Productivity – Henriette Nolte

Education and Money

Posted on July 4, 2026 by Henriette

It is often the case that parents that spend a lot of money on their child’s education put less responsibility on the child to make it all work. There’s an internal argument that goes like this: Because I’m spending a lot, I deserve better educational outcomes for my child.

But more expensive doesn’t mean better—especially in education. In fact, taking into regard what I said in a previous post, less intervention from teachers might be better if the student can learn to apply buttocks to seat and work.

I saw two tendencies from parents who paid exorbitant amounts for their children’s education:

Education | Letting students think for themselves

Posted on July 3, 2026 by Henriette

In mathematics students have to grapple with problems to understand it. It’s only when they go through the effort of investigating a problem on a deep level that they understand it.

Solving for x doesn’t mean much when all the steps are written down in advance. Just copying answers is useless. But mentally grappling with the problem—that’s where the gold lies.

Education and IQ | Why struggle is beneficial

Posted on July 2, 2026July 3, 2026 by Henriette

The idea that we are either smart or dumb is enormously destructive. Many people have written books on how cognitive skills can improve with effort and time. (One, Two, Three, Four.)

That said, this mainstream idea that our mental capacity is fixed is an idea that I’ve been trying to debunk for years.

Fear or Focus | Thoughts on ChatGPT

Posted on November 7, 2025 by Henriette

A while back, someone told me that he had used ChatGPT to write a management report. I was conflicted about this and wondered if I should say something. My doubt showed up on my face, and so, the man went on to explain that the report was a tick-box exercise and not important with regards to his job.

I remained conflicted about this.

I believe that reading widely and writing well are cornerstones of a good society. But more than that—reading and writing improves our lives. It sharpens our thinking. It helps us to become more intentional with our time and focus. It opens possibilities and expands our sense of who we are.

Relative Velocity

Posted on October 17, 2025 by Henriette

I found concepts related to relative velocity quite challenging when I first encountered it in a physics course. Because I struggled with this topic, I avoided it. The consequence was that I never gained competence in that area.

This changed when I had to teach these concepts to students.

The Biggest Obstacles to Creative Work

Posted on June 13, 2024June 27, 2024 by Henriette

If there is one question that I am always trying to answer for myself it is this: what are the things that allow me to do more (better quality and quantity) creative work and what are the things that hinder creative output. This post discusses some of the biggest obstacles to consistent creative work.

(NOT) Getting Things Done

Posted on December 20, 2023January 29, 2024 by Henriette

Lately I’ve been playing with this idea of not trying to get things done. This might sound strange but there is something enjoyable about this approach. There’s something enjoyable about writing just to write. Instead of focusing on word count or end goals, I can just focus on the next sentence.

So, because it’s the end of the year, and because I usually allow myself to be a little more inefficient during this time, I’ve noticed that not striving to get stuff done, is actually an enjoyable way to get things done.

Category: Productivity