Energy
It’s Not You, It’s the Energetic Overhead It is a common misinterpretation in our modern, high-speed world: the assumption that a lack of action is a lack of character. When the spark for a project fades or the simple act of starting feels insurmountable, we conclude we'
AI
We have been conditioned to believe that "effortless" is the ultimate goal of technology. We want AI to summarize the meetings we missed, draft the emails we dread, and organize the chaos of our digital lives with a single prompt. We call this progress. But there is a
Energy
Overthinking rarely starts because something goes wrong. It starts because something keeps going. Thoughts loop when attention does not get a chance to settle. The mind stays active, scanning, reviewing, and replaying, even when there is nothing immediate to solve. This can feel confusing, especially when overthinking appears during quiet
Energy
You feel a kind of exhaustion that sleep does not fix. It’s that deep cognitive strain of being pulled in a dozen directions by notifications, AI-generated emails, and a never-ending feed of "content." For years, we’ve been told this is a problem of willpower or discipline.
Reality
Why your mind cannot settle, even when your life finally slows down There is a strange moment that happens to almost everyone now. You clear the evening, silence your phone, sit down on the couch, and for the first time all day there is nothing you need to do. Your
Energy
When the mind keeps running despite exhaustion, rest is not doing what it is meant to do. Something in the system has not had space to settle. By “system,” this means the combined workings of attention, body, and mind. It includes how alert you are, how much information you are
Energy
If you feel mentally drained after a day of notifications, scrolling, and constant task switching—even when nothing felt especially difficult—there’s a reason. And it isn’t a lack of discipline, motivation, or willpower. Your brain isn’t failing. It’s being overloaded. Recent neuroscience research shows something
Reality
One thought pops, then another, then another. You overthink trivial stuff. Days feel hard and unproductive. Nothing sticks long enough to feel satisfying. It’s what happens when your attention stays in motion instead of settling. Modern life constantly pulls at you. And your brain learns from repetition. When it’
Energy
In the last essay, I shared a simple takeaway: Most of us don’t need more motivation, gratitude, or discipline. We need less noise. So here’s a simple, tangible Subtraction Menu you can use for inspiration. One small removal = a measurable drop in mental noise. Pick one item from
Podcast
Episode 1: The Physics of AttentionWhy your mind feels loud in the age of algorithms. Your attention isn’t mental “effort”—it’s measurable energetic work.The Focused HumanSubstack A podcast-style convo to getting a clear mind in an AI-driven, algorithm-shaped world. Each episode reveals why modern life overloads your
Reality
MIT just confirmed that attention isn’t passive. The brain reaches backward into itself and reshapes what you see based on your internal energy state. That’s EIH in action: energy organizes information and builds the reality you live in. Prefrontal cortex reaches back into the brain to shape how
Energy
Here’s a simple way to map your day as an energy waveform so you can schedule work where your mind is naturally strongest and direct your attention. This is a bit of homework, but if you want to become more conscious where and how you invest your attention, this