Two introductions. One Old, One New

“Who the heck is this?” - likely the question you are asking yourself right now. It’s a fair question. You probably signed up to download one of my productivity tools years ago when I was active on Twitter in the productivity space. Some of you may have clicked on an ad, but for the rest, I’m not sure. It’s been almost two years since I’ve written to this list. It was called “Optimize Your Day,” and I wrote almost exclusively about productivity. A lot has changed since then.

My name is Zach. I’ve been working in tech for over 20 years. I grew up loving technology and knew it was what I wanted to do since I was little. I’m extremely thankful for my career. I’ve learned so much from many talented people in the industry. There have been many unique moments that I will remember for decades, and it’s been both challenging and engaging.

As time went on, it became more burdensome. It's hard to accept that many companies, especially social media companies, build their products knowing the consequences. Even though I've spent the last decade in the entertainment industry, I'm still aware of the news and the few whistleblowers brave enough to speak up.

If you're unsure of what I'm talking about, I highly recommend the documentary "The Social Dilemma." It focuses on the impact of algorithms designed to manipulate human psychology and uses global politics as an example of the problem's scale. Most of the examples are from US politics, so if you live outside the US, I apologize, and if you're in the US and can't take it anymore, I understand. However, the filmmakers do a great job explaining the problem.

Since its release in 2020, I haven’t seen much to indicate that social networking companies are addressing the problem. They have no incentive to do so. Not only are they incentivized to keep as many eyes on their platforms for as long as possible, but they also mine our data and sell it. They have two profit channels, and the biggest cost isn't even theirs—it's our time.

So, you've kept me reading this just to say there's no hope?

Far from it, I think there are three opportunities: one, educate as many people as possible; two, address the issue with local communities by giving them alternative platforms for communication; and three, for those of us around the globe, connect outside of those platforms as well.

Selfishly, beyond the serious problems in our world, I miss when the Internet was fun. Over the years, I’ve become more and more disengaged with technology once my workday ends. It has even impacted my greatest passion, photography. The amazing communities for photographers to share images and discuss the art now seem more like virtual time capsules than active communities.

There is a great community of people who create home labs and support some fantastic open-source software. This has shown me that there is fun to be had online. When it comes to productivity, I’m no longer stuck in the endless cycle of spending more time on productivity tools. Instead, I’ve found what works for me and keep it as simple as possible.

While I’m less interested in the productivity space than I used to be, I still enjoy finding ways to make my life more efficient. This allows me to have time for things I enjoy, like spending time with my partner, our dogs, photography, and being outside.

I mentioned coming together online on platforms not driven by algorithms. Email communities are one of the original ways of doing that. Before I introduce Reboot Weekly, as promised:

If you aren’t interested in being part of this community, I hope you consider giving it a few weeks before you click this button. This newsletter will almost always be sent no more than once a week.

Introducing Reboot Weekly

The idea is simple. Email lists were one of the early ways of communicating online. Lists would form around various interests and topics. For our community, I hope to share tips on how to simplify life. If I wanted to talk into a void, I’d install Twitter on my phone. So reach out and say hello. Here are a few ideas, but I’m open to anything.

• Productivity tips: Various tools and methods can be valuable, but sometimes I spent more time with the tools than being productive.

• Life hacks of any kind are always exciting.

• If you've found ways to reduce your mobile screen time, many of us would be interested in understanding how you did that.

Topics can venture into technology too. After my reboot, I realized there are still many gems out there, like the home lab and open-source communities I mentioned earlier. I plan to expand on this in the coming weeks.

It would also be great to hear what people are doing to enjoy their days. For example, I had the opportunity to travel to Alaska and photograph brown bears last month.

How do we make this a two-way conversation?

First, you can email me to say hello or share what's going on in your life. I will respond to everyone.

Email: [email protected]

Second, I’ve enabled the comment section on the platform hosting this newsletter. Think of it as a way to chat with each other.

Third, I’m considering a real time communication platform to add to Reboot Weekly.

Fourth, I'm open to any great ideas you might have.

I hope to hear from some of you soon. If you want to share your ideas anonymously, that's fine too. If you just want to chat about something unrelated to Reboot Weekly, that works as well.

I want to keep the internet fun, and part of that is chatting with new people.

That's all for this week.

Stay well, and I hope you get a chance to give yourself a reboot this weekend.

Zach
[email protected]

PS. I’m curious what's on your mind after reading this. Does an idea to share come to mind? Do you have a question about technology? Have you been thinking about a great movie you saw this week? If so, what was it?