Automating Life: Of Tedious Tasks and Reclaimed Brainspace
Automation isn’t just about saving time; it’s about making mental space for the projects that truly matter. The goal is clear: free up energy. Because at the end of the day, automation equals more room to think, build, and breathe.
Automation. As entrepreneurs, we're always looking for ways to work smarter, not harder. Right? I’ve dubbed this year "the year of automation" for me, to start cleaning up messy processes in my workflow and, in turn, reclaim some much-needed mental space. It's January the 2nd. 363 chaotic days ahead. Better get my sh** together.
Declaring the Year of Automation
My personal "year of automation." The goal? Streamline as many repetitive and mundane tasks as possible so I can focus on the things that truly matter. It might sound basic—tons of people already integrate automation into their lives—but the challenge also lies in deciding what to automate.
After doing some research, I found myself bombarded with lists of tools, each promising to be the ultimate solution. The truth is, I already have way too many tools at my disposal. The real struggle is figuring out which processes can be delegated to machines in a way that genuinely reduces my workload, not just adds to the chaos. So we are trying to find the right things and tools to actually make this year easier for us:
Starting small
I began with baby steps: automating tweets for new podcast episodes. One less thing for me to remember. (Find a list of all my automations down below.) Another automation that I’m particularly excited about is creating a system to filter mails. Picture this: after my youtub-esk morning routine I get to the office, and instead of a flood of hundreds of nonsense mails, I see a neatly summarized list of what actually matters. It’s my way of silencing the noise and prioritizing the important stuff.
By moving my task list to Akiflow, I’m creating a digital assistant that helps me focus on key tasks, without getting overwhelmed. Akiflow consolidates tasks from all my apps, like Notion, Mail, Calendar, Reminders, etc.. Meanwhile, I’m building a tiny “What to Write” web app that prompts me with fresh, provoking questions whenever I’m stumped for content. Automation doesn’t have to be huge or complicated—it just has to deliver relief where you need it most.
My progress so far:
Automation #1: Email with Superhuman
I'm the CEO of a 15 person media company, the founder of another endeavor, the creator of multiple projects & products - my email life is a terrible mess...
... Enter Superhuman. It’s fast, it’s intuitive, its expensive and it's actually ... excellent.
Managing emails has always been one of those tasks that drains my time and attention. But this helps you categorize, prioritize, and sometimes snooze emails with minimal fuss. All keyboard based. No time to use the trackpad, so fast.
- The Split-Inbox feature is underrated. Use it! For example: It presorts all my mails into Important, Accounting, Team, Calendar, Notion, News, Clients, Private, Other.
- Superhuman’s AI is a search function that gets the context. Ask stuff like "when did we send the last draft of the contract and what was the agreed upon timeline?". It's fantastic.
- Use “remind me later” features for follow-ups on essential conversations.
- Implement templates for those repetitive emails!
Automation #2: Automating the Creative (Podcast) Process
As I’ve been diving deeper into automation, I’ve also started thinking about how I can streamline the podcasting process itself. The goal is to reduce manual effort wherever possible, freeing up time for creative development. Whether it’s simplifying editing workflows or using AI to assist with content curation, there’s so much potential here to explore. My current podcast stack:
- I take notes in Notion
- I have a custom GPT to check with previous content and restructure notes into my style and a sensible form
- I receive my speaking notes in an easy-to-read format
- I record the audio into Descript
- I use Descript's AI to eliminate retakes and long pauses.
- I upload the audio and therefore kick off the "new episode is out" automation to share a tweet about it
Automation #3: Social Media Scheduling
Not fancy, I know. But it is a necessity. Freeing yourself from manual posting is essential if you want to get things done efficiently. I tested a handful of schedulers before settling on Buffer. I like the simplicity and robust features.
If you’re more thread-focused, check out Typefully, which is built for multi-post threads and helps you with text-focused content for Threads, X, Bluesky, and even LinkedIn. Sprout Social is great too (we use that on an agency level)—if you can stomach the cost.
Automation #4: Being Informed on Website Up-/Downtimes
Few things are worse than discovering your website has been down for hours and you had no clue. Instead of manually checking site uptime, I set up a simple automation that sends a “GET request” to test the site’s health. With some basic JavaScript, it checks for a hidden code in the HTML response. This kind of hands-off monitoring frees me up from constantly keeping an eye on things. (Just a simple 5-step Zap on Zapier.)
In the grand scheme of things, the more processes we can automate, the more space we’ll have to focus on bigger, more creative projects.
Automation #5: Accounting with Auto-Forwarding of Invoices
Nothing feels quite as draining as sifting through an ocean of emails and accounts looking for that one invoice you need to send to your accountant. Why is it even something I have to do?
So I automated that nonsense. I created a few simple rules that auto-forward any email containing the words “invoice” or “receipt” and emails from known invoice addresses to my accounting split inbox, to my accountant’s email address, and Spendesk (our expense management tool).
Automation #6: Calendar Coordination with Cal.com (Soon)
One area I haven’t fully tackled yet (but will soon) is setting up a smooth scheduling system with Cal.com. I’m a bit old-school—lazy pasting available slots into emails like it’s 2010.
Just haven't tackled this because I have to train my team and implement it for all; therefore I need to build & make a documentation for it. Later.
Automation #7: Raycast (macOS only, for now)
If you’re a Mac user, Raycast is a killer tool. It’s a command bar that lets you launch apps and trigger scripts with a few keystrokes.
- You can chain multiple actions together. For example: open Zoom, copy a meeting ID, and send a Slack message, all from the same command bar.
- You cut down on “mouse miles”—no more point-and-click to open apps or hunt for files
- You can manage tasks in your favorite productivity tool (like Todoist or Things 3) without ever opening the actual app. Sadly, there is no Akiflow integration so far; I hope that arrives soon. Otherwise, I'll build it myself. If so, I'll share it here, haha.
- Searching Notion databases, you can add or create scripts for almost anything.
- If you're as nerdy as I am, you can use Swift to code your own extensions for the Mac - refer to this: https://www.raycast.com/blog/automate-your-mac-with-swift (or ask ChatGPT / Claude AI to help)
Once you get used to Raycast's speed, returning to macOS’s default Spotlight feels insane. That’s automation you can feel every day.
Why Act Now
When you’re running a business (or life; life gets complicated too), everything moves, and things get pushed to the side. Building processes rather than stacked tasks is a huge, often untapped potential for many, myself included. A restart, like the new start of a year, somehow helps in doing new things. We have to use mental frameworks to our advantage. That's why now is a great time to do something about the messy notifications, things, and goals.
As I wrap up this entry, I have to add: Automation isn’t just about saving time or money; it’s about reclaiming your mental bandwidth so you can invest it in truly meaningful work. With that extra breathing room, don’t just fill it up with more tasks—protect some of it for downtime, creative exploration, thinking; you get the point.
Got your own automation tricks or favorite time-saving hacks? Share them in the comments or hit me up on social media! I’m always on the lookout for fresh ways to make life a little easier. Until next time—happy automating, and don’t forget to schedule in some fun. ✌🏽
If you'd like to dive in deeper, here are some expert resources:
Productivity Tips & Workflow Automation Guides | Zapier Blog (One can find very cool ideas there.)
From Mundane to Magic: The Incredible Benefits of Automation for Small Business Owners