# Khe Hy: How to Leverage Your Second Brain to Do $10k Work  ## High-Value Work and 10k Work - The speaker compares low-value tasks to a field mouse, which requires minimal effort but yields low reward, and high-value tasks to a gazelle, which requires significant effort but yields high reward. [(00:03:56)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=236s) - There are four levels of work: $10 work (low skill, low leverage), $100 work (low skill, high leverage), $1,000 work (high skill, low leverage), and $10,000 work (high skill, high leverage). [(00:14:08)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=848s) - An example of $10,000 work is setting a five-year, 10-year, or 20-year vision. [(00:16:27)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=987s) - "10k work" involves high skill and high leverage, such as training and elevating others, and focusing on long-term payoffs rather than immediate gratification. [(00:34:20)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2060s) - "10k work" requires questioning established norms and embracing delayed gratification. [(00:53:02)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3182s) - While "10k work" is outcome-oriented, some life joys are found in outcomeless activities. [(00:55:04)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3304s) - "10k work" can be as simple as spending 15 minutes deeply thinking about a topic, such as how to scale a business. [(00:59:17)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3557s) - "10k work" can involve leveraging skills, such as summarizing a course for colleagues, to create impact. [(01:00:40)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3640s) ## Productivity and Attention Management - People are constantly in react mode, receiving notifications from various platforms like [[Twitter]], [[WhatsApp | Whatsapp]], and [[Slack (software) | Slack.]] [(00:00:48)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=48s) - It takes an average of 67 hours per year for people to organize emails into folders and labels, but it can be harder to find them later. [(00:20:19)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1219s) - [[Nir Eyal]], author of *Indestructible* and *Hooked*, believes that "attention management is pain management". [(00:21:49)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1309s) - Superhuman is an expensive email app with a steep learning curve that requires users to learn a new keyboard shortcut language. [(00:24:30)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1470s) - People often invest in material goods and educational resources, like Peloton bikes or online courses, hoping for self-improvement. [(00:25:54)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1554s) - It is important to be self-aware and focus on high-leverage work, understanding what truly brings value to one's life and business. [(00:27:33)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1653s) ## Kay He and Rad Reads - Kay He, the creator of the blog and email newsletter called Rad Reads, aims to help high-performing professionals lead more productive, examined, and joyful lives. [(00:06:13)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=373s) - Khe Hy states that "Rad Reads" is a professional service and education company that teaches managing directors at finance firms to be more productive. [(00:40:55)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2455s) - Khe Hy uses two organizing principles: "follow the fun" and "you never want to compete with someone who genuinely cares". [(00:41:12)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2472s) - Khe Hy believes that [[Facebook]] ads would make sense for their business model, but they choose not to use them because they are not enjoyable. [(00:42:05)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2525s) ## The Speaker's Experience and Recommendations - The speaker was promoted to managing director at [[BlackRock | Blackrock]] at age 31 because of the 10k work he was doing. [(00:12:56)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=776s) - The speaker's company has eight employees, 30-hour workweeks, unlimited vacation. [(00:13:27)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=807s) - Thiago and the speaker run a consulting business that teaches companies how to be more productive. [(00:07:17)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=437s) - The speaker is currently reading and enjoying the [[Bhagavad Gita]], but believes they would not have been ready to appreciate it even two years ago. [(00:45:23)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2723s) - The speaker recommends reading [[Getting Things Done]] by [[David Allen (author) | David Allen]], but notes that many people own the book without reading it. [(00:47:02)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2822s) - The speaker believes that Western culture is too focused on finding solutions, which can prevent people from asking the right questions. [(00:50:37)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3037s) - Many people follow a traditional path to success without questioning it. [(00:51:55)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3115s) ## Leverage and Skill Development - Leverage is when something important to you happens within an activity you are a part of, but not directly involved in, because of the leverage you have created. [(00:19:28)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1168s) - While having a specialized skill, like being a lawyer or software engineer, can provide a good living (referred to as "thousand dollar work"), it lacks leverage, as income stops when work ceases. [(00:29:16)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1756s) - Public speaking, writing, sales, technical sensibility, design, and negotiation are skills that can transcend industries and lead to higher income. [(00:32:14)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=1934s) - Examples of 10k work include building a strong team culture, leveraging distribution channels like email, and developing influential ideas that are shared widely. [(00:36:32)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=2192s) ## Frameworks and Human Complexity - Frameworks are tools to organize information and activity, but humans are complex and driven by emotions. [(00:58:20)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDZGgwguvYs&t=3500s)