Self-improvement and growth are a big topic for me and I think it is everyone's duty to become the best version of himself. I try to read every day and with this blog, I want to summarize the books that I have read and say my thoughts about them.

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Devin Hasler



## 🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences

1. PARA is a method to organize things based on their actionability.
2. The goal of PARA is to stop overengineering organizing and start being productive.
3. PARA can be used for files, notes, images, and much more.


## 🕵🏼Who Should Read It?

I have seldom found a book that would be helpful for as wide a range of people as this one. Everyone uses a note-taking app, a storage app, a folder system, or something similar, which is why this book and the method it teaches are helpful for many people. Additionally, the book is written in such a clear and straightforward way that it's a very easy read.


## ☘️ How the Book Changed Me

As soon as I read the book, I started to implement the PARA folder structure suggested by the book's method. Right away, I felt a sense of relief as my folders became more structured and organized with the goal of action-taking in mind. Because of the book, I not only changed the way I structured my folders but also switched my note-taking system from Notion to Obsidian. There, I implemented the same PARA note structure, which helped simplify my system immensely.

## ✍️ My Top 3 Quotes

> "Getting organized, in my opinion, is about acquiring power" Tiago Forte

> "Sometimes organizing information too much makes it less valuable" Tiago Forte


## 📒 Summary + Notes

The concept provided in this book is pretty simple and easy to implement. The book provides a method with which to organics notes, folders and other informations like files.

### The Goal

The goal of the PARA method is to organize your files in order of actionability. This means items higher up in the structure (notes, folders, or files) are visited and used more frequently than those lower down the list. This sorting by actionability leads to organizing information that is used the most to be the most easily accessible. The goal of a system should be to improve productivity and actionability.

### PARA

PARA is the main concept of the book. It is the structure/system taught in this book.

#### 0 - Inbox

This is the folder where **newly added files**, notes, or images go if it's unknown where they belong at the time. From there, they will be placed into their right place.

#### 1 - Projects

Short-term efforts in your work or life that you're working on now. Projects have a **goal** which will make it possible to mark them as completed. They also have a **timeline** or timeframe by which the project will be done. Projects fall under specific areas. For example, "Creating a Landing Page" could fall under the area "Development".

#### 2 - Areas

Long-term responsibilities you want to manage over time. An area of responsibility has a **standard** to be maintained and an **indefinite end date**.

#### 3 - Resources

Topics or interests that may be useful in the future. Tiago explains resources as follows: "Resources encompass the vast number of things you might be interested in, curious about, or passionate about at any given time." For every resource or piece of information, you should ask yourself the question: "Is this useful?" instead of "Is this interesting?" to prevent over-collecting.

#### 4 - Archives

Inactive items from the other three categories.


<img src="/images/blog/theparamethod/flow.jpg" alt="Information Flowchart Para Method" title="Information Flowchart Para Method" width="50%" height="auto" />

*Where to put a piece of information graphic*


### The Sixty-Second PARA Setup Guide

Tiago has implemented the PARA Method with many clients and has found that it's best to treat and start the system like a plant. That means you start small and only with the things you use, then with time add more things and make the plant grow.

**Step 1: Archive existing files** Tiago says that the best way to start with the PARA method is to start from scratch and with peace of mind. He suggests moving all previously stored files into a folder named "Archive [Today's date]" and then moving on. This newly created folder is then placed into a parent folder named "4 - Archive" which is used like cold storage.

**Step 2: Create project folders** Next come the projects. Tiago puts this as the second step because projects are things you are actively working on. That means they will, by definition, be more likely to be timely and pressing. In this step, create a "1 - Projects" folder where all your projects are stored in one place. Folders in this could look like "Complete webpage design", "Buy new computer", "Write research report". These folders will be visited most often.

**Step 3: Create additional folders as needed** This is the step where you now create areas in the "2 - Areas" and resources in the "3 - Resources" folders. But Tiago only suggests adding the folders if you have information to put there. He advises against creating ghost folders.

### Naming Convention

Tiago names some naming conventions to make things even more findable:

- Emojis at the beginning of titles for project folders - ⚡Finish Landing Page
- Capitalized titles for area folders - Development
- Uncapitalized titles for resource folders - nextjs single page architecture




I really advise you to try the PARA method and see what effect it has on your productivity. Also be sure to read the book if you want to go in depth about PARA method. I want to thank you for reading this blog. I wish you all the best.


Regards,  
Devin Hasler

A book by Tiago Forte about his organizing system PARA

The PARA Method


## 🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences

1. There is no pleasure without pain
2. It is possible to release pleasure with pressing on the pain side
3. A long exposure to increased dopamine can lead to changes in your brain plasticity

## 🕵🏼Who Should Read It?

The book is applicable to everyone's life. Every person on this earth releases dopamine for everything they do or for everything they are looking for. Knowing what the pleasure-pain balance is has the power to improve everyone's life.

## ☘️ How the Book Changed Me

I found the book very interesting, as I am a big fan of more scientifically based books. Anna provides interesting real-life examples about the theories she presents from her psychiatric practice. It was astonishing for me to learn that we humans are basically not meant to be happy all the time. Due to the pleasure-pain balance, it is biologically not possible to be happy all the time. After reading this book, I now think differently about the phases of one's life where things don't seem to work as smoothly as in other times. I think of them as something human and not something that is bad.

## ✍️ My Top Quotes

> “Persons with severe addictions are among those contemporary prophets that we ignore to our own demise, for they show us who we truly are.” Kent Dunnington
>

> “Any prolonged or repeated departures from hedonic or affective neutrality have a cost.” Richard Solomon and John Corbit
>

## 📒 Summary + Notes

The general topic of the book, as the name suggests, is Dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that bridges the distance between neurons, much like a baseball bridges the distance between the pitcher and catcher. Dopamine is known as the 'feel-good' hormone as it is responsible in our body for rewarding us when we achieve something. Although scientists have discovered that dopamine may play a bigger role in the motivation to get a reward than the pleasure of the reward itself.

The problem is that dopamine does not know if we do something to survive and preserve our race or if we are just lazy lying on the couch watching Netflix. Because our brain and our reward system are not made for the highly stimulating environment we live in, they suffer under immense overload. When we eat a fat Big Mac, our brain thinks we hunted the biggest animal on the planet and awards us for being so brave and feasting our body with so many calories and fats. What our body doesn’t know is that we have the potential to eat an unlimited amount of Big Macs because we left the era of hunting many centuries ago.

<img src="/images/blog/dopamineNation/dopamineMethology.png" alt="Dopamine as a Neurotransmitter explained" title="Dopamine as a Neurotransmitter explained" width="50%" height="auto" />

Dopamine as a Neurotransmitter

### Part 1: The Pursuit of Pleasure

As already mentioned, we live in a world with an abundance of dopamine-rewarding technologies and things to do. What we lack is the ability to cope with that and handle it. That is how we get addicted.

The definition of addiction is as follows:

Addiction is the continued and compulsive consumption of a substance or behavior (gambling, gaming, sex) despite its harm to self and/or others.

And why do we consume these substances or continue to engage in that behavior, you may ask? Because the consumption releases dopamine.

The problem is that these substances and behaviors are so easily accessible. We need zero effort to go from the couch to the fridge, and already we are able to consume as many calories as we want.

**********************************************The pleasure-pain cycle**********************************************

In addition to discovering dopamine, scientists also found that pleasure and pain are processed in overlapping brain regions. This means that pleasure and pain work in a balance. As a result, the balance does not want to be out of balance on either side for a long period of time. Because of that, it is biologically impossible to be happy all the time. Also, this implies that even if you only pursue things that make you happy, you will not be happier compared to someone who sometimes does something that they do not like.

### Part 2: Self-Binding

There are multiple ways to address a dopamine 'overdose.' The goal of all these methods is to reset the dopamine level to a normal state. One of the mentioned ways, for example, is to undergo a dopamine detox. This is a widely discussed topic, and multiple videos can be found on the internet about how to do that. In short, it involves the absence of highly stimulating activities or consumptions for a period of time. One method to achieve this is the method of self-binding, where you make it as difficult as possible to consume or engage in certain behaviour.

### Part 3: The Pursuit of Pain

Due to the fact that pain and pleasure work in balance, pleasure can be attained by pressing on the pain side. This is, for example, the explanation for the good feelings after a gym session or the hype after an ice bath. A study conducted on dogs found that when dogs were given small electroshocks, they whined, and their heart started pumping fast. However, after some time, their heart rate fell lower than the average heart rate before the shock. This meant that they were more relaxed than before the shock. Also, the repeated exposure to this shock led to a decrease in the shock, but the feel-good feeling lasted longer than after the first time.

Because of all these factors, we should manage our dopamine consumption much more, especially as a child. Overconsumption can lead to long-lasting changes in brain plasticity. That is why it is important to manage the consumption of dopamine, as it can lead to depression and a loss of motivation. I highly recommend reading this book as it contains much more information than it is possible to mention in this blog. I hope you like this blog and I look forward to to seeing you reading my next blog post.

Regards
Devin Hasler

A book about the problems of dopamine flooded world and the problem that come with it.

Dopamine Nation


## 🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences

1. The phone is a big opportunity, but a dangerous one as well
2. It is important to be more mindful of your phone
3. Implement digital detoxes in your daily life

## 🕵🏼Who Should Read It?

Almost 60% of people between 18-34 are addicted to their phones. There are endless studies that show the attention span of humans decreases. The average dopamine level that a person in this day and age experiences is astronomically high. This all means that this book could solve many problems for many people. What I have to say, though, is that if someone is already informed about the negative effects a phone can have, then the book can come off as somewhat repetitive. On the other hand, the 30-Day Challenge can also be undertaken by more experienced people.

## ☘️ How the Book Changed Me

The book improved my knowledge about the negative side effects of phones, but sadly, there were not a lot of new things contained in the book. That's why the book only gets 3 stars from me. I did not participate in the 30-Day Challenge of the book because I already do most of the actions. Probably the biggest impact the book had on me was raising my awareness about my phone.

## ✍️ My Top 3 Quotes

> “The easiest way to break this habit is to make it harder to reach for your phone while you’re in bed.” Catherine Price
>

> “Our Phones are designed to addict us.” Catherine Price
>

> “social media represents the epitome of Trojan horse design.” Catherine Price.
>

## 📒 Summary + Notes

The book is structured into a theoretical and practical part. In the theoretical part, Catherine Price discusses why phones are so addictive and how they are designed to be addictive. She also explains how phones can change your brain. In the practical part of the book, Catherine Price presents a 30-Day Challenge that provides a step-by-step plan on how to break up with your phone.

### The Wake-up

Phones are designed to addict us. Our phones have one of the biggest impacts on our brain chemistry. They are designed to provide us with rewards in various forms. As a result, our brain associates certain behaviours with rewards. The chemical released in this process is dopamine. Dopamine is the excitement hormone, and we greatly enjoy being excited. The problem is that any experience that triggers the release of dopamine is something we will want to experience again, which is how we become addicted to our phones.

Another reason why we are addicted to our phones is that they are equipped with subtle positive reinforcements. These reinforcements give us the feeling of control, and as we know, humans love to be in control.

The effects of our phones on our brains are widely known in science. One of those effects is the impact on our attention span. Studies have shown that the attention span of people between 18-34 is drastically shorter than the attention spans of older generations who have less contact with their phones. This is reflected in the movie industry, where movie scenes are now much shorter compared to older movies. There are significantly more cuts and images in modern movies, whereas scenes changed at a slower pace in older films. This effect has a significant impact on schools and the education system in general. Teaching materials need to be more interactive, playful, and interesting in order to engage students effectively.

Another effect of our phones is that due to the constant high level of dopamine we experience, we become desensitized to the dopamine released from smaller things like a beautiful tree or a hug from someone we like. As a result, we seek more time on our phones to achieve the same level of dopamine release.

Because of all these effects and the challenges associated with breaking up with our phones, specific tools can assist us in achieving that goal. Currently, I am working on a project that helps individuals maintain focus on important tasks. This is accomplished through a session blocking system, where users can specify the duration they want to concentrate, and the app locks their phone for that specified period. If you are interested and would like to learn more, please visit [focuscoinapp.com](http://focuscoinapp.com/) and sign up for the newsletter to receive notifications about the app's launch.

## The breakup

In this chapter of the book, Catherine Price provides the reader with a step-by-step plan on how to break up with their phones. This plan is outlined in a 30-Day Challenge, designed to gradually free oneself from excessive phone usage.

The 30-Day Challenge begins with small but impactful changes, such as disabling notifications, logging out of or deleting social media apps, and organizing distracting apps into a single folder. Additionally, changing the phone background to a text that serves as a reminder to stay aware is recommended.

As the 30-Day Challenge progresses, Catherine introduces more advanced techniques like the WWW (What for, Why, and When). Implementing and adhering to the WWW concept may not be easy, despite its simplicity. To practice the WWW, individuals are encouraged to ask themselves the following questions each time they feel the urge to reach for their phones:

**What For?** What are you picking up your phone to do? (For example, to check your email, browse Amazon, order dinner, kill time, and so on.)

**Why Now?** Why are you picking up your phone now instead of later? The reason might be practical (I want to take a photo), situational (I’m in the elevator), or emotional (I want a distraction).

**What Else?** What else could you do right now besides checking your phone?

If, after answering these questions, you still find it reasonable to pick up your phone, you are allowed to do so.

Furthermore, Catherine Price suggests an intriguing approach known as "detox days." This entails locking your phone away for an entire day. It can be a shared activity with your partner, friends, or even your entire family.

Now armed with these newly learned strategies, I hope you will be able to successfully break up with your phone. I look forward to seeing you in my next blog post.

With regards  
Devin Hasler

A book about how to break your addiction and be mindful with your phone.

Break up with your phone



## 🚀 The Book in 3 Sentences

1. The 80/20 Principle can and should be used by every intelligent person in their daily life, by every organization, and by every social grouping and form of society.
2. The world is not linear, it is unbalanced: some forces are always more forceful than others.
3. Start to think 80/20 and start to use 80/20 Analysis

## 🕵🏼Who Should Read It?

This book does not have a specific target audience; rather, it offers something for everyone. The 80/20 Principle can be applied in any part of the world. Therefore, everyone should read this book to understand the principle and learn how to apply it to their specific circumstances.

## ☘️ How the Book Changed Me

I already knew about the Pareto or 80/20 principle, but I had only tried to apply it to studying. I had never considered applying it to marketing, business, or anywhere else. The book improved my understanding of the 80/20 principle and opened my eyes to its presence in my surroundings. Now, I try to think more in terms of 80/20 and implement it in other areas of my life, not just studying.

## ✍️ My Top 3 Quotes

> “The universe is not a straight line.” Richard Koch
>

> “A few things are always much more important than most things.” Richard Koch
>

> “Progress means moving resources from low-value to high-value uses.” Richard Koch
>

## 📒 Summary + Notes

The 80/20 principle is a pretty known method for managing time. Most people have heard this principle before and associate it with the man Pareto, who was the inventor of the 80/20 principle.
What most people don’t know is that the 80/20 principle applies in almost any part of the world which is why it is important to talk about what the 80/20 principle really is.

### What

As mentioned before, the 80/20 principle was discovered by Pareto and then rediscovered by Zipf. Zipf investigated Pareto's principle further and applied it to people, goods, time, and many other things. One possible definition of the 80/20 principle is therefore:

“The 80/20 Principle asserts that a minority of causes, inputs, or effort usually lead to a majority of the results, outputs, or rewards.”

This for example means that 80% of a school project can be done in only 20% of the time. This means that if you have 10 Days to complete a school project, you can do 80% of the required work in only 2 Days.

### Whom

One of the best parts of the 80/20 principle is that it can be applied by everyone. In fact, Richard Koch said the following in response to the question of who can use the 80/20 principle:

“The 80/ 20 Principle can and should be used by every intelligent person in their daily life, by every organization, and by every social grouping and form of society.”

### Why

It is a big deal if a single method can be applied to everyone's life. But why is the 80/20 principle applicable in such a wide range of scenarios?
The most important thing about the 80/20 Principle is that it can help individuals and groups achieve much more with much less effort. The 80/20 principle can increase personal effectiveness and happiness. It can multiply the profitability of corporations and the effectiveness of any organization.

### How

How can you implement the 80/20 principle in your daily life? There are two applications of the principle: 80/20 Analysis and 80/20 Thinking.

#### 80/20 Analysis

The 80/20 Analysis is precise, quantitative, requires investigation, provides facts, and is highly valuable. It examines the relationship between two sets of comparable data. One set of data is always a universe of people or objects, usually a large number of 100 or more, that can be turned into a percentage. The other set of data relates to some interesting characteristics of the people or objects that can be measured and also turned into a percentage. An example of the 80/20 Analysis can look something like this:

<img src="/images/blog/the8020Principle/8020Analysis.jpg" alt="Figure 6 in the book - 80/20 Analysis Example" title="Figure 6 in the book - 80/20 Analysis Example" width="50%" height="auto" />

_Figure 6 in the book - 80/20 Analysis Example_

In a group of friends, it was measured which person drank the most beers and sorted in descending order. This set of data can now be used to create a bar chart, which is the type of diagram that best displays the relationships in the 80/20 Principle.

<img src="/images/blog/the8020Principle/8020Rule.jpg" alt="Figure 9 in the book - shows an 80/28 ratio" title="Figure 9 in the book - shows an 80/28 ratio" width="50%" height="auto" />

_Figure 9 in the book - shows an 80/28 ratio_

In this type of diagram, we can see the unbalanced ratio between beer drinkers. This diagram shows that 28% of the people measured drank 80% of all the beer.

#### 80/20 Thinking

The 80/20 Thinking is more fuzzy, qualitative, requires thought, and provides important insights. This type of application is used if there is no time to do an in-depth analysis of a set of data. 80/20 Thinking is for daily life and all the non-quantitative applications of the principle. As with 80/20 Analysis, we start with a hypothesis about a possible imbalance between inputs and outputs, but instead of collecting data and analyzing them, we estimate them. This helps us to spot the few really important things that are happening and helps us ignore the mass of unimportant things.

#### And then

When presented with data or a bar chart that displays the 80/20 Ratio, it is now possible to take action. This insight into income and outcome distribution allows for the reallocation of resources from the less productive to the more productive side, as well as the simplification of your product, company, or strategy. Another economically sound action is to outsource unproductive processes to individuals who are more productive in that particular area. This allows you to focus on your speciality and be more efficient and productive.

### When

The 80/20 principle is highly versatile and can be applied to various aspects of life. It can assist in daily life by increasing efficiency and productivity. In marketing, it can help identify the customers that should be prioritized. In business, it can aid in defining strategy, improving quality, reducing costs, enhancing service, facilitating decision-making, project management, and even negotiation.

The 80/20 principle can also be applied to personal connections and alliances. Make use of alliances with other people extensively, but limit your alliances to only 20% of people and to the 20% of them that are strong allies. Then, aim to connect your alliances to other individuals who also fall within the top 20%.

As you can tell by now the 80/20 Principle is a powerful tool which should be used by every person daily. Although the book’s taught principle is really important I gave the book only 3 Stars because I felt like most of the book’s teachings were a bit self-explanatory. Non the less I can really recommend reading the book if you don’t now the 80/20 Principle already. With that feel free to share your thoughts about the 80/20 Principle in the comments below and I hope to see you in my next blog post.

With regards  
Devin Hasler  



A book about the 80/20 Principle which can get your efficiency to the next level and improve your productivity.

Productivity

The PARA Method

Dopamine Nation

Break up with your phone

The 80/20 Principle