The Productive Pixie | Systems for Productivity and Growth

Do you have a hard time focusing on a single task? Do you find yourself scanning articles and switching between tabs quickly? If you find yourself refreshing your phone screen constantly throughout the day or feeling glued to your devices, it's not just you. Research suggests people look at their phones dozens of times each day. In this post, I'll explain how the attention economy is affecting you, and how to reclaim your focus!

The Attention Economy Explained: How to Improve Your Focus

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Recently, I read the book Extremely Online by Taylor Lorenz.

It's a short history of social media and internet culture. As I was reading, I had the realization that with each new wave of social media, content becomes easier to digest, more scrollable, and gives quicker dopamine hits.

As Lorenz outlines in her book, internet culture started with blogging through traditional blogs, Myspace, and Tumblr. Then came YouTube, Facebook, Vine, and Twitter. Now we have Instagram and TikTok.

If you map it out, the progression looks something like this:

Long articles
Shorter captions
Image-focused
Sentence-long captions
Longer videos
Short videos

This is a bit of a simplified history of media consumption, but it's no wonder it feels harder to focus for longer periods of time. The overarching trend to notice is that we keep consuming quicker forms of content. Print newspapers used to be the short-form content!

In this post, we're going to look at what the attention economy is, and how you can improve your focus.

What is the Attention Economy?

Many social media apps are free. Have you ever considered how the companies make enough money to stay in business?

The majority of people create content on these apps for free, and then that content is used to get people to stay on these apps for longer so more ads can be served to them.

In a nutshell, the attention economy is a whole economic ecosystem built around how long companies can keep your attention.

As long as a company has your eyeballs on their app, they can make more money.

When you get down to thinking about it, knowing that companies are trying to control the most important asset you have (your time) doesn't feel great.

Many apps are designed so you'll spend increasing amounts of time on them, but with a few tweaks of your own, you can make them feel less compelling, so you're more in control of your time.

Today, more people (myself included) are moving towards digital minimalism as a way to feel more in control of their time and attention again!

Now that we've covered what the attention economy is and why it matters, let's get into how you can improve your focus and reclaim your attention.

The Attention Economy Explained: 8 Ways to Improve Your Focus

1. Assess Your Current Attention Habits

As with changing any habit, a good place to start is by assessing where you currently are.

Personally, my focus is a lot worse on some days than others. Right now, I'm trying to work on checking my emails less when I'm working.

Your focus could be affected by a variety of things on a daily basis, such as how stressed you are, how well rested you feel, how hungry you feel, or how interested you are in what you are working on. Your media habits will also play a part in this.

Here are some things to think about as you assess your attention habits.

Do you mainly consume long or short-form content?
What are your attention traps? (When you spend much longer doing something than you want to)
How often do you feel distracted?
What do you find yourself wanting to "just check" multiple times daily?
How in control do you feel of your time/attention?
Do you want to change your attention habits and what are your goals?

No matter how good your attention habits currently are, there is always room for improvement! In the past couple of years, I've gotten my social media usage under control, and now I'm checking my emails and becoming distracted more often than I want to.

Making changes to your attention habits is a constant practice.

2. Work Toward Shifting to Consuming Longer + Slower Content

Once you know your starting place, you can slowly shift your consumption towards longer-form content.

If you mainly watch TikToks and Reels, then you can gradually switch to watching longer videos. From there you can switch to reading blog posts and news articles. Finally, you can switch to eBooks and then to paperback books if you want to.

If you mainly watch short YouTube videos, you may switch to watching longer videos such as documentaries or movies.

But of course, the type of content you consume will change depending on what your goals are. Reading blogs or watching longer videos may be your end goal.

You don't need to give up all of your short-form entertainment unless you want to! This is more about adding in longer-form content to help improve your focus, and short-form content can be an occasional dessert.

3. Avoid Consuming Multiple Forms of Content at Once (Multitasking)

At the height of my social media usage during my sophomore year of college, I'd find myself scrolling on social media while watching YouTube videos.

Now, I think back on it and go, "Yikes!"

As a consumer when you do this, not only are you atrophying your attention by trying to split your focus between two things, but you are also letting two companies buy your time.

I'm sure by now you've heard that multitasking isn't real, and yes, you are simply switching back and forth between focusing on both forms of content.

If you currently have this habit, it's not too late, and it's a pretty simple fix. All you have to do is focus on consuming one form of content at once. No more consuming one form of content with another one playing in the background!

4. Remove Distractions from Your Environment

Removing distractions from your environment is so much easier said than done, especially when it comes to devices. I have to work on my laptop!

Currently, I'm doing a 30-day experiment where I have all of my notifications turned off on my smartphone and my smartwatch. Even though I'm not getting physical cues to check apps, I still have impulses to go check apps throughout the day.

Removing distractions from your environment can look like a lot of things, such as not doing homework (or working) where you sleep or eat, putting your phone in a different room, or having a minimalist desk.

Some people even buy devices they can lock their smartphones in.

For me, I think it would be a little too far to disconnect from the internet while I'm working because it would be a hassle, but I'm working on not following distracting thoughts and impulses to check things right when I have them.

This leads me to my next point.

5. Make Note of Distracting Thoughts + Impulses

According to Healthline, people have more than 6,000 thoughts per day, so it's not surprising that at least a few of them would be distracting.

You don't need to put in a lot of extra effort to just recognize when you are having distracting thoughts.

If you are working on a task, and a thought pops into your head to check something else, you can ask yourself why you have the impulse to do it.

Depending on how long it's going to take you to do your current task, you may choose to wait until you are done with what you are currently working on, or you may choose to wait 10-15 minutes before acting on that impulse.

Sometimes, if you wait, you may even forget that you wanted to check because you were just bored in the moment.

If you want a more involved method of avoiding distractions, you can write down your distracting thoughts, especially if they are things you want or need to do later. I want to try this out, so if I do, I'll let you know how it goes!

6. Set Aside Time to Intentionally Let Your Mind Wander

Yesterday, I finished reading the book Stolen Focus by Johann Hari, and he mentioned this idea. It made me realize that I already intentionally let my mind wander sometimes.

I sometimes go running without a podcast and I clean without listening to anything. I look off into the distance when I'm walking between my classes.

Even though I love trying to fit as much learning into my day as possible, those quiet moments allow me to actually think about and process all the information I'm taking into my brain.

Sometimes, I do want to listen to things while I'm working, but I do regularly choose to go without, so I can just think.

Letting your mind wander will help you reflect and think of new things you want to try. Plus, sometimes it can be kind of relaxing!

7. Practice Being Bored

I feel kind of bored just thinking about this because I'm always surrounded by so many quick forms of entertainment.

When I think back to being a child though, whenever I was bored, I had to think of something fun to do, so that's what I did. It usually led to some exciting pastime after the initial boredom. I made a lot of craft projects!

I think I didn't start using the internet regularly until I was 11, and I'm glad that my parents had me wait because it allowed me to be more creative.

In our current day, I think one of the best ways to be bored is to just turn off your devices and to stop using social media as a daily form of entertainment. When I did this, I started reading again.

If you already have a good relationship with technology, you may consider meditation. I've tried doing meditation before, but I've never stuck with it for long. I think I just need to find a way of practicing meditation that works for me, and I'm not there yet!

8. Practice Single-Tasking

Finally, to lessen the impact the attention economy is having on you, I'd recommend practicing single-tasking.

Your focus is like a muscle, so when you exercise it, you'll be able to focus for longer.

Personally, I think the easiest way to measure this is by using time tracking. You'll be able to see how much time you actually spend on tasks, and whenever you do something else, you have to pause your timer.

Another method you might try is the Pomodoro technique. For this, you would work for 25 minutes on a single task and then take a break.

If focusing for an hour sounds like too much, this is a good place to start because you know how long you have to focus for and you can always adjust how long your work period lasts for. If 25 minutes is too long, you can start with 10 or 15 minutes!

Final Notes on the Attention Economy Explained: 8 Ways to Improve Your Focus

The attention economy isn't going to disappear any time soon, but with some simple lifestyle changes, you can learn to feel more in control of your attention. With practice, you can learn to focus for longer periods of time.

Since I started moving towards consuming more long-form content such as books and longer videos, I've felt like I'm spending my time in more meaningful ways.

Pick one thing you can do to improve your focus and try to figure out how you can naturally incorporate it into your routine.

In a nutshell, here are some ways to improve your focus.

Assess your current attention habits
Work toward shifting to consuming longer and slower content
Avoid consuming multiple forms of content at once (multitasking)
Remove distractions from your environment
Make note of distracting thoughts and impulses
Set aside time to intentionally let your mind wander
Practice being bored
Practice single-tasking

If you enjoyed reading this post about the attention economy, you may also enjoy reading these posts!

I hope you enjoyed learning about the attention economy! What are you doing to improve your focus?

Don't forget to share or save this post about the attention economy and improving your focus! Thanks! :)

October 10, 2026 No comments

Over the past few years, I've picked up some money-saving habits that have helped me learn how to better manage my finances. If you're a young adult looking for realistic ways you can save money, you're in the right place. Today, I'm going to share the simple money-saving habits I've adopted in my early 20s to help me save money.

12 Simple Money-Saving Habits I've Adopted in My Early 20s

I haven't always been frugal though...

As a child, I'd start looking for something cute I could buy whenever I got a little bit of money. I definitely purchased a lot of trendy items.

Now that I manage my own finances though, one of the skills I'm working to develop is personal finance. I want the freedom that comes with good money management. I'm sure you do too!

Let's get right into how I'm saving money in my 20s!

12 Simple Money-Saving Habits I've Adopted in My Early 20s

1. Cook From Scratch

Even though I'm a busy college student, I set aside time every weekend to meal prep for the week.

Meal prepping helps me avoid buying pre-packaged food, which often costs more in the long run because of how much food there is in each package. I prefer to buy my food in bulk when possible.

I'll meal prep one "fancier" meal that lasts for all of my lunches or dinners for the week. For breakfast, I generally have oatmeal and for the last meal of the day, I'll have a super easy meal.

My favorite easy meal is a can of chickpeas with BBQ sauce, and a large portion of greens on top.

Cooking from scratch allows me to be both frugal and eat a healthier diet!

2. Follow a Staple Grocery List

As boring as it sounds, I buy the same staple items every week, and then a few extras for my "fancier" meal of the week.

Following a staple grocery list helps me to spend less time in the store. I'm not a huge fan of grocery shopping trips! Plus, it helps me avoid impulse spending because I only go to the store aisles where I need something.

I try to only go grocery shopping once a week, and I buy everything I'll need for the entire week at once.

3. Keep a Running Wish List

I keep a running wish list of things I want to purchase to avoid impulse spending.

I also have a long shopping folder on my laptop with things I've wanted to purchase over the past five or so years.

If it's an item that I don't actually need, I'll wait a while before purchasing it. This allows me to test if I actually want the item, or if I just wanted the item in the moment.

The vast majority of the items on my running wish list I've completely forgotten about and no longer want.

4. Use Free Alternatives for Platforms

I don't pay for a single subscription for entertainment.

Whenever possible, use or find a free version. I love using my school and local library to access new books to read.

Using the app Libby has helped me read more books every year!

Likewise, I use the free version of Spotify, and I look for movies on YouTube that are free with ads.

Don't feel pressured to pay for a subscription that you don't actually need just because everyone around you is doing it.

5. Track My Finances Regularly

I sit down on a weekly basis and look at my finances, so I can make sure that I'm not spending more money than I can afford.

I also write down every single one of my purchases. This helps me not spend money on small purchases throughout the week.

I know how much money I've earned and spent every month for the past couple years because I keep track. You can start keeping track of your finances too!

6. Keep My Credit Card Utilization Low

One way I'm working on building my credit score is by spending around 20% or less of my credit card limit every month.

I learned about this technique on YouTube, and it's helping me grow my credit score while keeping my spending for the month low.

Keeping my credit utilization low has helped to build my credit score but make sure you do your own research on this subject. I'm not a financial advisor and this is my personal opinion.

Besides keeping my credit card utilization under 20%, I always pay off my credit card bill on time by checking my finances on a weekly basis.

7. Create a Capsule Wardrobe

This may sound crazy for a young adult, but I started building my current wardrobe when I was 14. Luckily, I tried to purchase classic pieces that weren't too trendy so I can still wear them today.

If you haven't heard of a capsule wardrobe, and are interested, I've written multiple posts on the subject that you should consider reading! Basically, it's a mix-and-match wardrobe that includes items only in specific colors and only contains pieces you wear on a regular basis.

Now, I only have to buy new clothes when an item in my capsule wardrobe wears out.

8. Transfer Money into My Savings Account Every Month

I always pay myself, by putting aside a percentage of the money I make every month into my savings account.

If you aren't saving money, then you aren't really paying yourself or setting yourself up for success. This is more of a simple tip, but it's definitely one of the money-saving habits that is setting me up for success.

The more money you save, the more money you'll have!

9. Use Items Until They Wear Out

I mentioned my capsule wardrobe above, but I continue using things until they wear out. Besides clothing, I use my technology until it breaks.

No, I don't have the latest phone, and I'm happy about it because my current phone is not only good enough for what I want it to do, but I'm also trying to develop minimalist phone habits, AKA limiting my screen time.

I also try to keep my clothes looking nice by taking good care of them. I keep my shoes in their boxes, or lined up along the edge of my bed, and not in a heap. Additionally, I air-dry most of my tops to keep them from shrinking.

10. Limit My Social Media Usage

Is this a money-saving habit? Yes, it is!

I limit my social media usage, so I'm not influenced as much by trends. There are so many things being sold on the internet that you don't actually need.

The older I get, the more I realize what's important to me. I don't want to look back in 20 years and realize I spent a ton of time just scrolling on social media.

Your time is money. You should start treating it as such.

11. Use a Free Phone Number

I've been saving money by using a free phone number for texting and calls for a couple of years now.

I personally use the Google Voice app to text and call for free, but there are many apps that offer phone numbers for free texting and calls over Wi-Fi.

This saves me money because I don't pay for an unlimited phone plan.

I text and call for free on my Google Voice number (and use it for group chats!), and I use my real phone number sparingly for when I don't have Wi-Fi.

12. Avoid One-Click Checkouts

One of my other money-saving habits is not having my accounts connected. It's a small change, but when I have to input my account details at the checkout, it forces me to think about whether I want to purchase the item or not.

No "easy" one-click checkouts for me!

Final Notes on 12 Simple Money-Saving Habits I've Adopted in My Early 20s

These are the money-saving habits that I'm currently using to practice being frugal! Developing good habits is hard, which is why I'm working to build them now. You can too!

I've started reading books on money management, and I'm working to become more frugal. I still enjoy shopping, but I'm a lot more careful about what I buy now.

Here's a quick recap of the money-saving habits I've adopted. Pick one of these habits to start working on today!

Cook from scratch
Follow a staple grocery list
Keep a running wish list
Use free alternatives for platforms
Track my finances regularly
Keep my credit card utilization low
Create a capsule wardrobe
Transfer money into my savings account every month
Use items until they wear out
Limit my social media usage
Use a free phone number
Avoid one-click checkouts

If you enjoyed this post about money-saving habits, you should consider reading these other posts too!

Thanks for reading this post about money-saving habits I've adopted in my early 20s!

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October 03, 2026 No comments

The largest barriers to lifelong learning are a lack of time due to other commitments and costs, according to research. Building a habit of lifelong learning can improve your happiness, brain health, social connections, and confidence. With a personal learning system, you can gather free resources and learn in spare moments. In this post, I'll share how you can build a personal learning system!

How to Become a Lifelong Learner: Create a Personal Learning System That Lasts

I find that when I stop learning and pursuing new things, my life becomes stale.

Making time for continuous learning helps make life exciting. It gives me that feeling of wanting to jump out of bed in the morning to go read a book or listen to a podcast and create something new!

While I'm in college, making time to learn is easy because I'm always surrounded by new ideas to stretch my thinking, but when I graduate, I know it's going to be harder to make time for learning.

That is exactly why I'm working on building my personal learning system now. When life gets busy, I'll already have a system in place and a habit of continuous learning, which keeps life interesting.

With the internet and libraries, you can practice lifelong learning for free. I rarely spend money on personal learning because there are so many great free resources available.

While many people learn randomly whenever they come across an interesting resource, building a personal learning system will help you learn more consistently and gain in-depth knowledge about subjects of interest.

A personal learning system is a repeatable process that helps with deciding what to study, finding materials, and applying what you learn.

Let's get right into how you can start building a personal learning system for lifelong learning!

How to Become a Lifelong Learner: Create a Personal Learning System That Lasts

1. Decide on Your Goals

The first step in building a personal learning system is deciding what you want to get out of your learning.

In college, course syllabi often list "learning outcomes." I usually just glance at that section to be frank and don't read it all the way.

For self-directed learning, you don't need to set specific goals unless you want to. Sometimes, I don't know what I'm going to learn from a book until after I read it.

Your learning goals can be concrete like "learn a tap dance" or very broad such as reading a few books about a subject to expand your knowledge.

If no goals come to mind, don't worry because you can just work on expanding your skills in any area of interest.

I like my system to be as simple and broad as possible to facilitate as much learning as possible. Right now, I don't have concrete goals for my learning outside of my yearly goals.

2. Choose Subjects

The next step is deciding what skills you want to learn or what area you want to gain knowledge in.

Currently, I'm trying to figure out what I want to write about for my career, so my list includes topics like investigative journalism, marketing ethics, consumer behavior, and behavioral economics.

Additionally, I have topics like tap history because it's something I want to study for fun.

In my bullet journal, I keep a running list of topics that I'm interested in learning about. If I become bored of one subject, I can look at my list and pick a new topic to learn more about.

3. Choose Formats

Based on your learning style, you should look for formats that make learning fun and interesting.

There are many formats to pick from for your learning materials including:

Books
Courses
Audiobooks
Podcasts
Blogs
Scientific journals
Documentaries
YouTube videos
Webinars
Memberships

You should be able to find many resources for free.

I'd recommend keeping a list of different formats so you can search for those formats when looking for information about subjects you want to learn more about. An example would be "Documentaries about business ethics" or "memberships to join for nonfiction writers."

You'll probably have to experiment with different formats to see what you enjoy the most.

I'm a visual learner, so I like reading the best, but I still enjoy listening to podcasts while running. I've taken a few online courses, but I've found that usually I prefer watching in-depth YouTube videos on a single subject.

4. Find Materials

This is the most enjoyable part of building a personal learning system. Besides the actual learning, of course!

Depending on how quickly the subject changes (new findings, technological advancements), I'll take different approaches. But I always like having a long TBR list, so I have plenty of options for new books to read.

When reading books, I'll make note of other recommended books and the additional resources mentioned in the book. One of the books I read recently mentioned a documentary, so I wrote it down on "My Research Plan" bullet journal layout.

I'd recommend picking your favorite format and then building a list of materials from there. You should be able to find at least a few resources on almost any subject with a simple search.

If you have no idea where to start, you can ask AI to build you a learning plan on a specific subject with specific formats that you choose!

But you don't need to build a rigid outline of what you are going to study because you can let your learning materials guide you to other materials and things to try out!

In-Person Events

While learning from resources is great, don't forget about in-person events as well!

In the past year, I've attended quite a few events, and it's been such an enjoyable learning experience. I have the opportunity to meet other people my age who are interested in the same subjects as me, as well as learning from industry professionals.

I have access to a lot of events for free or for discounted prices through my college, but with a few searches, you can still find events to attend in your local community.

When it comes to career development, there are many events, but for other subjects you may have to be a little more creative. For tap dancing, I did a couple of searches online and found a free tap dance curriculum with seven levels (Shoutout to United Tap Dance).

Try to build a long list of resources in a variety of formats to aid your learning, but don't get caught up in information overload or research paralysis. Start with whatever resources you have, and your list will expand as you learn!

5. Create a Personal Knowledge System

I've tried building a system for taking notes on what I've learned many times, and my number one piece of advice is to keep your system as simple as possible.

You might have heard of the concept of building a second brain popularized by Tiago Forte. I'm currently reading the book Building a Second Brain and working on building a more comprehensive system for storing all of my notes. I want a system that I'll actually refer back to regularly!

A personal knowledge system is basically a collection of information (notes, pictures, graphs, frameworks) that you build yourself.

Popular Notetaking Methods

Second brain
Zettelkasten slip-box
Bullet point outlining
Split-page (two-column) notetaking

All of these methods can be adapted for either digital or analog notetaking.

In the past, I've tried taking reading notes in a notebook, but I've found that I don't look back at them often. Taking notes also takes too long, and it's harder to just read on the spot. I'm currently experimenting with a digital system. I'll let you know how it goes!

On the other hand, I have a little maroon notebook that I take to events with me, and I love taking notes in it! I took notes in it all last semester and flipped through my old notes during breaks in sessions if I wasn't talking to anyone.

I think it's easier to take notes at events because speakers usually make their main points very clear. It's easy for me to condense the main message and takeaways into a succinct format.

I'd also recommend being selective with your notetaking. The point of a personal knowledge system is so you can find the most important pieces of information you've collected.

As you take notes, you should periodically review what you have and try to connect ideas.

If you never review your notes or apply what you've learned, it's probably not an effective system. Do some experimenting and see what works for you!

6. Experiment

School has homework assignments for a good reason. One of the best ways to remember what you learned from the materials is by putting it into practice.

If you don't want to do this, by all means, definitely don't!

But if you want to, read books and think about what you can test out in your life. When I read a book and it mentions things to try, I like to think of them as science experiments.

Writing on this blog is one of the ways I put into practice what I'm learning through experimenting and through practicing writing.

As you work through your learning materials, don't feel pressured to test out new things right away. On "My Research Plan" bullet journal layout, I have designated space to list things that I want to try.

Also, don't feel like you need to take notes or do an experiment for every resource you consume. You should take notes on the most interesting learning materials, not on everything.

I've been learning about behavioral addiction and the downsides of social media recently, so an experiment I'm currently doing is going notification-free for 30 days. As I'm writing this, I'm on day 2 and it is going well!

Your experiments don't even have to be changing something about your life. It's more about creating something or taking action based on what you've learned.

7. Find Time to Learn Regularly

I've talked quite a bit about building habits and routines on the blog, so I'm not going to dive fully into that here. You might want to wait for the perfect time to gather all of your materials, and pull out a binder to take pretty notes in.

But I recommend that you don't!

Instead, just use little bits of free time here and there throughout your day to watch a short video or read a few pages in a book.

Here are a couple of ways you can fit more learning into your day.

Listen to a podcast while you get ready in the morning
Listen to a podcast or audiobook while driving
Listen to or watch educational content while exercising
Instead of checking your emails again, read a quick article
Replace social media usage with educational content

Consistent learning is much more effective over the long run than sitting down once a month and speeding through as many resources as you can. At the same time, start slow and don't try to cram as much learning into your day as possible. It's about balance!

Final Notes on How to Become a Lifelong Learner: Create a Personal Learning System That Lasts

I'm still refining my personal learning system, and I know it will evolve over time as my interests, priorities, and schedule change.

The most important aspect of a personal learning system is that you are constantly diving into materials and learning new things. Even if you don't have time to create a full personal learning system, just find ways to regularly learn something new!

I'm going to graduate college in a couple of years, but I plan on making learning a lifelong process through my personal learning system.

To recap, this is how you can start building your personal learning system.

Decide on your goals
Choose subjects
Choose formats
Find materials
Create a personal knowledge system
Experiment
Find time to learn regularly

If you enjoyed this post about creating a personal learning system, you might enjoy these posts as well!

I hope this post helped you start building your own personal learning system!

If you enjoyed this post about personal learning systems, don't forget to share it with a friend! Thank you! :)

September 26, 2026 No comments

Why can't I reach my goals? Do you find yourself saying this at the end of the year or maybe even at the end of January? Over the years, I've failed at many goals, and today, I'm going to share the goal-setting mistakes I've made and what I've learned from failing to reach my goals!

9 Lessons I've Learned from Failing to Reach My Goals

Some years, I reach almost all of my goals... and some years I've reached almost none of them.

Occasionally, I'll look at a goal halfway through the year and think, "Why did I set this??"

I've been setting goals yearly for almost as long as I can remember. I made homemade planners in grade school and was always setting goals and making lists for myself.

After years of setting annual goals, I've made a lot of goal-setting mistakes.

Here are nine lessons I've learned from failing to reach my goals!

Making these mistakes has helped me improve how I set goals. Hopefully, you'll be able to take away some new tips for your own goal-setting process.

9 Lessons I've Learned from Failing to Reach My Goals

1. Changing Goals Mid-Year is Okay

A year is a long time, and life changes fast.

Sometimes, I look at my goals, and they aren't even goals I want to achieve anymore. Last year, for example, I changed my major (again!), so one of my new life priorities was getting into the business school at my university.

But that wasn't one of my original goals.

Recommended Post - How to Re-Evaluate Your Yearly Goals

When I looked back at the goals I set at the start of 2025, they just weren't aligned with where I was taking my life at that point. That's okay!

A couple of years ago, I might have felt like I failed, but now I know that it's perfectly fine to change your goals!

2. Daily Tasks are Not Feasible

A very quick way to fail at your goals is to make them a daily task, especially if there's no clear outcome.

What if you get sick? What if you are out of town?

Last year, I set a goal to write down three things I'm grateful for daily, and to practice tap dancing six times per week.

Neither of these goals happened. In fact, I think I quit both of them in January because even though they are both great goals, they are too rigid.

I convinced myself that it was better to quit completely than to miss a single day.

From this goal-setting mistake, I learned that when setting goals, it's important to allow for life to happen.

If you miss once, you didn't fail. It's about getting back on track. This mindset change has been key for me to remembering that I haven't failed if I miss a day of working on a goal. I am only failing if I don't start doing it again.

3. Some Goals Aren't Meaningful Enough

In the past, I used to set an increasing number of goals every year. It was fun, but some of them didn't actually help me improve my life. My goals were more like a bucket list of things I wanted to, not things I wanted to accomplish.

If you go back through some of my goal-setting posts, you may see "23 Before 2023" or "22 Before 2022."

Talk about overwhelming! The list was becoming so long that I couldn't even remember what goals I set.

I came to the conclusion that having more than 20 goals every year is way too much! Most of them weren't meaningful enough for me to actually work towards them.

Now, I set 12 goals a year in four different areas of my life.

Spiritual (religion)
Physical (exercise and nutrition)
Educational (school and career development)
Social (relationships)

When setting goals, I think of the most important improvements I want for each of those four areas of my life. Then I set goals that will help me make progress in each of these areas.

This method allows me to set more meaningful goals!

4. Some Goals Aren't Real Goals (They're Habits)

When setting goals, it's important to distinguish if it's a destination or something you want to do on a regular basis that doesn't have a defined end result.

Going along with the point above, where I wanted to write down three things I'm grateful for daily. The end result is that I wanted this to become a habit. Meeting the goal would've been turning it into a habit.

But I never got there because I gave up after I missed for a few days.

Now, I set goals such as daily gratitude journaling as a habit-building goal, so if I miss for a few days or even fall off the bandwagon for a month, I can still get back on track and reach the goal as long as I'm working towards building that habit.

Do you want to continue doing this goal regularly after the year is over?

If yes, that is most likely a habit! Be intentional with how you go about setting goals for creating habits.

5. The Plan May Be the Problem

Back in 2021, I wrote a post about how I was setting my goals for 2021, and I had drawn up an entire master plan with guidelines for reaching my goals step-by-step.

The only problem is that I didn't stick to the plan. I don't even think I made it to the end of January. Failing to reach my goals again!

I still reached quite a few of my goals that year, but now, I take a much looser approach to reaching my goals. While I look at my goals regularly, I don't track if I'm working towards them every day because if there's too much tracking involved, even filling out the tracker feels like too much work!

It can deter you from reaching your goals.

6. Goals Don't Need to Take a Year

I used to think that goals needed to take around a year to accomplish.

The goals I set had to be so big that they took a long time to reach. This led to setting many goals that required daily effort such as working out daily or writing daily, with no real outcome.

No matter how hard I worked, I knew I wouldn't finish those goals until the end of the year. It was so discouraging that I didn't even want to start.

Now, I set goals that if I work towards them, I can achieve something without time having to pass by. One year, I set a goal to go for a month without social media including YouTube.

I finished that goal on January 31st, and completing one of my goals right at the start of the year gave me renewed motivation to work on the rest of my goals!

From failing to reach my goals, I learned that it's great to be achieving some of your goals near the start of the year to motivate you to continue working on the rest of your goals!

7. Sometimes Tracking Progress is Better than Tracking the Outcome

Some outcomes are out of your control like finding a job or an internship. Setting an outcome as the goal and then not reaching it can be very discouraging. No matter how hard you work, you may still not get that internship!

Instead, it can be much better to track progress depending on the goal. I've applied to more than 130 internships so far this year, and while the end goal is to get an internship, my goal for the year was to apply to 100 internships.

Applying to 100 internships is something that is in my control, and I feel like I'm making progress even if I haven't gotten an internship yet.

Even if I don't get an internship this year, I've still practiced applying to internships, worked on my interviewing skills, and learned more about what I want for my career.

From failing to reach my goals, I've learned that I'm much more likely to work towards the goal if I feel like I can achieve it.

8. A Total Number May be Better than a Habit

The next lesson I've learned is that aiming for a total number of doing something is sometimes better than trying to build a habit.

For example, this year as one of my religious goals, I wanted to get in the habit of reading a religious article every day. In the past, I might have set the goal as building a habit or even reading one article daily.

Instead, I set my goal for reading 100 religious articles. I've already reached that goal, and now I read one article a day out of habit!

I achieved the same outcome that I wanted, and I already reached that goal for the year!

Likewise, I talked about failing my goal of practicing tap dancing six times per week. This year, I set a goal to complete a tap dance program that has a set number of steps to learn.

Even though I don't practice tap six times a week, every time I do practice, I make progress towards my goal of completing the dance program.

9. It's Okay to Fail

Ultimately, the main thing that I've learned from failing to reach my goals is that it's okay to fail! Every year I fail at some of my goals, and every year I learn something new about the goal-setting process.

Failing to reach my goals shows me that I'm actually trying to achieve success in life. Every time I fail, I learn something new about what I do and don't want out of life.

Final Notes on 9 Lessons I've Learned from Failing to Reach My Goals

Every year, millions of people fail at their goals. Most likely, you are included in this group and so am I!

It's okay to fail at your goals. The main lesson is that failure isn't failure because every time you don't reach your goals, you learn something new. The real test is whether or not you set goals again the following year.

To wrap things up, here are the nine lessons I've learned from failing to reach my goals.

Changing goals mid-year is okay
Daily tasks are not feasible
Some goals aren't meaningful enough
Some goals aren't real goals (they're habits)
The plan may be the problem
Goals don't need to take a year
Sometimes tracking progress is better than tracking the outcome
A total number may be better than a habit
It's okay to fail

If you enjoyed this post about what I've learned from failing to reach my goals, you can read these ones too!

Thanks for reading about what I've learned from failing to reach my goals! I hope you have a productive week!

Don't forget to share this post with a friend that may be feeling discouraged about reaching their goals!

September 19, 2026 No comments

Some research suggests that people make around 35,000 decisions every single day. While these results are debated, it's easy to feel exhausted by the constant decisions we have to make. Today, we're going to dive into the topic of how to reduce decision fatigue and why everyday choices can feel exhausting.

What is Decision Fatigue? Ways to Make Everyday Choices Feel Less Exhausting

In 2000, a famous marketing study was conducted about jam by Sheena Iyengar and Mark R. Lepper. I first heard about this study in one of my marketing classes and thought it was fascinating.

Researchers set up a tasting booth and sold jam to customers in a grocery store. At one point they offered 6 flavors, and at another time, they offered 24 flavors. Customers were allowed to sample as much jam as they wanted.

In which scenario do you think people were more likely to make a purchase?

The study found that when offered 6 choices, people made a purchase 31% of the time. When offered 24 choices, people only made a purchase 3% of the time.

When offered more choices, it's harder to decide what you want! This can lead to choice overload, which can contribute to decision fatigue when you have to make decisions constantly.

I'll share how to reduce decision fatigue through practical methods, but first of all, what is decision fatigue?

What is Decision Fatigue? Ways to Make Everyday Choices Feel Less Exhausting

Decision fatigue is the mental overload that can come from making frequent decisions throughout the day.

Decision fatigue can lead to procrastinating, avoiding making decisions, making impulse decisions, and spending a longer amount of time than necessary in the research phase.

Just as your body becomes more tired throughout the day, your brain does too.

It's that feeling you have when you've just finished a hard test. Every time you fill in a circle on a bubble sheet or write down an answer, you are making a decision, and it's tiring.

Now, let's get into how to reduce decision fatigue in your life!

How to Reduce Decision Fatigue

1. Make Decisions Before You Actually Need To

You know that feeling you get when you are super hungry at the end of a long day at work? You don't have any food already cooked, and now you have to decide what's for dinner!

The first way to reduce decision fatigue is to make decisions before you actually need to by doing some planning in advance when you are feeling refreshed.

This will help cut down on the number of impulse decisions you make.

A couple examples of this are:

Meal planning/prep
Prioritizing what you need to do at the start of the day
Making a list of what you need before you go shopping
Picking out outfits in advance
Exercising first thing in the morning

When you make decisions in advance, it's often easier because you'll probably have more time and won't feel pressured by external factors. At night, I have time to pick out an outfit, but in the morning, if I take too long, I'll be running late.

2. Purposefully Limit the Number of Options You Have

Steve Jobs is famously known for wearing a black/grey turtleneck top and jeans as his near daily uniform.

While he may not have been trying to reduce decision fatigue, wearing the same thing every day does remove the question of deciding what to wear.

As I mentioned earlier with the jam study, the fewer options you have, the easier it is to make a choice. Many people chose not to purchase jam when they had a large variety of options.

This might explain why I sometimes feel like it's harder for me to decide what to wear for the day, even though I have a capsule wardrobe. My closet has been getting larger over the years!

By purposefully limiting the number of options you have, it'll be easier for you to make a decision.

3. Build Systems So You Don't Have to Make as Many Decisions

If you've read even a couple of my posts, you'll probably have realized by now that I'm a big believer in systems.

I love creating systems that make my life easier whether it's a routine, a habit, or just criteria I follow to make my life run a little smoother.

Recommended Post - The Ultimate Guide to Building Personal Systems for Your Life

When you have a morning, night, or weekend routine, you don't have to decide what to do next.

Even if during these routines you have to make decisions, it'll be easier because your day will already have structure.

I follow a running training plan, so I don't have to decide which type of run to do. I follow workout videos on YouTube, so I don't have to decide what exercises to do.

One way to build systems is by creating default choices. I eat the same breakfast almost every day. I have a grocery list that I use to shop with every week.

You can build systems throughout your life, so you don't have to make as many decisions. When you become bored of those systems, you can simply switch them up!

4. Make Similar Decisions at the Same Time

When you make similar decisions at the same time, you don't have to keep coming back to that task to think about it again.

If there are decisions that you have to make on a daily basis, would it be possible to make them on a weekly or monthly basis instead?

Most likely you do all of your laundry at once, instead of piece by piece. Likewise, you probably don't only buy enough food for just one meal when you go to the grocery store.

You can apply this reasoning to some other areas of your life too!

While I'm at college, I do the majority of my cooking on the weekends. When I sit down to do my planning, I write down my to-do list for the next two weeks, so I don't have to write down a new to-do list every day.

Batching similar tasks helps me save both time and mental energy!

5. Make Your Hardest Decisions in the Morning + Take Breaks

One study found that at the beginning of the day, judges would grant parole 65% of the time. That number gradually dropped to 0% by the end of the session.

After a break (possibly lunch!), that number would go right back up to 65%.

While the reasons for these results are debated, this study highlights the idea that mental fatigue can affect decision-making.

When you are tired, it's a lot harder to make decisions, so it can be easier to make the same decision every time. Taking frequent breaks will allow you to bring your most refreshed mind to tasks.

You can take breaks by prioritizing restful sleep, exercising, and doing hobbies to let your mind rest.

You may find it helpful to make all of your hardest decisions in the morning after you've had a good night's rest. This is why I try to write before lunch. I do my best thinking in the morning.

6. Know When to Stop Researching

I love researching new things I want to try probably a little too much, but at some point, you just have to start!

When I first started bullet journaling, I tried to read every article I could find on the subject so I could make my first bullet journal perfect.

This may be a spoiler, but my first bullet journal was definitely not perfect. My hand lettering and style have improved so much since then!

The only thing all this research did was stop me from starting.

Now, I'm working on building a personal knowledge system. I read one book, watched a couple YouTube videos, and read a few articles.

I started building my personal knowledge system a couple of weeks ago, and it's not perfect, but I'm learning as I'm building it.

This is easier said than done, but it's often a good idea to start before you feel ready because you learn the most from doing.

7. Accept "Good Enough" for Less Important Decisions

Most of the decisions we make on a daily basis won't drastically change our lives, even though sometimes they take up a disproportionate amount of time to what the actual task is.

Should it really take 15 minutes to decide what you want to eat for dinner?

On occasion, I've found myself struggling to decide what I feel like eating, what I should wear, and whether I should read this book or that book first.

In reality, none of these decisions will have a major impact on my life because often with small decisions both options are equally good.

I'd recommend spending more energy on high-impact areas like your career, relationships, health, hobbies, and your mental wellbeing.

When you decide what your priorities in life are, you'll be able to spend more of your mental energy on the big decisions!

Sometimes it can be nice to spend extra time on trivial decisions such as deciding what type of ice cream you want but just remember that these decisions aren't the most important ones!

Final Notes on What is Decision Fatigue? Ways to Make Everyday Choices Feel Less Exhausting

If you've been wondering how to reduce decision fatigue, hopefully this post gave you some ideas!

Some decision fatigue is unavoidable.

Today, more than ever, we are surrounded by countless options through constant connectivity to information on the internet and feedback about our choices through social media.

There will always be days where you don't get enough sleep or have to make hard decisions, but you can reduce the amount of decision fatigue you do experience in the day-to-day, so you have more energy to devote to the harder things.

Here's a recap on how to reduce decision fatigue.

Make decisions before you actually need to
Purposefully limit the number of options you have
Build systems so you don't have to make as many decisions
Make similar decisions at the same time
Make your hardest decisions in the morning and take breaks
Know when to stop researching
Accept "good enough" for less important decisions

If you enjoyed this post about how to reduce decision fatigue, you may also like reading these posts too!

I hope you learned something about how to reduce decision fatigue! Have a great week!

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September 12, 2026 No comments

Do you scroll on your phone when you have nothing to do but still end up feeling bored? And yet somehow, you feel compelled to continue scrolling? It's time to take control of your phone habits, so you can feel fulfilled in life. Today, I'm going to give you a peek into my digital minimalist phone setup as an aspiring digital minimalist in college!

What I Actually Use My Phone For as a Digital Minimalist

Over the past few years, I've been trying to use my phone more as a tool, and less as a form of entertainment, and through my current phone setup, I've been able to cut my screen time in half.

You can read this post if you want to see specifically how I cut my screen time by deleting apps, and adding screen time controls.

Currently, I use my phone for around 2 hours per day, unless I'm reading a good book on Libby. Then my phone screen time does go up! I'm an aspiring digital minimalist, so it's a work in progress.

I'll tell you what I don't use my phone for later, but right now, I'm going to share what I actually use my phone for. This is my digital minimalist phone setup!

What I Actually Use My Phone for as a Digital Minimalist

1. Communication

Obviously, one of the main things I use my phone for is communication, so I have quite a few apps for communicating such as Outlook, WhatsApp, and GroupMe.

As a college student, I'm in a lot of group chats on different apps. This is for the most part unavoidable. On these apps, I have notifications on if it is an important chat, such as a one-on-one conversation.

Notifications for group chats can generally be turned off, unless it's for a class group project. In that case, I'll leave notifications on, so I don't miss anything.

2. My Schedule

The next main purpose of my phone is as a tool for managing my schedule.

For managing my schedule, I use a calendar app, and the app Boosted to track my time. I use both of these apps on a daily basis.

On my calendar app, I have my entire college schedule with notifications set up that go to my smartwatch. I don't want to forget to go to class!

I also have any one-time events on my schedule, so I don't forget about them or overbook myself.

3. Education

This is where the bulk of my phone usage comes in. Every morning, I read my scriptures for 10 to 20 minutes on a scripture app.

I use Libby and Goodreads on a regular basis for reading, and to track my books. The time adds up quickly when I'm reading a good book!

When I have a little bit of free time to spare, I try to read a few pages on Libby, instead of just scrolling or reading random things.

Recommended Post - How to Actually Read More Books This Year (30 Actionable Tips)

During the school year, I use Canvas to keep track of school assignments, and so I know when my assignments are graded.

I also use Pocket Casts (This is the best podcast app I've found!) for listening to podcasts when I'm running or doing errands around my apartment.

4. Health

I wear a Garmin smartwatch, so I have a few apps that connect to my watch and help me track my health. I use these apps a few times a week or less.

Additionally, I'll include my music apps in the section because I mainly listen to music while exercising.

5. Miscellaneous Tools

And then of course, I have a calculator app, a camera app, and a clock app. I also have Chrome, and my phone's web browser.

I use my phone's web browser regularly because I don't have any social media apps downloaded on my phone.

On the weekends, I let myself use YouTube on my phone's web browser, but I also have time-limits on social media websites through StayFree.

On the weekends, I'm much more flexible with my technology usage because these are my break days. After a while of incorporating digital minimalism into my life, I've found short-form content is actually pretty boring.

On most occasions, I scroll for a few minutes and then switch to doing something else.

I'm still working on cutting down my screen time on my phone's web browser because it is hard to know when I'll need to look up something essential.

I do have some other apps on my phone, but they are all apps that I either cannot delete because they came pre-downloaded on my phone, or they are apps that I use once a month or less for specific purposes.

For example, I have Google Wallet because I need it to download tickets to go see shows at my university. I only open the app when I'm going to see a show, which isn't often at all.

What I Don't Use My Phone for as a Digital Minimalist

Ok, so that's what I do use my phone for, but what don't I use my phone for?

Social media (occasional usage)
Games
Reading the news
Endless scrolling
Consuming content when bored

Right now, I'm working on cutting down the number of times I pick up my phone when I feel bored by telling myself to read a few pages of a book instead. I also receive a notification if I use an app for 30 minutes in one sitting to prompt me to put my phone down.

I'm trying to shift away from consuming short-form content that doesn't add value to my life to consuming more long-form content that leaves me feeling happier afterward.

A Day in the Life of My Phone Usage

I turn my phone off at night, so when I get up in the morning, I have to turn my phone on. I usually start off my day by looking at emails. (Not the best habit, I know, but that's what I realistically do! 🤣)

Looking at emails lets me know what's on my plate for that day. Class might have been cancelled, and I won't know unless I check!

After that, I read scriptures for 10 to 20 minutes during breakfast, and then I head off to my first class of the day.

My phone usage after that is often pretty sporadic and varies from day-to-day. I usually look at my calendar, and check emails/messages in-between classes.

I also might use my phone during lunch if I'm having a quick one, but I try to read a few pages of a book.

Generally, I use my laptop to do homework during dinner. In the evenings if I have nothing to do, I've been reading actual books from the library. Curling up on the couch with a book right before bed is becoming a favorite hobby!

Final Notes on What I Actually Use My Phone for as a Digital Minimalist

That's my realistic digital minimalist phone setup! To me, digital minimalism is about using the time I have in ways that leave me feeling good about how I spent that time.

Remember that it's ok to take breaks where you can watch or read entertainment. It's just about using your phone intentionally!

Since switching to digital minimalism, I've noticed that I now waste less time, and I learn more because I have extra time! I also feel more fulfilled about how I'm using my time.

My digital minimalist phone setup isn't perfect, but it's a work in progress!

If you enjoyed reading about my digital minimalist phone setup, you can read these other articles about taking control of your technology too.

I hope you enjoyed this post about how I use my phone as a digital minimalist! Save this digital minimalist phone setup inspiration, so you can refer back to it later!

September 05, 2026 No comments

creating real-life systems

for productivity and growth

WRITER, PRODUCTIVITY ENTHUSIAST, TAP DANCER

real-life systems

productivity

personal growth