The Shortgevity Story

On Doing Nothing Well

Dolce far niente versus Silicon Valley recovery culture: why unstructured time needs no justification, and why most people can no longer tolerate it.

On Doing Nothing Well

Dolce far niente versus Silicon Valley recovery culture: why unstructured time needs no justification, and why most people can no longer tolerate it.

Presence vs. Mindfulness: Why They're Different

Mindfulness has been captured by productivity culture, complete with streaks and scorecards. Presence isn't a practice you can fail — it's an orientation you either have or don't.

Presence vs. Mindfulness: Why They're Different

Mindfulness has been captured by productivity culture, complete with streaks and scorecards. Presence isn't a practice you can fail — it's an orientation you either have or don't.

Awe Is a Health Metric. Here's the Research.

Dacher Keltner's research on awe — including its effects on inflammation, prosocial behavior, and wellbeing — argues that the experiences optimization culture devalues are measurably valuable.

Awe Is a Health Metric. Here's the Research.

Dacher Keltner's research on awe — including its effects on inflammation, prosocial behavior, and wellbeing — argues that the experiences optimization culture devalues are measurably valuable.

Vacation Is Not Recovery

Vacation culture frames travel as maintenance for a tired machine. This piece argues the opposite: the point of a trip was never to come back rested.

Vacation Is Not Recovery

Vacation culture frames travel as maintenance for a tired machine. This piece argues the opposite: the point of a trip was never to come back rested.

The Wellness Industrial Complex: A Brief History

From the Puritans to Silicon Valley, the impulse to discipline the body in service of productivity is the same idea wearing different clothes.

The Wellness Industrial Complex: A Brief History

From the Puritans to Silicon Valley, the impulse to discipline the body in service of productivity is the same idea wearing different clothes.

The Night as a Complete Life

Against the 10pm bedtime as virtue. The night has always run on rules the day doesn't — its own honesty, its own economy of intimacy — erased by artificial light...

The Night as a Complete Life

Against the 10pm bedtime as virtue. The night has always run on rules the day doesn't — its own honesty, its own economy of intimacy — erased by artificial light...