Threading One Bead at a Time
Welcome to Effective Habits, a weekly newsletter where I share evidence-based strategies and tools to help you live a happy, healthy, and productive life.
Today at a Glance:
A String of Beads
Creativity and Expertise Slow Brain Aging
The Costs of Entry in Life
“All the stuff you can’t wait to get away from, until it’s not there anymore, and then you miss it like crazy.”
A String of Beads
Oliver Burkeman
🔦Lights, Camera, ...
It’s hard not to feel anxious these days — about politics, the planet, technology, the future, or simply the constant stream of bad news. Many people live suspended between helplessness and hyper-awareness: too informed to tune out, yet too powerless to make a dent. But there’s a deceptively simple image that can restore a sense of steadiness, the idea of threading beads on a string. Each bead represents one action, one moment, one choice. Some beads are large and weighty, like protests, hard conversations, or big projects, while others are small and plain, like making breakfast or replying to a message. When we see our lives this way, we shift from worrying about abstractions (“the world,” “the economy,” “my future”) to engaging with what’s concretely within reach. Every bead, large or small, is part of the same necklace, and all deserve equal care. The practice reorients us from the impossible task of controlling the future to the immediate act of choosing and completing the next bead. Anxiety lives in the imagined future; action lives in the present. And the more beads we thread, with each chosen with presence and trust, the stronger and more beautiful the string becomes, even when the world around us feels uncertain.
🎬Action!
When the world feels overwhelming or anxiety creeps in, narrow your focus to what’s directly in front of you. Ask yourself, “What’s the next bead I can add?” Then treat each task, no matter how small, as a bead you’re carefully threading onto the string of your day. Give it your full attention, then move to the next one. This simple shift keeps you grounded in what you can control, replaces anxiety about the future with trust in your ability to handle what comes next, and slowly builds a life that feels both calm and meaningful, bead by bead.
Creativity and Expertise Slow Brain Aging
Dr. Rhonda Patrick
🔦Lights, Camera, ...
Our brains naturally change with age, but creativity and learning can slow that clock in remarkable ways. A new study using brain imaging and machine learning found that expert creatives, like tango dancers, musicians, visual artists, and even gamers, had brains that appeared up to seven years younger than their peers. The reason lies in how creativity and skill learning shape the brain: short-term learning, like picking up a new hobby or game, can temporarily rejuvenate neural networks by forming new connections, while long-term creative mastery transforms the brain’s wiring itself, enhancing communication between regions tied to movement, rhythm, coordination, and mood. In essence, creativity trains the brain to stay adaptable. Short bursts of learning keep it flexible, but sustained creative practice and years spent refining a craft builds lasting resilience and efficiency. The takeaway: creativity isn’t just self-expression; it’s brain maintenance, helping your mind stay younger, sharper, and more alive.
🎬Action!
Start by learning something new—anything that challenges you creatively, whether it’s dancing, painting, or gaming—and stick with it long enough to stretch your brain. Short-term learning forms new neural connections and gives your brain a measurable boost in youthfulness and flexibility.
Over time, aim to go deep on at least one creative pursuit. Something you can keep refining and mastering for years to turn those short-term sparks into lasting neural strength and keep your brain truly younger.
Enhance Neuroplasticity by Boosting BDNF. In addition to movement and creative skill-building, focus on activities and habits that raise brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which is a key molecule for learning, memory, and neural growth.
Do regular aerobic exercise. Aim for consistent aerobic workouts, with longer or more intense sessions triggering larger boosts in BDNF by increasing lactate, which signals the brain to grow new neural connections.
Supplement with omega-3s. Take 1–1.5 grams of combined EPA and DHA daily for at least 10 weeks to enhance neuronal membrane health and support the biochemical environment needed for brain plasticity.
Use heat exposure. Spend about 20 minutes in a dry sauna (176–194°F / 80–90°C) or hot bath (around 108°F / 42°C) several times per week to raise core temperature and stimulate BDNF through heat-shock and blood-flow responses.
Incorporate metabolic switching. Practice intermittent fasting or use exogenous ketones periodically to elevate beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), a ketone that signals the brain to increase BDNF and improve adaptability.
The Costs of Entry in Life
Sahil Bloom
🔦Lights, Camera, ...
Everything worthwhile in life has a cost of entry. You pay for success with effort, for growth with discomfort, for mastery with repetition. The problem is that most people only expect the obvious costs, like hard work, discipline, and practice, and recoil from the hidden ones: the imposter syndrome that comes with leveling up, the uncertainty that shadows every meaningful pursuit, the loneliness that arrives when you outgrow your old circles, the boredom of repeating the basics long after the excitement fades. To love deeply, you must face hard conversations; to reach excellence, you must endure criticism; to progress, you must accept the embarrassment of being a beginner. These are not obstacles but tolls on the road to a fuller life. Everything you want demands that you pay, and those who pay the price with pride are the ones who move forward.
🎬Action!
Imposter Syndrome is the Cost of Entry for Growth. Feel the doubt and keep going anyway. When your skills stretch beyond your comfort zone, remind yourself you’re not supposed to feel ready—that’s the proof you’re growing.
Uncertainty is the Cost of Entry for Achievement. Take the next step even when the outcome is unclear. Learn to act without guarantees, trusting that showing up through uncertainty is what creates breakthroughs.
Loneliness is the Cost of Entry for Transformation. Accept that evolving means outgrowing some people and places. Use solitude as fuel, as time alone isn’t a setback, but the quiet space where your new self takes shape.
Boredom is the Cost of Entry for Success. Do the boring things well. Repeat the fundamentals when no one’s watching. Mastery comes from falling in love with monotony while others chase novelty.
Hard Conversations are the Cost of Entry for Meaningful Relationships. Don’t avoid discomfort. Address tension early and honestly. Every avoided conversation adds interest to an emotional debt you’ll pay later. Speak up now.
Criticism is the Cost of Entry for Excellence. Let judgment remind you you’re doing something that matters. Filter for truth, ignore the noise, and keep creating. The critic never enters the arena—you do.
Embarrassment is the Cost of Entry for Progress. Be willing to look foolish. Ask the naive question, share the imperfect work, stumble in public. Each small embarrassment is the tuition you pay for real growth.
TOOL TIP
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FUN FACT
Posh ladies would buy gladiator scrapings. So much of what we think we know about Roman gladiators comes from movies such as, well, Gladiator. But the reality of their lives was pretty different. They didn’t usually fight to the death (it cost a fortune to train and house them), they bulked up on barley (they were known as the “Barley Boys”) and some of them used fishing nets to fight with. But they were incredibly popular and did have fanatical followers. Rich Roman ladies would pay to have the sweat and muck scraped from their favourite fighter’s body after a session in the arena, which they would then use as a fancy moisturizer!
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Disclaimer: The information provided in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult a medical professional for advice, diagnosis, or treatment. We are not liable for any risks or issues that may arise from using this information.
