JA Westenberg
@joanwestenberg.com
Dungeons & Dragons alignment charts are Myers-Briggs for cool people.
They are also more accurate + more useful than Myers-Briggs.
They are also more accurate + more useful than Myers-Briggs.
November 28, 2025 at 5:02 AM
Dungeons & Dragons alignment charts are Myers-Briggs for cool people.
They are also more accurate + more useful than Myers-Briggs.
They are also more accurate + more useful than Myers-Briggs.
Online discourse is just the Investiture Controversy of 1076, except instead of the Pope and the Emperor fighting over who appoints bishops, it's people with PhDs and people with podcasts fighting over who gets to define "expert"
November 28, 2025 at 3:31 AM
Online discourse is just the Investiture Controversy of 1076, except instead of the Pope and the Emperor fighting over who appoints bishops, it's people with PhDs and people with podcasts fighting over who gets to define "expert"
Pretty much every YouTube thumbnail is now:
😱👉💰
And I hate it.
😱👉💰
And I hate it.
November 28, 2025 at 1:39 AM
Pretty much every YouTube thumbnail is now:
😱👉💰
And I hate it.
😱👉💰
And I hate it.
"I specifically can't relate to that character" has become the dominant form of art criticism and it's bloody tragic.
Imagine telling Kafka "I'm not a giant bug so this story doesn't resonate with me." The whole damn point is the empathy bridge across the impossible.
Imagine telling Kafka "I'm not a giant bug so this story doesn't resonate with me." The whole damn point is the empathy bridge across the impossible.
November 27, 2025 at 7:56 PM
"I specifically can't relate to that character" has become the dominant form of art criticism and it's bloody tragic.
Imagine telling Kafka "I'm not a giant bug so this story doesn't resonate with me." The whole damn point is the empathy bridge across the impossible.
Imagine telling Kafka "I'm not a giant bug so this story doesn't resonate with me." The whole damn point is the empathy bridge across the impossible.
"I'm depressed"
Your options:
Therapist: $200/session
Philosopher: Free, but you have to read
Religion: Free, but there are rules
Internet: Free, but now everything is 100x worse
Your options:
Therapist: $200/session
Philosopher: Free, but you have to read
Religion: Free, but there are rules
Internet: Free, but now everything is 100x worse
November 27, 2025 at 10:16 AM
"I'm depressed"
Your options:
Therapist: $200/session
Philosopher: Free, but you have to read
Religion: Free, but there are rules
Internet: Free, but now everything is 100x worse
Your options:
Therapist: $200/session
Philosopher: Free, but you have to read
Religion: Free, but there are rules
Internet: Free, but now everything is 100x worse
You're here.
You're here, and you're probably not going to be a billionaire.
You're probably not going to be a rock star or a movie star or any kind of star at all.
Your Wikipedia page may never exist.
And that's okay.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/you-are-i...
You're here, and you're probably not going to be a billionaire.
You're probably not going to be a rock star or a movie star or any kind of star at all.
Your Wikipedia page may never exist.
And that's okay.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/you-are-i...
You Are Insignificant. That's a Good Thing.
A Short Guide to Being Infinitesimally Small
www.joanwestenberg.com
November 27, 2025 at 7:15 AM
You're here.
You're here, and you're probably not going to be a billionaire.
You're probably not going to be a rock star or a movie star or any kind of star at all.
Your Wikipedia page may never exist.
And that's okay.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/you-are-i...
You're here, and you're probably not going to be a billionaire.
You're probably not going to be a rock star or a movie star or any kind of star at all.
Your Wikipedia page may never exist.
And that's okay.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/you-are-i...
Increasingly convinced that the internet's entire understanding of the concept of "irony" is based on Alanis Morissette
November 27, 2025 at 6:21 AM
Increasingly convinced that the internet's entire understanding of the concept of "irony" is based on Alanis Morissette
I'm demonetizing my YouTube channel.
Permanently.
Why?
Because you can't give a lecture on intentional living and then serve it wrapped in the most sophisticated distraction-delivery system ever created.
Or at least - I can't.
youtu.be/y7SSUDgsz_w
Permanently.
Why?
Because you can't give a lecture on intentional living and then serve it wrapped in the most sophisticated distraction-delivery system ever created.
Or at least - I can't.
youtu.be/y7SSUDgsz_w
Why I'm Demonetizing My YouTube Channel
Starting this week, I'm turning off monetization on all my YouTube videos. Permanently. And I'm not going back.I told a few friends and fellow writers, and t...
www.youtube.com
November 27, 2025 at 3:39 AM
I'm demonetizing my YouTube channel.
Permanently.
Why?
Because you can't give a lecture on intentional living and then serve it wrapped in the most sophisticated distraction-delivery system ever created.
Or at least - I can't.
youtu.be/y7SSUDgsz_w
Permanently.
Why?
Because you can't give a lecture on intentional living and then serve it wrapped in the most sophisticated distraction-delivery system ever created.
Or at least - I can't.
youtu.be/y7SSUDgsz_w
guy who's really into stoicism but only the "control your emotions" part and not the "also you should probably accept death calmly and live virtuously" part and also sucks at controlling his emotions
November 27, 2025 at 12:19 AM
guy who's really into stoicism but only the "control your emotions" part and not the "also you should probably accept death calmly and live virtuously" part and also sucks at controlling his emotions
Paid members' post for the week: my 2025 productivity update.
Some notes on how I do what I do.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/2025-prod...
Some notes on how I do what I do.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/2025-prod...
2025 Productivity Update
Westenberg Pro
www.joanwestenberg.com
November 26, 2025 at 8:19 PM
Paid members' post for the week: my 2025 productivity update.
Some notes on how I do what I do.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/2025-prod...
Some notes on how I do what I do.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/2025-prod...
Reading old sci-fi.
They guessed: flying cars, moon colonies, AI
They missed: everyone would have infinite access to information and use it primarily to argue about one incredibly dumb thing every 24 hours.
They guessed: flying cars, moon colonies, AI
They missed: everyone would have infinite access to information and use it primarily to argue about one incredibly dumb thing every 24 hours.
November 26, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Reading old sci-fi.
They guessed: flying cars, moon colonies, AI
They missed: everyone would have infinite access to information and use it primarily to argue about one incredibly dumb thing every 24 hours.
They guessed: flying cars, moon colonies, AI
They missed: everyone would have infinite access to information and use it primarily to argue about one incredibly dumb thing every 24 hours.
I remember when this was a Spanish study group
November 26, 2025 at 12:26 PM
I remember when this was a Spanish study group
Every 5 years we rediscover that writing morning pages works, give it a new name (journaling, 750 words, daily practice), charge $15/month for an app version, then forget about it when we realize the problem was never the notebook
November 26, 2025 at 10:26 AM
Every 5 years we rediscover that writing morning pages works, give it a new name (journaling, 750 words, daily practice), charge $15/month for an app version, then forget about it when we realize the problem was never the notebook
PSA.
If you've sent out a mass email blast to several thousand people, it's not actually a "personal note" or a "personal invitation."
It's just a marketing email.
If you've sent out a mass email blast to several thousand people, it's not actually a "personal note" or a "personal invitation."
It's just a marketing email.
November 26, 2025 at 2:47 AM
PSA.
If you've sent out a mass email blast to several thousand people, it's not actually a "personal note" or a "personal invitation."
It's just a marketing email.
If you've sent out a mass email blast to several thousand people, it's not actually a "personal note" or a "personal invitation."
It's just a marketing email.
'Do what you love' is decent advice but 'love what you do' is better advice
November 26, 2025 at 12:34 AM
'Do what you love' is decent advice but 'love what you do' is better advice
Fun fact: 100% of life advice that starts with 'just' is given by people who have never tried to 'just' do the thing they're recommending.
'Just stop caring what people think'
'Just be yourself'
Maybe just stop simplifying everything according to your priors.
'Just stop caring what people think'
'Just be yourself'
Maybe just stop simplifying everything according to your priors.
November 25, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Fun fact: 100% of life advice that starts with 'just' is given by people who have never tried to 'just' do the thing they're recommending.
'Just stop caring what people think'
'Just be yourself'
Maybe just stop simplifying everything according to your priors.
'Just stop caring what people think'
'Just be yourself'
Maybe just stop simplifying everything according to your priors.
Half the emails I get about my YouTube channel: "Love that your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - please never change"
The other half: "I noticed your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - our agency can fix this for $2,000/month"
The other half: "I noticed your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - our agency can fix this for $2,000/month"
November 25, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Half the emails I get about my YouTube channel: "Love that your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - please never change"
The other half: "I noticed your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - our agency can fix this for $2,000/month"
The other half: "I noticed your channel has no intro, no CTAs, no editing - our agency can fix this for $2,000/month"
The best Black Flag record is Who’s Got the 10 1/2? and it’s not even close.
November 25, 2025 at 6:56 AM
The best Black Flag record is Who’s Got the 10 1/2? and it’s not even close.
Drug development costs $1-3 billion and takes 10-15 years to prove a drug is safe // effective, then 30% of Americans immediately decide it's poison because a guy in Macedonia pretending to be from Massachusetts said so on X...
November 25, 2025 at 2:49 AM
Drug development costs $1-3 billion and takes 10-15 years to prove a drug is safe // effective, then 30% of Americans immediately decide it's poison because a guy in Macedonia pretending to be from Massachusetts said so on X...
The fact that you need elaborate behavioral interventions to use your phone productively suggests the phone isn't actually a productivity tool.
It's an attention-extraction device with productivity features that are antithetical to its entire purpose.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P25...
It's an attention-extraction device with productivity features that are antithetical to its entire purpose.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P25...
Why Your Phone Sucks at Productivity
The productivity industry treats the phone as a neutral platform that just needs better software. But what if the hardware itself is poorly suited for most k...
www.youtube.com
November 25, 2025 at 12:26 AM
The fact that you need elaborate behavioral interventions to use your phone productively suggests the phone isn't actually a productivity tool.
It's an attention-extraction device with productivity features that are antithetical to its entire purpose.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P25...
It's an attention-extraction device with productivity features that are antithetical to its entire purpose.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=P25...
Keeping all your options open sounds smart until you realize the person with infinite optionality often does nothing memorable with it.
Meanwhile someone who commits to one thing goes deep.
Different costs, different returns.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/every-dec...
Meanwhile someone who commits to one thing goes deep.
Different costs, different returns.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/every-dec...
Every Decision Has Three Costs: Time, Focus, and Optionality
Why Decisions Are More Expensive Than You Think
www.joanwestenberg.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:16 PM
Keeping all your options open sounds smart until you realize the person with infinite optionality often does nothing memorable with it.
Meanwhile someone who commits to one thing goes deep.
Different costs, different returns.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/every-dec...
Meanwhile someone who commits to one thing goes deep.
Different costs, different returns.
www.joanwestenberg.com/p/every-dec...
The QWERTY keyboard was designed to reduce mechanical jamming in early typewriters.
We kept it for computers. Which don't jam.
How many of our systems are just preserved solutions to problems that no longer exist?
And how would we even know?
We kept it for computers. Which don't jam.
How many of our systems are just preserved solutions to problems that no longer exist?
And how would we even know?
November 24, 2025 at 7:09 PM
The QWERTY keyboard was designed to reduce mechanical jamming in early typewriters.
We kept it for computers. Which don't jam.
How many of our systems are just preserved solutions to problems that no longer exist?
And how would we even know?
We kept it for computers. Which don't jam.
How many of our systems are just preserved solutions to problems that no longer exist?
And how would we even know?
In every dystopian novel: the government bans books.
In reality: we gave up reading voluntarily.
In reality: we gave up reading voluntarily.
November 24, 2025 at 11:14 AM
In every dystopian novel: the government bans books.
In reality: we gave up reading voluntarily.
In reality: we gave up reading voluntarily.
Information wants to be free. Humans want to be confidently incorrect in groups.
November 24, 2025 at 7:07 AM
Information wants to be free. Humans want to be confidently incorrect in groups.
When the code bot says "I see the issue now" I cannot emphasise enough how much it has not and will not see the issue now or at any point in the future, in any future, in any universe, across all space and time
November 24, 2025 at 5:07 AM
When the code bot says "I see the issue now" I cannot emphasise enough how much it has not and will not see the issue now or at any point in the future, in any future, in any universe, across all space and time