Leadership

Marco Altini – HRV4Training

December 9, 2015 by

**Summary:**

In Episode #195 Ari interviews [Marco Altini](http://www.marcoaltini.com/) of [HRV4Training](http://www.hrv4training.com/blog)—an app designed to help people get in great shape with HRV training.

Listen as Ari and JV talk about the value of HRV, how the HRV4Training app works, and how Marco got into app development.

**Special Announcements:**

## [Leave Us a Review!](https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ari-meisel-less-doing/id605938952?mt=2&uo=6) Hey Less Doing Podcast Listeners, we want to hear from YOU! Visit us on iTunes and leave a review or subscribe to the podcast if you’re not already a dedicated follower.

**Time Stamped Show Notes:**

– 27:07 – Introduction of Marco Altini

– 27:35 – HRV measurements via smartphone cameras

– 27:45 – Marco’s background

– 28:40 – Think of solutions that employ your knowledge

– 29:20 – Stress can greatly compromise Heart Rate Variability

– 29:49 – By directing light at the finger, the light reflected back into the camera can determine blood flood, heart rate, etc.

– 30:18 – Why people need to care about HRV?—it’s a strong marker of parasympathetic activity

– 31:42 – The versatility of knowing your HRV

– 33:03 – Determining the accuracy disparity between the camera-reader and a more traditional chest-reader (ECG)

– 35:30 – The advantage of simple HRV tests

– 37:40 – All ways do the HRV test at the same time, in the same position for consistency

– 38:00 – Don’t do _anything_ (even read your email) that might impact your physiology before taking a baseline test

**3 Key Points:**

1. Think of solutions that are rooted in that which you already know—it will help you save time and be more efficient.

2. Stress might be the single greatest influencer of Heart Rate Variability.

3. HRV is a wonderful marker for measuring overall health.

**Resources Mentioned:**

– [The #1 Mistake Parents Make When Arguing](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/10/out-of-control-kids/)

– From Barking up the Wrong Tree – [Using Food as Medicine](http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/10/18/clinical-nutrition-certification.aspx)

– An article explaining how you can become legally allowed to prescribe food as medicine – [Spark](http://www.baronfig.com/pages/spark) – Inspiration on your phone and wrist – [Elegantt](http://elegantt.com/trello/?ref=producthunt)

– A new plugin for Trello – [Studies.Show](http://studies.show/)

– Want to know what studies show?—this is your site – [Press Record](http://www.blessthisstuff.com/stuff/technology/apps/just-press-record/)

– A simple new app designed to let you sync your audio recording across disparate devices – [How Productive People Start the Day](http://greatist.com/connect/how-productive-people-start-day?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-)

– From Greatest – [Howdy.ai](http://howdy.ai/?ref=producthunt)

– For Slack users, a bot build to make you more effective – [Amino](https://amino.com/?ref=producthunt)

– Find doctors to perfectly match your needs – [Neutun](http://neutun.com/?ref=producthunt)

– Seizure tracking made easy – [Neighborhoods NYC](http://www.neighborhoods.nyc/welcome.html)

– The official website on NYC’s diverse neighborhoods – [Chocomize](http://www.chocomize.com/?ref=producthunt)

– Personalized chocolate gifts – [Sane Connect](http://www.saneconnect.com/?ref=producthunt)

– Turn every employee into a sales person – [Starling](http://www.versame.com/?ref=producthunt)

– A tracking system designed to help children – [Foodstirs](https://foodstirs.com/?ref=producthunt)

– Creative baking care packages – [Autoimmune Flare Ups](http://www.medicaldaily.com/autoimmune-disease-flare-ups-may-be-triggered-certain-dietary-fats-others-might-357992)

– How certain autoimmune diseases might actually be triggered by dietary fats – Crohn’s and Colitis Week – December 1st through the 7th – Call 1-844-i-do-less – Toll-Free number, Press “0” to speak with a Less Doing Certified Coach – Te — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

Mike Vardy – The Productivityist

December 2, 2015 by

Summary:

In Episode #194 Ari interviews Mike Vardy of [The Productivityist](http://productivityist.com/).

Listen as Ari and Mike talk about the value the productive space, and how developing a personal methodology for productivity can help individuals harness tools instead of letting productivity tools control them.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

– 01:01 – Introduction to today’s show with Mike Vardy

– 02:30 – Links

– 12:02 – Less Doing Boot Camp

– 13:43 – Speaking with Mike Vardy

– 14:02 – Mike’s background in productivity education

– 15:37 – First steps in becoming more productive

– 17:34 – [GTD](http://gettingthingsdone.com/) Principals

– 19:53 – The people of GTD

– 20:54 – Being productive vs. doing productive

– 21:47 – The approach is more important than the app or tool. “Men can become the tools of their tools”

– 23:14 – What aspects of productivity planning work well

– 24:33 – Put personal back in productivity

– 25:51 – [Sanebox](http://www.sanebox.com/l/upgrade-your-inbox-today/) and other email organizers

– 27:04 – [Unroll Me](https://unroll.me/)

– 27:52 – Productivity maintenance vs. growth

– 28:41 – Mike’s daily routines

– 31:21 – Daily themes

– 31:53 – Mike’s Top 3 Tips to be More Productive

– 31:55- Have a simple morning and evening routine

– 32:15 – Write journal entries

– 32:34 – Work by mode 3 Key Points:

1. There is a psychology to productivity—without the psychology, it can’t work.

2. Don’t let your tools take you over.

3. Develop a routine and stick to it—the benefits will be massive.

Resources Mentioned:

– [Pavlok Wristband –](http://buy.pavlok.com/) Pavlok Wristband’s safe electronic stimulus helps relieve users of bad habits like smoking, overeating, and more. – [Tap Slash](http://tapslash.com/)

– Slash is a free keyboard for iPhone & iPad that makes it easy to share anything, without switching apps. Just tap “/” to unlock Places, GIFs, Music, Stickers, Videos, and much more. – [Instant App](http://instantapp.today/) – Instant tracks all your daily activities automatically so that you will be able to notice how you spend time on your smartphone. – [Easy Swag](http://easyswag.co/)

– Easy Swag is powered by Large, a free office admin in Slack that gets your team anything hassle free. – [Synkio Music Library](http://synk.io/library)

– Use Synkio’s to access music professionals who will manage your music and licensing needs. – [Startup Threads](https://www.startupthreads.com/)

– StartupThreads is the easiest way to automatically send custom shirts and apparel to your loyal customers and fans, without having to hold inventory in your office. – [GTD](http://gettingthingsdone.com/)

– ‘Getting Things Done’ is a productivity methodology. – [Sanebox](http://www.sanebox.com/l/upgrade-your-inbox-today/)

– SaneBox works on top of your email account. It prioritizes important emails and summarizes the rest. – [Unroll Me](https://unroll.me/)

– Unroll Me allows you to unsubscribe from subscriptions or combine your favorite subscriptions into one email. – [194MikeVardyOfProductivistInterview”>Evernote](https://www.evernote.com/%3Ca%20href=)

– vernote keeps all your writing in one place, from notes to lengthy research. – [The Productivityist](http://productivityist.com/)

– Mick’s productivity business that provides productivity coaching, events, and podcasts. – Call 1-844-i-do-less – Toll-Free number, Press “0” to speak with a Less Doing Certified Coach – Text DOLESS – Text DOLESS to 33733

Credits:

– Audio Engineering provided by [Chris Mottram](https://www.linkedin.com/pub/christopher-mottram/96/b12/708)

– Original Music provided by [Felix Bird](http://2014.felixbird.com/)

– Show Notes provided by [Mallard — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

Julien Smith – Breather

November 25, 2015 by

# Summary:

In Episode #193 Ari interviews [Julien Smith](http://juliensmith.com/) from [Breather](https://breather.com/), a company that provides workspace by the hour in several of the major metropolises in America and Canada.

Special Announcements:

This week’s episode of the Less Doing Podcast is brought to you by [JustWorks](https://www.justworks.com/), an innovative company striving to make payroll, benefits, and compliance management a seamless and stress-free process.

The most intuitive software for your business; take your most tedious and time consuming part of your job and make it the simplest and most automated part of your day.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

– 12:40 – Julien background is hugely buried. No education. He came across the internet at a young age. His first claim to fame was being one of the first podcasters in the world.

– 13:05 – Did radio when he was younger.

– 13:21 – His show got picked up by Sirius Satellite Radio.

– 13:29 – After rising to fame, he wrote books about the social web. He wrote the first social media marketing book, which became a best-seller.

– 13:39 – He ended up writing three books.

– 13:48 –As he travelled around the world, he noticed the lack of privacy everywhere he went and that ended up being the catalyst for starting Breather.

– 14:09 – Breather takes electronic locks, put them on cool rooms and then they allow the locks to be opened with anyone with mobile apps. Basically, it’s like a private club or private offices that can be rented.

– 14:29 – There are about 50 in Manhattan and growing.

– 14:33 – Rooms can be booked for as little as 30 minutes to as long as a day.

– 15:56 – Because of the books he wrote, he had a big network in which he found support for his idea.

– 16:41- He did go through a lot of objections. He took it as proof that Breather was a disruptive company.

– 18:18 – He designed it to be sort of like a “personal Starbucks”.

– 19:13 – His co-founder designed the original spaces and now there’s a team to curate and design spaces.

– 21:25 – To maintain the spaces in good shape/clean depends on the density of the location. A location with high density of traffic is easier to clean up, which makes it more affordable to do over time. Employees clean after themselves, and they clean rooms on the regular.

– 23:00 – The only major problem they have is people smoking, contrary to what many people might think.

– 24:47 – Some people use it for life coaching, meditation, meetings, psychotherapy, etc.

– 27:00 – People can’t use the offices after a certain hour because the spaces are intended to compete with hotels.

– 28:16 – 5 cities that they are hiring for: London, Chicago, LA, Washington D.C., and Toronto.

3 Key Points:

1. Start with a blank slate (a clean desk, a clean space, a clean desktop, etc.).

2. Write everything down.

3. Focus on one major project at a time.

Resources Mentioned:

– Text DOLESS – Text DOLESS to 33733 – [Stressed Out](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/stressed-out/id807488741?mt=8&utm_content=buffer164c6&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer)

– Can quantify your psychological stress level and help you understanding how different events impact your physiology and wellbeing. – [The 15-Minute HIIT Workout That’ll Build Strength Fast](http://greatist.com/move/timed-hiit-workout?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=feed_http–greatistcom-)- Does just what it says – [What Is Golden Milk?](http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2015/09/21/golden-milk.aspx)

– Golden milk is a tea with turmeric and coconut oil, and black pepper. – [12 Secrets to Simplifying Your Life and Lightening Yo — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

JV Crum – The Conscious Millionaire

November 18, 2015 by

Summary:

In Episode #192 Ari interviews JV Crum of [The Conscious Millionaire](http://consciousmillionaire.com/).

Listen as Ari and JV talk about the value of having _real_ purpose in life, and how chasing that purpose means having measurable goals and focused priorities.

Special Announcements:

The most intuitive software for your business; take your most tedious and time consuming part of your job and make it the simplest and most automated part of your day.

Time Stamped Show Notes:

– 04:44 – [Less Doists](http://www.lessdoists.com/) — the virtual assistant service Ari started with Nick S. of Calvin app lore — did 100 hours of work for its clients

– 26:42 – Introduction of JV Crum III—[the Conscious Millionaire](http://consciousmillionaire.com/)

– 26:59 – JV stands for ‘Joint Venture’. JV was called ‘Junior Varsity’ in law school and he decided to change that by telling people at conferences it stood for ‘Joint Venture.’ His full name is James Vivien Crum the III

– 28:20 – Before being ‘The Conscious Millionaire’ JV grew up in a family with a lot of financial struggles and decided that the end to that was to grow up and be a millionaire. He became a millionaire when he was about 25

– 28:50 – He realized his life was miserable and he went on sweat lodges, spiritual retreats as part of a 15 year journey to try and figure out what was missing

– 29:27 – He sold the companies because he realized he wasn’t living his purpose and went on to find out what was his purpose

– 29:41 – Had a revelation in Lake Tahoe and solved the phrase in his head ‘Conscious Millionaire’ and decided that’s what he was supposed to be doing.

– 30:10 – He made his money by working in his dad’s business (regional trucking line). He turned the business around and within 3 years the company was making three figure profits in a month

– 32:02 – Teaching people how to make money in alignment with their purpose, their passion

– 32:47 – Helps people find their passion or purpose with coaching

– 33:30 – Journaling

– 33:36 – How to figure out passion: What are the things you’re so passionate about that hours pass and you don’t even know it? And when you’re engaged in it you feel joy? And I bet those are the same activities you’ve helped friends/clients for free.

– 34:11 – 2. How to figure out your purpose: a difference you want to make. – 35:08 – Purpose is about being of service to others.

– 35: 15 – How to figure out your purpose: if you could wake up every day and make this difference for people, you’d feel joy, you’d feel happy?

– 35:28 – What are your natural strengths?

– 35:40 – Strengths = things you do almost perfectly every time.

– 36:29 – People don’t know how to make money out of it.

– 36:31 – You make money by looking at a few niche markets that have problems that the difference you want to make can help provide solutions for.

– 36:47 – The only thing a buyer will buy is solutions.

– 37:01 – Only chose one of those niches and two or three problems and 1 product

– 38:01 – His first product was coaching

– 39:47 – Having a holistic approach

– 40:12 – The energy from your heart space is what really pushes you

– 40:28 – Health and fitness practices are indispensable

– 42:00 – JV’s _Top 3 Tips to be More Effective_

– 42:23 – Have priorities and don’t have more than 3

– 42:34 – Don’t wake up with a to-do list, wake up with a priority

– 43:25 – Take focused action and have measurable results

– 43:55 – [www.Con — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

Mark Podolsky – The Land Geek

November 11, 2015 by

**Summary:**

In Episode #191 Ari interviews Mark Podolsky of [The Land Geek](http://www.thelandgeek.com/), a company that’s founded on land flipping and the development of passive income.

Tune in to hear Mark and Ari talk secrets to success and why all your entrepreneurial attention should be on moving the needle.

**Special Announcements:**

**Time Stamped Show Notes:**

– 00:35 – Introduction of [JustWorks](https://www.justworks.com/) and Isaac Oats

– 00:55 – Nuts and bolts are the hardest part of HR for small companies

– 02:45 – Ari muses on Daylight Savings Time

– 33:56 – Introduction of Mark Podolsky of [The Land Geek](http://www.thelandgeek.com/)

– 34:11 – Mark Podolsky’s background

– 36:21 – The process of identifying properties

– 38:00 – Now Mark teaches Land Flipping

– 40:05 – Automation has become integral to Mark’s success

– 40:32 – The automation of the offer sending process is the keystone to Mark’s success

– 41:12 – Click to Mail

– 42:29 – Mark’s vetting process doubles as his marketing process

– 42:54 – Don’t worry about “generating traffic” just go to where the buyers are

– 43:58 – [The Death of Money](http://amzn.to/20KID5C)

– 44:50 — $6000 for a property and flipping it for $55K

– 46:37 – The course creation process

– 47:53 – Mark’s _Top 3 Tips to be More Effective_

– 48:05 – Take imperfect action

– 48:42 – Don’t recreate the wheel—respect your time

– 49:11 – Be aware of _everything_ you do—have your numbers DOWN

– 49:30 – “Playing Business” doesn’t move the needle—focus on what does

– 50:08 – [www.TheLandGeek.com](http://www.thelandgeek.com/)

**5 Key Points:**

1. Don’t waste your time on things that don’t move the needle.

2. Respect your time.

3. Niche markets can be a highly lucrative (and easy) way to make money.

4. Don’t worry about traffic, just take yourself to where the buyers are.

5. KNOW YOUR NUMBERS.

**Resources Mentioned:**

– [The Less Doing WODcast](http://lessdoingwodcast.com/)

– A FULLY AUTOMATED daily workout routine brought to you for FREE by Dave Rael and Ari – Call 1-844-i-do-less – Toll-Free number, Press “0” to speak with a Less Doing Certified Coach – Text DOLESS – Text DOLESS to 33733 – [iflscience](http://www.iflscience.com/health-and-medicine/should-work-start-10am)

– From Sleep Researcher Paul Kelly, an article explaining why the day shouldn’t start until 10AM – [Ivee](https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/ivee-talking-to-your-home-is-no-longer-sci-fi?ref=producthunt#/story)

– Talk to your home with a voice integrated assistant – [Kimerakoffee](http://www.kimerakoffee.com/?utm_content=buffer1958c&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer#kimera-legend)

– Coffee infused the high-quality nootropics – [Power of Empathy](http://www.bakadesuyo.com/2015/09/power-of-empathy/)

– The 3 ways empathy can improve your life – [Homey App](http://startupli.st/homey_team)

– Assign chores with snapshots – [SVET](http://startupli.st/getsvet) – Smart lightbulbs that improve your life – [Anti-Vaccine Group Hurts Itself](http://magazine.good.is/articles/anti-vaxx-study-backfires)

– An Anti-Vaccine group funded an objective study that showed no correlation exists between autism and vaccines – [The Fountain of Youth](http://www.medicaldaily.com/pulse/fountain-youth-oldest-woman-world-susannah-mushatt-jones-eats-bacon-every-day-356208)

– 116 Year old woman eats bacon every day – [Fun Fungi](http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and– — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

Guillermo Miotti – LEGO Serious Play

November 4, 2015 by

# Summary:

In Episode #190 Ari interviews [Guillermo Miotti](https://www.linkedin.com/in/gmiotti) of LEGO Serious Play, a consultancy designed to help multinational businesses improve internal communications and processes through creative, LEGO-based problem solving exercises.

**Special Announcements:**

**Time Stamped Show Notes:**

– 0:32- Introduction of [JustWorks](https://www.justworks.com/) and Isaac Oats

– 0:39 – Payroll is obviously complicated and scalable

– 0:55 – Payroll is unfair for smaller businesses

– 01:15 – What JustWorks does

– 01:35 – JustWorks is built to work with employees more so than contractors

– 06:40 – The Less Doing Mastermind program is no more

– 07:35 – Calvin App has finally gone LIVE

– 10:40 – Many soldiers are NOT ready to enter the job market

– 11:40 – LDVA has opened up the hiring—if you are looking for a new opportunity, or know someone who is, send an email to [Jobs@LessDoists.com](mailto:Jobs@LessDoists.com)

– 13:00 – LDVA.com

– 27:05 – Introduction of Guillermo Miotti of LEGO [Serious Play](http://www.seriousplay.com/)

– 27:36 – Guillermo’s background as a psychologist and HR Specialist in Argentina

– 28:28 – Quickly became a “change management” expert

– 29:45 – How LEGO determined LEGOs can be effective in the workplace

– 32:28 – Testing included bouts at MIT and NASA

– 33:12 – LEGO Education is a HUGE business unit

– 33:45 – It’s all about being OPEN to learning

– 34:00 – What a “play” session looks like

– 34:20 – Start by DEFINING the problem

– 35:35 – Ask a question, provide an answer, analyze the answer, reflect as a team

– 36:30 – When we are using our hands to play, 100% of our attention is on the task at hand

– 37:55 – LEGO Serious Play engages EVERYONE in the room, not just the traditional decision makers

– 39:40 – Our hands share an intimate neural connection with our brains

– 40:32 – The LEGO sets are specifically designed for customers and are _not_ available in stores

– 41:22 – Guillermo works (primarily) for multinationals

– 42:17 – If you OR your organization created the problem, you also have the capacity to solve it

– 42:45 – We don’t normally conceptualize in 3D

– 44:30 – Story_making_ (not telling) is undervalued

– 45:32 – Part of the beauty of the program is the simplicity of LEGOs

– 45:45 – Guillermo’s _Top 3 Tips to be More Effective_:

– 45:56 – Be aware of what drives you—what is your passion?

– 46:21 – Have fun—PLAY!

– 46:35 – Try to create something new with others

– 47:00 – [www.SeriousPlay.com](http://www.seriousplay.com/) and [www.juegoserio.com](http://www.juegoserio.com/)

**5 Key Points:**

1. Define your problems explicitly—if you don’t you can’t solve them.

2. Find beauty in simplicity.

3. “Get in there with your hands!”—our hands share serious neural connections with our brains, helping us to think more effectively.

4. Don’t just story_tell_, story_make_.

5. If you created a problem you also have the capacity to solve it.

**Resources Mentioned:**

– [The Less Doing WODcast](http://lessdoingwodcast.com/)

– A FULLY AUTOMATED daily workout routine brought to you for FREE by Dave Rael and Ari – Call 1-844-i-do-less – Toll-Free number, Press “0” to speak with a Less Doing Certified Coach – Text DOLESS – Text DOLESS to 33733 – [Washing Dishes for Mindfulness](http://read.feedly.com/html?url=http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12671-014-0360-9)

– Washing dishes by hand is the first — Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/lessdoing/message

Get Chapter 1 of my book, The Art of Less Doing:

Less Work, More Results,
More Happiness

Connecting to Me Personally

Leadership

Get Chapter 1 of my book, The Art of Less Doing:

Less Work, More Results, More Happiness

Connecting to Me Personally

Less Work, More Results,
More Happiness