Back to Work
Back to Work is an award winning talk show with Merlin Mann and Dan Benjamin discussing productivity, communication, work, barriers, constraints, tools, and more.
- Update frequency
- every 8 days
- Average duration
- 83 minutes
- Episodes
- 643
- Years Active
- 2011 - 2024
Episode 564: The Elephants of Style
DISCUSSED: 🐇🐇; Dan shares follow-up on surviving his Covid week; a listener emails the show with a fascinating offer; your hosts discuss childhood mail; in Breaking News, the actor, M. Emmet Walsh is…
Episode 563: Bang-Bang Machine
An epic journey that begins with Dan's viral week and ends with a misunderstanding about the first Chicago album.
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Episode 562: No More Attempts on My Father’s GitHub
DISCUSSED: Memories of Super Dave; KEYnote by LockPickingLawyer; Dan gets conspiracy theory-curious; the tapestry of entertainment by cults; Dan helps Merlin understand Git; and Merlin gets a new hub…
Episode 561: Flip the Telescope Around
Taskapalooza begins.
Rock me, Joseph Alberto Santiago.
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Episode 560: The Cat of Amontillado
Wrapping up the year with thoughts on unearned Covid optimism, defining "normal," Roomba training, Microsoft Visual Studio, plus a new (and decidedly more positive) reframing for New Year's resolutio…
Episode 559: Grade on the Curve of Time
Talking Spider-Man and phones for kids.
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Episode 558: Pseudism
Merlin's Best of 2021™ kicks off with the return of "Cool Things I Learned This Week."
Links for this episode:
- The Talk Show #331 – “John Was the Problem,” with Merlin Mann
Merlin Mann returns to the …
Episode 557: Food Court of Pain
A classic odds and sods episode covering: Rush lyrics; personal pronoun tips; Fitness+ meditation; more melees with various voice assistant ecosystems; a big shout-out to the iconic Listener Rachel A…
Episode 556: The Only Way Out Is Claws
The Boys are back, and they're not sure how big this thing gets.
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- Amazon.com: Celery Man : Alexa Skills
Good morning, Paul. What will your first sequence of the day be? Alexa, l…
Episode 555: The Accretion of Non-Essential Things
DISCUSSED: Dad stuff; flying too close to the smart home sun; appreciating the magic of Wes Anderson; the virtues of UPS battery backup; and, finally, Merlin starts tentatively sketching a unified fi…
Episode 554: Not the Water's Problem
DISCUSSED: please stop changing the clocks; our kids are not us; the people of England have spoiled or corrupted several very good words; The Ellis Island Bit; surnames mean things; getting pelted wi…
Episode 553: Bioavailable Chambers of Flexibility
This is what happens when Merlin stays up til 2 a.m. watching a movie and then has to record a podcast at 9 a.m.
Because, your day is a continuum.
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Episode 552: Youth is the Anomaly
Dan has all the waiters singing at him, and Merlin tries to buy the non-existent SIMS 4 for the Mac.
Main topic is considering how best to set up a device that provides structure and motivation with…
Episode 551: Life Is for Using
DISCUSSED: Your hosts talk about music, Apple Watch, and getting out of your kid's way. Also: life and MacBooks Pro.
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Episode 550: Ampersands and Raisins
DISCUSSED: Dan and his son are up to Daniel Craig in their Bond journey, and this leads to an exploration of how our feelings about movies and their characters can change over time; considering the m…
Episode 549: A Typical Feisty Boy Child
DISCUSSED: Exploring rural voices; the things that kids (and we) have had stolen away over the past couple years; what movie would get your butt back into a cinema seat?; an opinionated dive into Saf…
Episode 548: The Results of This Dog
DISCUSSED: Merlin considers a black market medical purchase; the anatomical anomalies of the problematic sleeper are considered; some favorite YouTube finds are discussed; and, finally, your hosts be…
Episode 547: Backyard Butt Doctor
Dan and Merlin almost talk about iOS 15.
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Episode 546: Snow Day for Nerds
Reporting live from the show floor and looking at options for time tracking.
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Episode 545: The Cat's Fine
DISCUSSED: The rules of "Rabbit Rabbit"; exploring the magic of Domino's probability-altering powers; forests versus trees and past versus future; Chevy Chase and a familial ninety-ten inversion; and…