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Internal Friction:

Strategic Art of Bright & Dim

WHEN TO USE 

Use when your best thinking is getting spent on tasks that don’t actually deserve it.

WHAT TO DO

List your recurring responsibilities and sort each into Bright (deserves your full attention), Dim (needs to get done, but not your best thinking), or Question Mark (you’re not sure why you’re overinvesting here). Each morning, pick one Dim or Question Mark item and systematize, delegate, or simplify it; each evening, note where you protected your Bright time and where a Dim task pulled you away from it.

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Hard Things

Name the Weather

  • Habits
Shows why broad labels like “stressed” and “fine” can limit self-awareness, and what changes when you name what you’re actually feeling.
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See the Real Work

  • Hard Things
Helps you notice the strengths people use beyond their formal responsibilities, especially the quiet ones that are easy to overlook.
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Empathy That Doesn’t Burn You Out

  • Habits
Reframes empathy as understanding someone’s experience without absorbing it, so you can stay present without taking on their emotional weight.
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Build the Pool

  • Hard Things
Creates a clearer boundary between work and life so unfinished tasks and unresolved conversations are easier to leave at work.
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Vocab Rehab

  • Habits
Reveals how extreme language can amplify stress and how more accurate self-talk can change your response.
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Rush to Curiosity, Not Advice

  • Hacks
Tests how curious you really are about the people you work with, especially when familiarity and efficiency make it easy to assume you already know.
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Train Your Nervous System

  • Hacks
Shows how a few intentional breaths can help your body reset, creating enough space to think more clearly in high-pressure moments.
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One Rep Counts

  • Hacks
Turns an intimidating first step into something small enough to start, proving that progress doesn’t have to be impressive to count.
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Protect What AI Can’t Replace

  • Hard Things
Examines which human capabilities may weaken as AI makes work faster and more automated.
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The Slow Yes Rule

  • Hard Things
Challenges the pressure to make fast hiring decisions and creates space to assess evidence before extending an offer.
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