I probably have some explaining to do.

Why I haven't written here in a while

The thing I love about a Yearly Theme is it’s malleable. With a resolution…say, to lose 50lbs…you’re locked into a very specific result. A Yearly Theme is more like a set of principles.

And truth be told, it’s going pretty well. My accountability reports have shown as much, and I have them for May and June too. Here they are from my journal, largely unpolished, but truthful:

May Accountability Report

1. What’s going well?

   1. Walking more

   2. Still sitting in silence. Went to a big field near my house and didn’t use headphones at all.

   3. More cash

   4. Leaving my phone more

   5. I’m using my headphones a lot less to fall asleep

   6. Actually read more this month

2. Where can I improve?

   1. I think the Paper & Smoke experiment is shifting to be more biz-focused

   2. I bought off of Amazon this month

   3. Been watching a lot of YouTube, and breaking my rule of no screens at the dinner table

3. What do I resolve to do in the next month to further my goals?

   1. Reinforce no screens at the table — especially now that summer is starting

   2. Keeping reading more. Maybe make cigar time exclusively book time when the Yankees aren’t on.

   3. Limit YouTube time.

   4. Reignite an analog habit (like Lego)

   5. Leave phone at home on one long walk.

4. What’s one big problem I should try to solve related to digital detox?

   1. YouTube. I’m watching too much of it. Even watching a different, stimulating show would be better here.

June Accountability Report

1. What’s going well?

   1. Walking more, mostly without headphones.

   2. Still have cash on me

   3. Reading more again, consistently.

   4. Spending more time outside

   5. Built a LEGO set!

2. Where can I improve?

   1. This was my worst month so far. Multiple screens, especially during the yankee game.

   2. Headphones falling asleep again.

   3. Started ordering off Amazon again (though not a lot)

   4. Need to be better about no screen at the table.

   5. I’m watching a lot of YouTube

3. What do I resolve to do in the next month to further my goals?

   1. Silence time with cigars in evening. Leave phone inside. Bring a notebook

   2. Seriously, limit YouTube time. Set a screen time limit

4. What’s one big problem I should try to solve related to digital detox?

   1. Get YouTube consumption under control.

As I write this, I’m sitting in an airport lounge, between flights. I spent the whole flight (1.5 hours) reading The Odyssey without headphones. I’ll likely finish it on the next flight, and I’m grateful I brought another book with me.

The part of the Yearly Theme is working out for me. I’m genuinely using tech less, and I plan to really recommit.

But the other part of it…and a big reason for this Substack…isn’t going so well.

I Was Supposed to Be Learning About the Real World

There were really 3 parts to my yearly theme:

• Use devices less (so far, so good)

• Read books I normally wouldn’t read, or should have read (also going well)

• Do more things in the real world (going OK)

• Learn about how things in the real world are done

That last one isn’t going well at all. I started off strong with a couple of good books and a Master Class¹, but I haven’t done much with it since.

I have been doing more non-computer hobbies, spending more time outside, etc. But the learning part was supposed to be a big part of my year. And that was going to be the crux of what I talked about here.

So what happened? A couple of things.

I Need to Focus on My Business

Things have been pretty slow lately. I’ve going through a bit of a repositioning and figuring out what kind of services best help my target audience. As a result, I’ve been investing both time and money into that.

That also means that when I do write, I need to focus on writing for my business; creating more content and being present in more communities that will attract the right people. Ultimately, when choosing what to cut, it was either other hobbies, family time, or this blog.

The choice was pretty easy.

But I also noticed something else.

I Saw a Lot of Overlap in My Ideas for This Substack and my Newsletter

Since I wasn’t able to make time to learn new things, my ideas for Paper & Smoke fell into two buckets:

• Digital Detox Accountability Reports

• Screeds against using AI for everything

The screeds could also fit into with I write for Streamlined Solopreneur², so I opted to put them there. But I will still kinda, sorta talk about them in note here on Substack…when I posted notes.

And like every wannabe social network, Substack hates when you post to external sources.

What This All Means

So…why am I telling you all this. I could have just quietly killed this Substack. 28 of you may or may not have noticed. But I’ve decided to do something different.

I want to keep Paper & Smoke, at least through the end of the year. Instead of longer-form articles, I will use the podcast to publish my digital detox thoughts in a format that takes me far less time.

As for being on Substack, I’m actually going to publish The Streamlined Solopreneur Newsletter here as well. I feel this is a really good place for me to be, and I want to give it a proper go. If you’re interested in how I help solopreneurs become the people who leave their laptop in their suitcase on vacation, you can subscribe below.

1. Which has seemingly decided that AI is the way to go, in an incredibly disappointing more.

2. Usually