Hi! 👋 I’m Anna Codrea-Rado and today’s newsletter is the best of what I've been reading, listening to, and doing to be more productive.

As a business and culture writer, I'm always game for a productivity hack – but I’m even more fascinated by why we’re so obsessed with optimisation in the first place. If these newsletters save you time, money or sanity, consider showing your thanks by supporting my work. 

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» Am I lazy, depressed or just burnt out?

It’s much easier to say “I’m burnt out” rather than “I’m depressed”. Not helped the fact that burnout and depression have overlapping symptoms and if left untreated, the former can lead to the latter. Let’s not even talk about lazy shaming.

Kati Morton, a licensed therapist who makes mental health videos on YouTube, explains the difference between laziness, depression, and burnout.

• Laziness is an unwillingness to do something, not an inability. If you're berating yourself for not doing something you said you would, ask yourself if you're unwilling or unable to do it.

• Depression is a mental illness that can cause a loss of interest in activities you once enjoyed, difficulty concentrating, changes in appetite or sleep patterns, and feelings of sadness or hopelessness.

• Burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive work stress. It happens when the reward isn’t commensurate with the effort. 

It goes without saying that if what Kati talks about in this video resonates with you, it’s important to talk to a doctor, trusted friend or mental health pro about it. <3 

» Chatbot prompts for writers

I recently wrote about how I boss chatbots around like interns. I don’t use them to save time, but rather my sanity. Much like interns, they need close supervision but are such great helpers and cute to have around. 

Here are my top three prompts for writers:

1. What’s the missing word here? Chatbots are particularly good at helping you find your words. You can also ask it "what's the word for" a definition, "what's another word for" a term, or "what's a good way to say" something specific.

2. How would you describe this writing? It'll come back with some descriptors that I can then use to prompt it to improve a draft in my voice rather than its robot one.

3. Tidy this up: For when I want a little bit more than a proofread but not a complete rewrite.

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» A ceiling fan!

After last summer’s heatwave here in the UK, I’ve been contemplating getting air conditioning. After much research, however, I settled on trying a ceiling fan instead. It’s less money and hassle to install than AC, not to mention better for the environment.

Ceiling fans aren’t as much of a thing here as they are in the US though, so it wasn’t easy figuring out which one to get. And get she persisted! I ended up buying a Philips one because I liked how its blades retract when not in use. Genius. We’ve got it in the bedroom and it’s so much quieter and more powerful than our standing fan. It looks a bit like a spaceship, but I’m into it. 👽

» Posture exercises

I’ve been struggling with a shoulder problem for months now. The physio isn’t sure what caused it, but the leading suspect is poor posture.

One of the exercises I’ve been given is standing against a wall and pulling back my shoulder blades. It really helps reset my neck and upper back and when I walk away from the wall I instantly feel more upright.

Pro tip: I do mine when I brush my teeth so that I remember to do it.

» Left-field flying hacks for nervous travellers

And lastly, something for my fellow fearful fliers. I wrote about being brave and finally doing something about my fear of flying so that I could make it to New York for a wedding. You might know the bride, Léo Hamelin, she illustrates these newsletters ❤️

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