Podcast #103: Rule Burden, Decision Burden

An everyday system, TM, is a simple, commonsense solution to an everyday problem, grounded by a pun or metaphor. Propose/discuss new systems here.
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reinhard
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Podcast #103: Rule Burden, Decision Burden

Post by reinhard » Sat Mar 14, 2026 12:56 am

Hi All,

New podcast episode:

Episode 103: Rule Burden, Decision Burden
Posted by Reinhard on 2026-03-13
I'm now practicing 33 Everyday Systems. How is that possible? Is it even a good idea?

https://podcast.everydaysystems.com/episode/103/



Hope you enjoy.

Reinhard

Miran
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Joined: Sun Mar 13, 2016 11:35 pm

Re: Podcast #103: Rule Burden, Decision Burden

Post by Miran » Sat Mar 14, 2026 10:18 am

At last! Great episode, even though i've secretly been wishing for an i.d.defaults episode. But, no complaints. Since it was vaguely announced for maybe sometime this year, it's cool to wait around for it. As a quote (paraphrase actually) from the "Paradox bullets" movie says (spoken by W. Herzog): Procrastrination is for good problems. Savour the good problems. But if you have a bad problem, solve it immediately before it slowly saps your mental energy. For example, if you got a parking ticket, just pay it. But if you have an idd episode in the cooking, let it simmer :)

Speaking of quotes, a pleasure to hear a direct excerpt from the original NoS diet text. (...) just forget it and move on to something else.
Please do a podcast with just the original, uncut website text :)

As for the decision fatigue - check out my latest incarnation of the inner count to 200 (dont have a better name yet) system:

The problems: lack of focus, trouble focusing on a task at hand, trouble finishing a task, trouble multitasking household chores, trouble picking what to do next, dozing off, getting paralyzed by indecision

The method/solution: busy the mind with counting to 200 within a 14 minutes period (no fiddling with starting or stopping timers, just a clock visual cue - start and end on either of the hour's 4 quarters). While the verbal part of the mind is busy counting, let the body and subconcious mind do the work, make decisions on the go, while using the counting as a pace. Kind of like entering a mindful bagful state.

Sometimes it will be less than 200, sometimes more in total, but merely starting from 1, and going to 2, 3 gets things going in a right direction.

Paired with updated timed personal punchcard concept, and a bit of lifelog / greenishness, i came up with this neat daily count tracker:
https://imgur.com/a/gnFeuFU
(big numbers are counts, T-s are for when i accomplish a task from the card, 10-s are just placeholder symbols filled in at the end of the day for when im in public or with family and just use shorter span counts to 10 if needed between conversations to ground and get to work.
Finally, the 1s and 2s are computer work, when i write down a single next-task to accomplish with pen and paper (and sometimes even accomplish 2 in 14 minutes). Blanks are rest/distraction/indulgence.

It is a productivity system on a smaller (or should i say micro) granularity than a personal punchcard, more similar to mantrafication, but reduced to numbers. Just counting seems to act just as good as self pep talk. The body and subconscious already know what to do and make all the right decisions.

P.S. you never said what brand of mayo you prefer! Another cliffhanger for intelligent dietary defaults topic.

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