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Robert Frost on uniting your hobby and vocation
Good things happen when you find the Overlap. Here’s an excerpt from a poem by Robert Frost (via Jim O’Shaughnessy) that describes the Overlap very well: My object in living is to uniteMy avocation and my vocationAs my two eyes make one in sight.Only where love and need are one,And the work is play for…
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Making art is a small part of the job
DJ Khaled is an artist, and a very popular one at that. He doesn’t sing, rap, or make the beat. He makes songs by finding good instrumental tracks and hiring other artists to record over it. Some people—maybe a lot of them—take this to mean that he doesn’t make music. So what does he actually…
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The desire paths of your mind
When you walk off the sidewalk or paved ground, you contribute to a desire path. The more people that do this, the clearer the path that emerges. Here’s an image of a desire path: Apply this metaphor to your mind. Imagine that your mind was a town that you have designed with a lot of…
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When you change your routines up, you slow time down
I used to work as a writer for Lifehacker. A couple of years before that gig, I’d already started writing guest posts for them. I wrote the first of these while I was a student, about how our brains perceive time. I was curious about it because I noticed people older than me always saying…
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Three easy ways to give to a good cause
Giving becomes easier when you realize how many opportunities there are. Here are three easy openings, amongst many: Whatever money you save on a discount, donate it. You can do this through donations or coupons. If PetSmart gives you $2.00 back, donate $2 to help animals. Round up your change. If you pay $15.50, donate…
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Artists make New Work
On a visit to the MoMA PSOne, I saw a mural that said, “Artists make New Work.” The pink typography was set on forest green. I loved it. Then I looked closer, and I saw that it actually said, “Artists Make New York.” I liked my hallucinated version more.
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Better options
If you’re unsure how to create better options, giving your attention to fewer of them is a good way to start.