Sampling the web for interestingness
The more absurd questions, the better. It’s as if people hold back their inquisitiveness to avoid the pedestal of ridicule. Shying away from raising your hand backlashes over time. Playing it safe merely postpones fear, submerging us into a habit of permanent hesitation that flinches instead of flourishes. The infinitely curious never left school as […]
A lot of people never start because of the fear of imperfection. But when it comes to creating, something is better than nothing. That something could be as little as a blog post — private or public — a diary entry, a podcast, a simple doodle, or if you prefer to speak through images, an […]
The game is in our heads, not always in our hands. Like a skilled attuner we can produce ideas in a Ford production line and then pull back into idleness. If you look at Maslow’s Hierarchy, we already have everything we need. The only missing variable is motivation and perhaps some WiFi. We know nothing […]
Persistence is the key that separates the professional from the hobbyist. The professional does three things: He sticks to a strict schedule He completes the work, no matter the circumstances He progresses, listening to feedback and strengthening his weak points The professional devours aim and purpose. He is ok with banal routines as a means […]
The word ‘productivity’ was originally an agricultural term meant to assess the output of farmers. As technology replaced field labor and allowed people to move into cities, productivity turned man into a machine. Instead of plowing the fields, people cultivate threads of emails. They label manila folders into ten different categories. Indulging in the work-related […]
The biggest productivity tip anyone can offer is to do it now. No more waiting, no more excuses, no more muses. The biggest productivity trap is to postpone, to wait until all conditions are ideal before getting started. Perfection is a recipe for disaster. Words mean nothing without action. Once you realize such a banal […]
Try to think without images. You can’t. Pictures make up the mind. Try to make a decision without some sort of confidence. You can’t. Even uncertainty snags onto temporary absolutes. Try to remain calm and dictate your inner talk. You can’t. Be prepared to hear the monkey mind instead. But try to achieve a goal […]
Creativity dwindles with age. First, school sucks it out you and then corporate work puts the nail in the coffin. Patterns of normality and absolutes are leaches. Like a mind virus, they kill off organic reflexes whereas cultivating the imagination sings with possibilities. If you’re lucky, you’ll have no choice but to follow the siren […]
Remote but close enough to remain within earshot. The artist beckons for renewal but never wants complete anonymity. Purpose-driven, looking for a way of life rather than chasing the material. The artist strives to stay in form all year round like a professional athlete. Except his work never retires, it only gets ‘abandoned’ as Leonardo […]
Intensely watched, intensely remembered. It’s not the trouble-free we ought to pursue. It’s the challenge of a good idea. Instead of pushing through the messy middle, we dash to the nearest exit: answering another useless email. It’s the distractions that make us dumber. Like a blob of mercury, we are mentally stoned. The immediate response […]
“Never get up from your computer until you’ve made a note about what you want to write next. That way you can slide right back in.” Jane K. Cleland (see books) gif via Shameless Maya
Do you want to drive the car or polish it? That’s the metaphor best-selling author Karl Ove Knausgaard uses to cure writer’s block. Writes Quartzy: “Writer’s block, to the extent it exists, stems from a suspicion that your work may not be great, and a reluctance to face that fact. When you’re always polishing the […]
We love to feel embattled because we like to think we labored for it. If we haven’t struggled, we haven’t yet lived. The urge to grind away at the remarkable supersedes trepidation. So we feel the fear and do it anyway. “I’ll tell you what freedom is to me: No fear. I mean, really – […]
Work grinds the dreams of many. The cycle of boring jobs begs the question: What should we do with our life? Yet we run into the next occupation, thinking that it could be the defining one. But it too fails to shape us. If a job shapes our identity, we damn well should make sure […]
Let your art make the rounds. Don’t hide it. Don’t try to be everywhere. Pick a place and be consistent. Rules are recommendations. Feel free to break them, recast, and remix them. Rest when you’re underperforming. Don’t quit. The muse is nonexistent. Inspiration is bunk. Habit is a bicep curl for the brain. I hope […]