Learn From My Mistakes

Short story of how I break life chaos into small, solvable problems - 2 min read.

If social norms allowed it, I'd seriously consider adopting the nickname "Dory."

You know, the blue fish from Finding Nemo?

Famously optimistic. Famously forgetful.

She had a record-breaking 15-second attention span. My spirit animal!

Last week, I took two days off.

On day one, I opened my laptop to send a single email.

Just one.

But Slack had a red dot.

A buddy had pinged me a link to an article about sleep improvement.

Naturally, I had to click. Sleep is my guilty pleasure.

The link led to Reddit - the Bermuda Triangle of productivity - where someone explained how sleeping cooler improves sleep and listed all the gadgets to prove it.

The comments were a goldmine: ideal room temps, mattress pads with built-in fans, something called “ChiliSleep”…

Fifteen minutes later, I was deep into a rabbit hole of climate-controlled mattresses.

And then…

I completely forgot why I opened the laptop in the first place.

Gosh.

And this wasn’t even a one-time slip.

The day before, I went to the pantry mid-recipe - and stood there for five full seconds, blankly trying to remember what I came for.

I felt like a glitch in my own simulation.

These moments always hit the same way: I’m just a mortal. A squishy, distractible human, like the rest of us.

Bummer!

But curiosity hasn't let me down yet - so naturally, I started digging.

And guess what? This isn’t some personal failing.

It’s not early-onset goldfish syndrome.

There’s a name for it: Attention Residue.

So, what is Attention Residue?

It’s what happens when our brain tries to switch between tasks - but fails to fully let go of the last one.

Even if you’ve physically moved on, mentally you’re still half in Slack, Reddit, or that mattress-researching spiral.

Psychologist Sophie Leroy coined the term while studying workplace performance.

She found that even tiny interruptions - a notification, a “quick check,” or a casual glance at a new tab - leave behind cognitive crumbs that drag down our focus on the next task.

Our brain is basically a browser.

Every task opens a new tab.

But instead of closing the last one, it keeps running in the background - silently eating memory and slowing everything down.

And just like your old laptop from 2012, eventually something crashes - usually your productivity, occasionally your will to live.

So there I was, a human Chrome browser with 42 tabs open, two playing music, one screaming about a vitamin deficiency I might have, and at least six dedicated to mattress cooling technology I absolutely did not need.

So what's the fix?

How do you escape the mental spaghetti of open tabs and half-finished thoughts?

Close your tabs.

Seriously. Close. Your. Tabs.

Mute the chaos.

One app. One task. One brainwave at a time.

For the love of short-term memory - stop thinking you can “just quickly check Slack.”

Because you can’t.

You’ll end up three clicks deep into an article titled “Do Owls Sleep with One Eye Open?”

(They do, by the way. And now you know. You’re welcome.)

So the next time you find yourself in a staring contest with your fridge, trying to remember if you came for eggs or enlightenment - relax.

It’s just Attention Residue.

And possibly low blood sugar.

Me? I’ve accepted that my brain is a raccoon in a data center - curious, twitchy, and constantly chewing through wires it shouldn’t.

Till next time.

Our favorite digital finds

Tools, apps, and services that actually deliver

Short & Sweet

Short articles worth your attention

Levels of Thinking: How to Make Better Decisions with Second-Level Thinking - 4 min read.

This one breaks down thinking into layers - from reacting to reflecting to creating - and it's a neat mental map for upgrading how you process problems. A good one to bookmark for those "why am I like this?" moments.

In Uncertain Times, Get Curious - 6 min read.

This one's a gentle nudge to replace panic with curiosity when life gets weird. Turns out, asking questions calms the brain more than trying to predict the future. It's science-backed and surprisingly comforting.

To focus deeper, keep a Distractions List - 5 min read.

A surprisingly effective trick: every time a random "I should…" thought tries to hijack your focus, write it down on a distractions list. It quiets the mental noise, gives your brain permission to let go, and helps you stay locked into the task at hand.

Add this to your shelf

If you're looking for something to read, this book's worth considering

Bad Blood reads like a real-life thriller - except it actually happened. It tells the wild story of how a young startup founder convinced investors, doctors, and the media to believe in a medical breakthrough that didn't work. It's a gripping lesson on ambition, deception, and why asking questions matters.

A Workspace I Envy

A handpicked desk setup that caught my eye this week

Dark aesthetic is my vibe. Step one in my office makeover: dark walls. So glad I chose that color. Someday, my office might look like Mat's in the picture above.

Unpacking the routines of interesting people

A closer look at how fascinating people structure their day

Interesting facts:

Obsessed With Hiring: He was known to personally review resumes and conduct interviews, even after ByteDance had thousands of employees. He believed the right people mattered more than big money.

Private and Low-Key: Despite being a billionaire, Zhang avoids the spotlight. No flashy interviews. No fancy cars. He rarely speaks at public events and keeps a super low profile.

Work-Life Boundaries: Zhang is famous for not buying into China’s “996” work culture (9 a.m. to 9 p.m., 6 days a week). He encouraged a healthier work-life balance in his teams. Rare for tech founders in China.

Shy but Strategic: Former colleagues say Zhang doesn’t talk much, but when he does, it’s razor-sharp. He listens more than he speaks - and always plays the long game.

Watch-worthy clips

One video that got us thinking, and we think you'll like it too

I watched this video 9 months ago. And now, while curating this section, I clicked play and got lost for about 15 minutes. Again?

Conclusions:

1. The video is actually that good.

2. Attention Residue is real.

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