Category: Life
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To all the dreams I dreamed before
When I look back at my teenage years, I think about how many opportunities I missed. Most of the time, I didn’t even hear about the opportunities or appreciate how important they were and how much they could change my life, so I didn’t develop my senses for it. The ones I did hear about,…
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Quintessentialism
1. The best way to experience unexpected good things (e.g., positive business and personal outcomes) is to allow yourself to be the quintessential version of you. As much you as you can be. By being yourself and finding the intersections of how you can support other people, you will draw in the people who want…
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Focus on what makes an experience matter, not the experience itself
All the myths, lore, and backstories that you appreciate were crafted carefully and thoughtfully and improved through time, just like products and businesses and relationships. In The Wisdom of Life, philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer writes, “The world in which a man lives shapes itself chiefly by the way in which he looks at it, and so…
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The rise of celebrity-based courses
There’s a course started and being taught by Yassin Alsalman (probably better known as recording artist Narcy) at Concordia University entitled, “Kanye vs. Ye: Genius by Design.” It’s the latest in a continuum of popular music studies. From a brief search there is a: Kid Cudi course at Penn State from 2021 Kanye course from…
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Hard Work, Plus
In September 2007, J. Cole stood outside Roc-the-Mic studios in the rain for 2 hours waiting for Jay-Z to hand him a beats tape for American Gangster. The second Jay-Z saw it, he said, “I don’t want that, give it to one of them.” That’s why self-promotion is, understandably, one of the most dislikeable parts…
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The Museum of You
At the Museum of Innocence in Istanbul, named after his novel of the same title, author Orhan Pamuk proposes a manifesto. Here’s an excerpt: “I am against these precious monumental institutions being used as blueprints for future museums. Museums should explore and uncover the universe and humanity of the new and modern man emerging from…
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Why your backstory is a key to referrals and word of mouth marketing
In our result-oriented culture, it’s essential to focus on tangible, real, results. Shipping real work. Start a real business. Make real money. Drive real results. Working with real clients. Releasing real articles. Author Bernadette Jiwa sums up the mindset well in Story Driven: “We might register a domain name, get a logo designed, build a…
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The Overlap
The Overlap happens when we discover what we want to do, and what other people need in their lives. The Overlap happens when we find two skills that compliment each other well, and merge them into a new skill to tackle new problems. The Overlap happens when we create something new by taking two existing…
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Don’t Just Learn from the Past. Learn from the Future, too
Strategic thinking and tactical execution is one of the best skill combinations for anyone looking to step up their career. In particular, being able to think strategically is the key to adding more value to a company, and higher leverage in compensation. If you’re reading this, you’ve probably developed a strong competency for tactics, and…
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The Ultimate Guide to the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
Setting goals sounds simple. When a person sets a goal, they probably come across the SMART methodology—Specific, Measurable, Assignable (changed into “Attainable”), Realistic, and Time-related. Yet the nuance that comes with this makes goal-setting extremely complicated. For example, the terms, “Attainable,” and “Realistic,” require not only judgment of the past and the future, as well…