Not surprisingly the Luca Fogale podcast stimulated a deep and enlightening discussion covering: Luca’s phrase ‘the soft panic in the background’; how music builds deep community; how solitude can stimulate an artistic life, the poetic sensibility, Luca’s very personal and exploratory ‘mattering project’, the difficulty of coming off tour, abiding in ambiguity and uncertainty and developing character and virtue.

In this roundtable we discussed my podcast with Steven Puri and the topic was his website and app designed to encourage flow at work and a state of inner calm and satisfaction (Sukha). We began with the value of the community of users, especially for those who work predominantly from home. We then discussed procrastination and how Sukha helps. We agreed that ‘I’ am the biggest distractor of ‘me’ and we compared the less distracted mind to a cultivated mindfulness. We also considered how meaningful work structures and directs the mind in healthy ways. A key conclusion was that productivity is not the goal, nor does it lead to happiness. Rather, the goal is Sukha. Finally, we saw how thai app allows for idiosyncratic and personal tailoring: what works for you. As usual, a great conversation!

Sukha is a Sanskrit word that translates to inner ease and happiness. The Sukha Company is a website and app designed to help people attain flow states while working. The idea is to have all the tools in one place, activated by one button, to support this daily practice. In this conversation with founder and CEO Steven Puri we cover many topics including the epedemic of distraction and 'acedia' -a widespread sense of dissatisfaction and restlessness - and therefore Steven's purpose is not so much productivity increase, but increasing people's happiness and wellbeing. The app is a whole system of AI-informed aids including aural lanscapes (music and/or sound), a smart assistant that gently prods you if you surf the internet or pick up the phone; a pomodoro-type timer; a real-time task management system that also helps construct fewer, more practical goals; suggestions for break activities (stretches, walks, breathing etc) breaks, and an optional live community. This was an entertaining and really practical discussion.