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I had a link planned for this week’s Sunday Edition outlining five things you notice when you quit the news, but I think I’m going to press pause to think it through more thoroughly. This idea that quitting the news is somehow the answer to everyone’s happiness problems is flawed. It’s far more nuanced than just pointing the finger at news and stating it’s the root of all evil.

There are many benefits to consuming news which very few of these articles tend to consider. There are patriotic ideals that stem from consuming some level of news. There are preparatory values that can be derived from consuming news.

There are also responsible news consumption habits, which “quit the news” doesn’t convey. News doesn’t cover all parts of the story equally, nor does it cover all stories equally. Nor does journalism (I assume Journalism — with a capital “J” — involves a deeper look at a specific news item, whereas News — with a capital “N” — is mostly initial reporting of the facts of a story at the outset) spend its dollars researching all narratives equally. There is a certain amount of responsibility on the reader to consume all types of information — books, news, journalism, magazines etc. — before developing an opinion.

There are many gems inside this article (specifically Number 5) which I agree with very much. But if the answer to a better life is “quit the news”, I think those who adopt the practice won’t find what they’re looking for.

Sony A7 III Hands-On Field Test in Las Vegas — TheCameraStoreTV

When it comes to written photography reviews, I trust Jordan Steele’s opinions most. When it comes to video photography reviews (if that’s the right way to say it), I trust the guys at TCSTV. These guys get invited to press events, but make sure to temper their praise and highlight weaknesses, no matter the camera manufacturer.

This all being said, even if you cast aside the nearly unanimous glowing reviews for the new Sony a7III by those who were invited to Sony’s press event, it seems like this camera is a winner. With the tech packed in, the a7III is a bargain when you point at the a7R III and the a9.

Task Management Pain Points – Orphans — MacSparky

“Orphans” is a great name.

Also, I love David’s idea of creating a repeatable task named “Review Project Status” inside a project. I, too, don’t review projects once a week. However, I could stand to review them more often to ensure I finish what I start.

Simple Is As Simple Does: The Risk Of Retweet — TechCrunch

Really good deep-dive here into what made Twitter so great and where it has deviated from course. Many point at Twitter’s harassment rules as its biggest weakness, but I think the writers at TechCrunch have pinpointed an equally valid reason as to why users have become disillusioned with Twitter.

On Keyboard Placement — Joe Cieplinski

I didn’t really dive into the iPhone X’s keyboard in my little blog post this week.

Perhaps the biggest hesitation I had in adopting the iPhone X was its smaller keyboard. I played around with the keyboard at the phone store on the day it was launched, and my initial thought was that it’s more different than the smaller iPhone 8 than it is the same as the iPhone 8 Plus, if that makes sense. I took a chance.

For my thumbs, the iPhone 8 Plus’ keyboard is still far and away superior. But I can get by with the iPhone X’s keyboard — and its placement — for the next few months.

Build the Life You Want With a Hybrid System — Chris Bowler

A conversation with a friend this week sprouted a pretty good quote (I admit to paraphrasing a bit):

The most productive people I know use one simple task list on a piece of paper.

The crux of the conversation stemmed around many folks preaching system before preaching actual doing.

So with that in mind, I have slight apprehension in sharing yet another productivity system for you to ponder. However, I do so knowing I created my own productivity system by studying others’ habits and recognizing my own.

I’ve bounced around between paper, digital, and hybrid productivity systems over the past few years, with the result being a tendency toward the digital. In my experience, if I have to think about where I’m recording a task instead of just making sure its written/typed out somewhere, then my system has started to get in the way of my productivity.

Therefore, I have some to-do lists written down in a Field Notes book. I have other to-do lists written down in a Nock Co paper pad that I use at the office. Still other to-do lists are written in Drafts on a line by line basis and imported into Things on the iPhone. And still other to-dos are added directly into Things on my Mac.

Do they all end up in Things at some point? Most certainly not. Most do. But not all. Really, it doesn’t matter. If I’m being productive, then who cares.

Study Chris’ hybrid methodology. Adopt it if you want. Completely reject it if you want. Just make sure you’re not spinning your tires and worrying about your system.

As always, I appreciate your attention on this fine Sunday afternoon.

Happy Sunday. All the best in the week ahead.