The Art of Being Mildly Obsessed

There’s a specific feeling I chase. It usually starts around 11pm on a Tuesday, when I should be sleeping. I’m three tabs deep into something I had zero interest in 48 hours ago: how containerization actually works, the history of Kerala’s spice trade, why certain camera lenses produce that particular bokeh.

This is what being mildly obsessed feels like.

The rabbit hole is the reward

Most productivity advice tells you to focus. Pick one thing. Master it. Go deep. And that’s great advice for work. But for life, I’ve found the opposite to be true: the most interesting people I know are the ones who can’t stop pulling threads.

They’re the friend who can explain both the Krebs cycle and the best street food in Penang. The colleague who reads SEC filings for fun and also builds mechanical keyboards. The person at the dinner table who always has a surprising answer to “what have you been up to?”

Curiosity compounds

Here’s what I’ve noticed: seemingly unrelated interests start connecting in unexpected ways. My obsession with personal finance taught me about compound interest, which changed how I think about SEO. Small, consistent improvements compound over time. My travel photography improved my eye for composition, which made my data presentations better.

The connections aren’t obvious until you have enough dots to connect.

The “mildly” part matters

Full obsession burns you out. Mild obsession keeps you engaged. It’s the difference between pulling an all-nighter on something and spending a pleasant hour on it each evening. The goal isn’t mastery, it’s engagement. Staying curious enough to keep learning, without turning every interest into a side hustle or an identity.

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This site exists because of mild obsession. I wanted a place to put all the things I find interesting, not sorted by what’s professionally useful or socially impressive, but by what genuinely captures my attention.

Welcome to the overflow.