"Habit is habit, and not to be flung out of the window by any man, but coaxed downstairs a step at a time." - Mark Twain I've learned a lot about changing habits in the last 2 1/2 years, from quitting smoking to taking up running and GTD and vegetarianism and waking early and all that.

Imagine flying through your to-do list every day and having plenty of free time left over. Sound like a dream come true? That's the promise of productivity hacks. But, as somebody who's tried almost all of them, I've found that this fantasy doesn't always become reality.

I love practical advice that you can immediately apply to your life. And Zen, a school of Mahayana Buddhism, is full of practical wisdom. When I tell my friends, colleagues, and people I work with that I like reading about Zen Buddhism, they often make remarks like: "When are you going to grow your hair, walk around bare feet, and talk about yoga all day?"