00:00:00.020 –> 00:00:00.160

Hey,

00:00:00.380 –> 00:00:00.560

everybody,

00:00:00.780 –> 00:00:07.020

and welcome to the Friday wrap-up on Streamline Solopreneur, a short episode where I talk about three things.

00:00:07.500 –> 00:00:08.500

What's on My Mind,

00:00:08.800 –> 00:00:09.780

Recommended Reading,

00:00:09.940 –> 00:00:11.240

and Recommended Media.

00:00:12.000 –> 00:00:16.640

This is the show that helps you automate your business so you can take time off worry-free,

00:00:17.160 –> 00:00:21.160

and hopefully this curation will help you think more about your systems.

00:00:21.800 –> 00:00:22.500

I'm your host,

00:00:22.660 –> 00:00:23.440

Joe Casabona,

00:00:23.760 –> 00:00:26.420

and here's what's on my mind for May 29,

00:00:26.740 –> 00:00:27.480

2026.

00:00:29.720 –> 00:00:30.000

Okay,

00:00:30.460 –> 00:00:38.220

so first of all, the thing that's on my mind this week is working on Saturday mornings and the summer.

00:00:39.520 –> 00:00:40.580

Two of three,

00:00:41.120 –> 00:00:45.820

two-thirds, I guess, of my kids are finished with school this week.

00:00:45.940 –> 00:00:50.940

Our school winds down in what I feel is a super weird way.

00:00:51.600 –> 00:00:56.040

But I also had a pre-ker and a kindergartner, and I know that's like different from one through eight.

00:00:56.600 –> 00:01:01.100

but it just feels like there's a lot of last days of school.

00:01:02.560 –> 00:01:05.519

But ultimately what that means is summer break is coming,

00:01:05.760 –> 00:01:11.000

and my schedule is going to monumentally shift for a couple of months.

00:01:12.600 –> 00:01:16.420

But I've also noticed something over the last month or so, right,

00:01:16.560 –> 00:01:21.180

where school was still kind of winding down but pretty much in full swing.

00:01:23.000 –> 00:01:27.620

I have been insanely productive on Saturday mornings.

00:01:29.260 –> 00:01:32.480

Usually I wake up around 5 a.m. I make some coffee.

00:01:32.720 –> 00:01:33.840

I let the dog out.

00:01:34.400 –> 00:01:42.540

And then I go down to my office to work for a couple of hours before the rest of the house is awake and functioning.

00:01:42.860 –> 00:01:47.480

And yes, I know that I kind of slipped into a New York accent there.

00:01:48.060 –> 00:01:51.080

I usually try to keep it on a low burn,

00:01:51.480 –> 00:01:57.540

but coffee and dog are like two of my words I can't shake.

00:01:58.340 –> 00:01:58.920

So anyway,

00:02:00.140 –> 00:02:06.680

I get a couple of hours of work done on Saturday mornings before the rest of the house is awake and functioning.

00:02:08.380 –> 00:02:16.080

I don't know if it's just that Saturday mornings are quieter or I have this limited amount of time and so I lock in faster,

00:02:16.240 –> 00:02:16.360

right?

00:02:16.480 –> 00:02:20.980

the idea that the work fills the container,

00:02:21.280 –> 00:02:21.380

right?

00:02:21.460 –> 00:02:27.260

The amount of work or the amount of time it takes you to do the work will fill the amount

00:02:27.260 –> 00:02:28.360

of time you have to do it.

00:02:28.820 –> 00:02:31.100

So if you have an hour to do a task, it'll take an hour.

00:02:31.100 –> 00:02:33.560

If you have four hours to do a task, it'll take four hours.

00:02:35.100 –> 00:02:42.320

But I don't think that's it because I never go down to my office with a super specific task in

00:02:42.420 –> 00:02:42.680

mind.

00:02:42.800 –> 00:02:45.580

It's usually more thinking time.

00:02:45.740 –> 00:02:53.260

I find myself thinking incredibly clearly on Saturday mornings, and I don't really know why.

00:02:53.480 –> 00:03:04.500

But I'd like to think it's because that there's not the hustle and bustle of everybody getting ready for work and getting the kids off to school,

00:03:05.040 –> 00:03:13.160

with which a nine-year-old, a five-year-old, and a four-year-old takes a significant amount of effort,

00:03:13.440 –> 00:03:13.560

right?

00:03:13.680 –> 00:03:17.980

And while my kids go to a school where they have to wear uniforms,

00:03:18.160 –> 00:03:22.140

the four-year-olds doesn't yet, but the nine and five-year-olds do have to wear uniforms,

00:03:22.360 –> 00:03:24.740

it's a little easier assuming,

00:03:25.300 –> 00:03:29.880

you know, we have prepared and we have a clean uniform. And sometimes that sneaks up on us.

00:03:30.420 –> 00:03:30.760

Lately,

00:03:30.920 –> 00:03:35.940

there's been a lot of dress down days or like gym uniform days.

00:03:36.600 –> 00:03:43.280

And so that has been the fact that I don't have to do that on Saturday mornings

00:03:44.820 –> 00:03:50.060

relieves a lot of the mental gymnastics I have to do.

00:03:50.340 –> 00:03:56.740

And I think that it's helped for me to do that work on Saturday mornings.

00:03:56.960 –> 00:03:58.980

And part of the reason I hope this is the case.

00:04:00.560 –> 00:04:04.680

is because summer might actually be very productive for me.

00:04:04.820 –> 00:04:07.060

We're not doing summer camp.

00:04:07.100 –> 00:04:09.320

I think there's like a couple of weeks throughout the year.

00:04:09.420 –> 00:04:10.640

We're doing some traveling,

00:04:10.980 –> 00:04:16.180

but generally a more relaxed schedule and a slower start

00:04:16.180 –> 00:04:22.520

to the morning might bode well for me even on weekdays because they're not really going

00:04:22.540 –> 00:04:25.460

to feel like a normal weekday,

00:04:25.680 –> 00:04:27.540

especially because my wife is a nurse.

00:04:27.820 –> 00:04:30.960

And she works three 12-hour shifts.

00:04:31.130 –> 00:04:36.000

So like our weeks are not the typical kids go to school,

00:04:36.260 –> 00:04:36.700

eight to three,

00:04:36.860 –> 00:04:37.420

mom and dad

00:04:37.500 –> 00:04:38.500

go to work nine to five.

00:04:38.940 –> 00:04:40.060

And it's never been that way.

00:04:40.650 –> 00:04:46.340

But, you know, the school year routine has taken up more time in the last couple of years.

00:04:47.580 –> 00:04:49.900

So this could bode really well for me.

00:04:51.020 –> 00:04:54.720

I've known for a long time that my mornings are when I work best.

00:04:55.320 –> 00:05:01.940

And I've always tried to box my work week into the regular work week.

00:05:02.320 –> 00:05:06.040

And part of that is a function of the school year,

00:05:07.060 –> 00:05:10.780

especially next year when all of my kids will be in school full time.

00:05:12.440 –> 00:05:22.580

But maybe this summer is a time for some intentional experimentation with a different sort of work week.

00:05:23.660 –> 00:05:25.320

I guess for some other context,

00:05:26.220 –> 00:05:32.360

the last couple of years have felt very chaotic because we don't do summer camp.

00:05:33.440 –> 00:05:36.600

And so we've tried to plan our weeks accordingly,

00:05:36.880 –> 00:05:41.400

but things come up and we didn't have the childcare we thought we had.

00:05:42.000 –> 00:05:43.240

And this year,

00:05:44.480 –> 00:05:50.000

we have been more aware and more intentional of what our child care situation can look like.

00:05:50.700 –> 00:05:58.680

We believe we have a pretty steady babysitter for a couple of days this summer each week in this summer.

00:05:59.360 –> 00:06:00.440

And we have backups.

00:06:00.740 –> 00:06:06.340

And so this summer should feel less chaotic than the last couple of summers.

00:06:07.720 –> 00:06:11.940

But maybe this summer is the time to experiment with a different sort of work week,

00:06:12.880 –> 00:06:19.280

where Saturday mornings are part of it and some other week day is not.

00:06:21.360 –> 00:06:24.020

So that's what I'm thinking about. That's what's on my mind this week.

00:06:24.220 –> 00:06:28.820

And I'd love to know what does your work week look like.

00:06:29.680 –> 00:06:46.100

I saw a video from CGP Gray a couple years ago. It was like, I think it was like shortly after the pandemic where he talked about weekend Wednesdays where he felt a better way for him to run his week was to work like Sunday,

00:06:46.300 –> 00:06:46.460

Monday,

00:06:46.660 –> 00:06:46.940

Tuesday,

00:06:47.140 –> 00:06:47.960

have off Wednesday,

00:06:48.380 –> 00:06:49.180

have off Thursday.

00:06:49.340 –> 00:06:49.620

Friday,

00:06:50.560 –> 00:06:52.500

or work Thursday, Friday, have off Saturday.

00:06:55.240 –> 00:06:56.340

When you're self-employed,

00:06:56.920 –> 00:06:59.320

you may have the flexibility to do something like that.

00:07:00.220 –> 00:07:01.260

So what does your work week look like?

00:07:01.360 –> 00:07:02.460

What are your best hours?

00:07:03.500 –> 00:07:07.000

Let me know, either in the comments, wherever you're reviewing this,

00:07:08.040 –> 00:07:09.560

or over at streamlined

00:07:10.260 –> 00:07:11.140

feedback.com.

00:07:12.240 –> 00:07:12.440

Okay,

00:07:12.620 –> 00:07:13.640

on to recommended reading.

00:07:13.800 –> 00:07:19.260

I know the Pope wrote an encyclical this week about AI.

00:07:19.300 –> 00:07:21.220

and I definitely plan on reading that this weekend.

00:07:22.560 –> 00:07:24.260

But for my recommended reading pick,

00:07:24.440 –> 00:07:27.280

I am choosing the creative act by Rick Rubin.

00:07:28.540 –> 00:07:32.120

I have been in a little bit of a reading slump.

00:07:32.560 –> 00:07:36.260

I haven't read any books start to finish since March,

00:07:37.100 –> 00:07:38.100

and I hate it.

00:07:38.860 –> 00:07:42.820

But I've also felt really like meh about every book I picked up.

00:07:43.000 –> 00:07:44.760

You know, I picked up a few business books

00:07:45.160 –> 00:07:48.680

and longtime listeners will know how I feel about business books.

00:07:48.840 –> 00:07:50.520

I do not like them.

00:07:50.520 –> 00:07:53.340

I feel like they are very generic,

00:07:53.620 –> 00:07:56.660

but sometimes also weirdly specific.

00:07:56.860 –> 00:07:58.260

Like, do this one thing,

00:07:58.800 –> 00:07:59.900

and it will work.

00:08:01.340 –> 00:08:05.920

And I also tried reading Walden by Henry David Thoreau.

00:08:06.560 –> 00:08:08.080

And that was a slog.

00:08:08.200 –> 00:08:09.700

I think I got through like 30 pages.

00:08:09.880 –> 00:08:13.380

And I was just like, this is too much for me.

00:08:14.680 –> 00:08:16.060

But almost randomly,

00:08:16.660 –> 00:08:18.760

I say almost randomly because I saw,

00:08:18.820 –> 00:08:21.080

post by Rick Rubin on Substack,

00:08:21.910 –> 00:08:25.220

I decided to grab the creative act off of my bookshelf. I bought it

00:08:25.220 –> 00:08:27.380

in December and give it a read.

00:08:28.020 –> 00:08:32.440

I finished it in a few days and I am officially out of my

00:08:32.560 –> 00:08:37.240

reading slump. I am excited to read the next couple of books I have,

00:08:37.820 –> 00:08:38.740

one of which is the

00:08:38.940 –> 00:08:45.719

Odyssey. I want to read that before the movie comes out. And so I'm recommending this because

00:08:46.060 –> 00:08:49.620

it's a 400-page book that got me out of my reading slump.

00:08:50.160 –> 00:08:51.840

And part of it is that it's a really

00:08:52.180 –> 00:08:52.820

easy read,

00:08:53.500 –> 00:08:54.060

right?

00:08:54.240 –> 00:08:59.800

Unlike the Iliad, which I read earlier this year and some other literature,

00:09:00.020 –> 00:09:09.440

and definitely unlike Walden, this is a really easy read. It is, it's a little too woo-woo for me.

00:09:10.300 –> 00:09:10.460

Like,

00:09:10.660 –> 00:09:15.700

we are all beautiful balls of light floating through the universe of woo-woo, and that's usually

00:09:15.760 –> 00:09:16.420

not my speed.

00:09:17.240 –> 00:09:20.300

But there are also a lot of really good nuggets in there. I've got a lot of dog-eared

00:09:20.480 –> 00:09:25.660

pages and highlights that I'm going to go through later today and put together my overall

00:09:25.780 –> 00:09:28.580

thoughts on the book and what solopreneurs can learn from it.

00:09:29.380 –> 00:09:34.300

But I think what works for me

00:09:34.440 –> 00:09:41.720

here is that the effort to read versus the woo-woo versus the nuggets is worth it.

00:09:41.920 –> 00:09:42.040

Right?

00:09:42.140 –> 00:09:45.680

Like it's a really easy read. You can skim a lot of it. You can

00:09:45.740 –> 00:09:49.760

straight up skip chapters that don't really resonate for you.

00:09:50.820 –> 00:09:53.660

And you can still get really good information out of it.

00:09:53.660 –> 00:09:57.300

And so I think there's a little something for everybody, whether you need that woo-woo.

00:09:58.100 –> 00:10:00.660

Or whether you prefer the more practical advice.

00:10:01.240 –> 00:10:02.020

I really like it.

00:10:03.000 –> 00:10:07.300

I obviously love and respect Rick Rubin's work.

00:10:08.400 –> 00:10:15.660

I mean, just going through the list of artists he's produced the beast.

00:10:15.680 –> 00:10:16.260

Beastie Boys,

00:10:16.510 –> 00:10:17.580

licensed to ill,

00:10:18.140 –> 00:10:19.960

public enemy,

00:10:20.220 –> 00:10:20.700

Slayer,

00:10:20.980 –> 00:10:21.760

Danzig,

00:10:22.710 –> 00:10:23.040

L.L.

00:10:23.360 –> 00:10:25.440

Cooljay in the 90s,

00:10:26.320 –> 00:10:27.340

red hot chili peppers,

00:10:27.880 –> 00:10:29.180

blood sugar,

00:10:29.360 –> 00:10:29.480

sex,

00:10:29.760 –> 00:10:30.360

magic.

00:10:31.580 –> 00:10:32.320

Sir Mix a lot.

00:10:32.760 –> 00:10:34.260

More Danzig,

00:10:35.060 –> 00:10:35.980

Mick Jagger,

00:10:36.440 –> 00:10:37.380

the cults,

00:10:37.580 –> 00:10:39.260

Tom Petty, and the Heartbreaks.

00:10:40.000 –> 00:10:40.340

I mean,

00:10:40.640 –> 00:10:41.120

his

00:10:44.140 –> 00:10:44.620

discography

00:10:46.040 –> 00:10:47.660

alone is incredible

00:10:47.860 –> 00:10:49.960

includes some of my favorite artists,

00:10:50.200 –> 00:10:51.140

System of a Down.

00:10:51.700 –> 00:10:52.680

He also helped

00:10:53.720 –> 00:10:55.420

I want to say resuscitate

00:10:55.680 –> 00:10:56.180

Metallica.

00:10:58.200 –> 00:10:59.280

You know, he produced

00:10:59.580 –> 00:11:01.440

Death Magnetic after St. Anger,

00:11:01.880 –> 00:11:03.560

which was widely considered

00:11:03.720 –> 00:11:04.600

their worst ever thing.

00:11:05.320 –> 00:11:07.320

So a lot of

00:11:07.400 –> 00:11:08.900

Lady Gaga, like I'm looking at this list,

00:11:09.000 –> 00:11:10.160

It's just wild,

00:11:10.540 –> 00:11:10.680

right?

00:11:11.260 –> 00:11:12.480

Going back to the 80s.

00:11:14.800 –> 00:11:20.540

And so all of that is to say that Rick Rubin has gained my respect.

00:11:21.580 –> 00:11:23.960

And that is the, I think if it was somebody else,

00:11:24.120 –> 00:11:26.060

I would have said, oh, this is too woo-woo for me.

00:11:26.720 –> 00:11:34.600

But Rick Rubin has the pedigree to be a little woo-woo, because he's done a lot of really good things.

00:11:35.220 –> 00:11:36.400

So I like the book.

00:11:36.400 –> 00:11:37.560

I strongly recommend it.

00:11:38.140 –> 00:11:38.700

Like I said,

00:11:39.040 –> 00:11:42.220

really easy read and a lot of really good nuggets.

00:11:44.020 –> 00:11:44.380

Now,

00:11:44.780 –> 00:11:46.900

for my recommended media,

00:11:47.760 –> 00:11:52.000

maybe it's because I'm reading the creative act in the same vein.

00:11:52.820 –> 00:11:54.820

There's no set YouTube video this week.

00:11:55.400 –> 00:11:59.440

I am recommending early to mid-2000s pop punk.

00:12:00.340 –> 00:12:05.400

I realized throughout the week I actually made three different discography playlists,

00:12:05.660 –> 00:12:05.840

him,

00:12:05.940 –> 00:12:07.800

which I wouldn't necessarily call punk pop.

00:12:09.160 –> 00:12:09.940

or pop punk rather

00:12:12.560 –> 00:12:13.840

Newfound glory and

00:12:14.080 –> 00:12:14.720

fallout boy

00:12:14.980 –> 00:12:16.500

and because I am a

00:12:16.960 –> 00:12:18.220

playlist kind of guy

00:12:18.640 –> 00:12:20.000

I have lots of folders

00:12:20.150 –> 00:12:22.020

for playlists about

00:12:22.760 –> 00:12:23.360

decades,

00:12:23.840 –> 00:12:23.920

seasons,

00:12:24.280 –> 00:12:24.620

holidays,

00:12:25.000 –> 00:12:26.180

stages of my life

00:12:26.280 –> 00:12:27.400

I have like a high school mix

00:12:27.400 –> 00:12:28.460

and a college mix

00:12:28.490 –> 00:12:30.880

and a sad early 20s mix

00:12:31.900 –> 00:12:34.440

and of course I have discographies

00:12:35.140 –> 00:12:36.260

and I've been really feeling

00:12:36.260 –> 00:12:37.780

the music of my youth

00:12:37.920 –> 00:12:43.580

this week. And maybe it's because the school year is ending. And that has me thinking about my own

00:12:43.960 –> 00:12:52.260

summer vacations. Maybe it's because pop punk is my favorite music to blast with the windows down.

00:12:52.320 –> 00:12:57.480

And I love driving with the windows down in the summer.

00:12:58.120 –> 00:12:58.680

So,

00:12:59.600 –> 00:13:01.800

and I think it ties really nicely

00:13:02.040 –> 00:13:05.520

into the Rick Rubin of it all,

00:13:05.680 –> 00:13:05.800

right?

00:13:06.180 –> 00:13:07.800

Thinking about Rick Rubin, who has, again,

00:13:07.940 –> 00:13:10.380

produced a lot of my favorite artists.

00:13:10.940 –> 00:13:11.180

Anyway,

00:13:11.420 –> 00:13:12.980

music has been on my mind this week.

00:13:13.540 –> 00:13:18.420

And so I am just recommending general playlists.

00:13:19.799 –> 00:13:21.740

So either way, I'm here for it, right?

00:13:22.320 –> 00:13:24.440

Maybe it's summer, maybe it's driving with the windows down.

00:13:24.520 –> 00:13:27.200

Maybe it's just nostalgia as I'm in my 40s now.

00:13:27.780 –> 00:13:28.740

Either way, I'm here for it,

00:13:29.080 –> 00:13:31.780

you can find some of the playlists I mentioned over on my

00:13:31.860 –> 00:13:32.540

Apple podcast,

00:13:32.940 –> 00:13:35.760

my Apple music profile,

00:13:36.320 –> 00:13:40.820

which I will link in the description for this episode.

00:13:42.580 –> 00:13:48.560

But that's it for the Friday wrap-up. If you enjoyed this episode,

00:13:49.020 –> 00:13:50.260

consider joining my mailing list

00:13:50.260 –> 00:13:52.720

at streamlined.fm slash wrap.

00:13:53.280 –> 00:13:57.540

You'll get an additional automation of the week, as well as regular

00:13:57.700 –> 00:14:01.760

emails on how to approach building systems to help you take.

00:14:01.780 –> 00:14:02.840

take time off worry-free.

00:14:04.260 –> 00:14:05.500

Thanks so much for listening.

00:14:06.040 –> 00:14:06.920

And until next time,

00:14:07.380 –> 00:14:10.060

I hope you find some space in your weekend.