Life has a way of inundating us all with a barrage of small tasks and decisions—scheduling appointments, what to wear, planning travel, etc . While making these decisions can seem innocuous or even necessary to life, these choices, in aggregate, have a sneaky way of siphoning off our cognitive energy stores. Over the years, I’ve grown increasingly aware of these “friction” points in my daily life and the covert toll they take on my mental reserves.

Consider the strategy of automating these routine tasks and decisions. Many of these things can either be offloaded to automation tools/AI, or a virtual assistant. Meal prepping for the week or having a consistent wardrobe (think Steve Jobs and his iconic black turtleneck) can liberate mental space. Scheduling tools that preemptively block out focused work hours, or apps that streamline our daily to-dos, can similarly lift the cognitive burden.

I struggle with doing these things myself sometimes and find myself in the trap of monotonous friction, so let this blog read more of a note to self than a story of how I have it all figured out.

The goal here isn’t just about efficiency for the sake of it. It’s about freeing up our most valuable asset: focused, undistracted and potent mental power. When we strip away the noise, the minutiae, and the relentless pings of daily life, we create room for profound insight, for creativity, and for the deep work that moves the needle. After all, in the grand chessboard of life, it’s the strategic moves, unencumbered by friction, that define our results.