FocusN° 09
The
taste
tax.
taste
tax.
On the new cost§
The taste tax.
When making is cheap, choosing is expensive. A note on the new cost at the center of creative work.
Prompts, workflows, focus, and the quiet habits that make these tools useful in real life.
The shift from clever tricks to clear context is the single biggest unlock. Here's the template I actually use.
When making is cheap, choosing is expensive. A note on the new cost at the center of creative work.
A small three-step rhythm for using AI in research without ending up with a pile of confident nonsense.
The goalpost wasn't broken. It was just in the wrong place. A gentler protocol for email in the age of drafts-on-demand.
I use AI every day. I also publish once a week, by hand. Here is why both of those sentences are true.
Editing drafts with AI without sanding every sentence into the same beige paste. A small kit of defenses.
A quiet accounting of what I stopped paying for this quarter, and the small rituals that filled the gaps.
When anything can be generated in seconds, the scarce resource becomes knowing what is actually worth making.
Monday research, Tuesday writing, Wednesday inbox triage. The handoffs between tools matter more than the tools.