Why you don’t need to read an entire book to learn from it. In The Creative Habit, author and choreographer Twyla Tharp writes, “I read for a lot of reasons, pleasure being the least of them.” Tharp, probably like us, reads for specific, transactional, purposes. For example, she’s often looking for concepts, patterns and situations […]
“My greatest award is what I’m about to do. I’m always thinking about the future,” the Grammy website quotes Kanye West. Kanye is, very much, a quintessential American CEO. He positions himself as a creative genius and innovator. More importantly, he invests vast amounts of resources into backing his claims up with the projects and results to show for it.
A Moment of Clarity In the Business of Content Creation Who Is This For? Content creators (i.e., anyone using social media to make money). People like Greg Isenberg and Peter Yang have asked, how can the average content creator make more money? It’s a real problem—TikTok influencers are trying to forecast their reach/engagement projections to […]
Who Is This For? Artists and creative independents. Kanye West’s most recent albums sound nothing like the one before. In an age of blockbusters and calculated risk, he proclaims his strategy is no strategy. Yet he has also cultivated one of the most fervent fan bases, rivaling the Beyhive, Beliebers, and the Swifties. Rolling Stone […]
This isn’t the order page for my upcoming book, but it’s just as important. There Is No Right Way to Do This is my first book, and I’m publishing it myself. As such, I’m writing to ask for your support. This book has been developing since I wrote this blog post seven years ago. I […]
A key concept I learned when I worked at Xtreme Labs was the idea of agility. Agile development was one of the distinctive features of their services. Xtreme believed that this style of programming, driven by weekly releases of a project to their clients at the end of every week, enabled better speed and quality. […]
Your productivity settings should evolve to keep up with you, not the other way around Image: Helena Lopes/Unsplash Productivity advice seems to be everywhere these days, but the more you read, the more you’ll see its contradictions. For example, venture capitalist Marc Andreessen used to advise against keeping a schedule, but now he keeps a […]
Image: Nathan Dumlao/Unsplash If you’re enrolled in college for September, there’s a strong case to defer your semester in September. There are better ways to learn during the four months. For example, you could start an online business, or build projects to learn new skills. Both of these ideas have small risks (e.g., four months), […]
When your skills evolve, so does your fear. Here’s what you can do Image: Eunice De Guzman/Unsplash “Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor,” Truman Capote’s saying goes. The inversion is equally true; even just a sample of sweet success provides failure with its bitterness. Three weeks ago, I decided to make a […]
When the writing process met the theory of constraints Image: Damir Spanic/Unsplash “Should I write at my own blog, or at Medium?” Of course, the question is worth considering if you’re a new writer. But a more pressing question you need to focus on is: “How do I write something I’m proud of?” Writing is […]