I stumbled across On Having Enough Socks recently, which is a great essay reflecting on the ways in which unimportant tasks are important, and the ways in which they aren’t.

I highly recommend reading it. It’s very well written, and the author seems knowledgeable and makes reasonable arguments. They connect various different ideas and fields of study to paint a complete and sensible picture. On offer is also some novel linguistic creations¹¹ Like local pessima, or the comfortable and familiar path of least reflection and other ways of playing with language.

Full disclosure: I might appreciate this essay as much as I do in part because it reinforces many of my previously held beliefs²² Coupons are a waste of time; checklists are a good idea; information is valuable and you should find cheap ways to experiment to get it; and so on.. A part of me also appreciates it because I have trouble precisely with correctly prioritising unimportant tasks.

But I do think it’s worth at least trying to read it. Trying is a cheap way to get further information to help you decide whether or not it’s worth finishing the read. 😉