parties, and fun are over?
That’s likely your true calling in life.
Don’t jump to immediate conclusions. Chew on it. Sit on it. Let the answers rise by themselves. Journal if necessary. See what sticks…
Write (back) to me if you want to — I’d love to know your answer(s) and how I can help, if at all.
Until then (and the next M360 edition), cya and take care!
Godspeed, Love, and Cheers!,
Neeramitra Reddy
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