Category Archives: Quotes

“Stare at the world, not at your model.”

Continually learning, constantly changing. The human mind is as fickle as the seasons. It is not mathematical models that predict the future but the law of nature. Writes Richard Bookstaber in his book The End of Theory. “The world could be changing right now in ways that will blindside you down the road.” Nothing is linear and predictable; […]

The emotional journey of creating anything great

Why is it that every new idea begins with excitement but ends in the ‘dark swamp of despair?’ Writes Angela Duckworth in her book Grit:  “Enthusiasm is common. Endurance is rare.” Angela Duckworth The key to achieving anything is not necessarily maintaining that excitement but pushing through all the CRAP (criticism, rejection, assholes, and pressure) and maintaining […]

The World According to Garp

Below is an excerpt from John Irving’s 1978 novel The World According to Garp: Garp threw away his second novel and began a second novel. Unlike Alice, Garp was a real writer—not because he wrote more beautifully than she wrote but because he knew what every artist should know: as Garp put it, “You only […]

Seth Godin on writer’s block

Writer’s block is a myth created by people who are afraid to the do the work. There are various reasons writers let the blank page get the best of their emotions. Trying to be too perfect Procrastinating en route to excuses that usually include the word “But….” Unwilling to fail or write poor sentences first […]

‘How you do anything is how you do everything’

Below is an excerpt from The Daily Stoic, a book I always tend to when I get frazzled: Pay attention to what’s in front of you—the principle, the task, or what’s being portrayed. — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 8.22 It’s fun to think about the future. It’s easy to ruminate on the past. It’s harder to put […]