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Open ears, open mind
For some reason, I’ve found myself listening to less music and fewer podcasts. I’ll often just leave the house or office and just walk. When I eat lunch or dinner, I’m just eating. While this can feel boring some days, it also feels like something is happening in my brain. I listen to the sounds…
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Spare time
Today, I came across a book entitled The Spare-Time Book: A Practical Guide to Adventure. The foreword was by Roger Bannister, who used his spare time training. He eventually became the first person to run a mile in under four minutes. It was a helpful reminder to my judge aspect—my inner critic—that at some point,…
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The architect and the assignment
An architect takes in their latest assignment: to rescue a wealthy client’s plans gone wrong. The client has high hopes for it, and believes it has the potential to be a landmark and a part of their legacy. The main problem is there is very little time. She has two weeks to do it. In…
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There is no failure
When Virgil Abloh was planning his lecture at RISD, he decided that he was going to make a product on campus and that would be the subject of his talk. He would need to take this assignment in between all of his other prior commitments, such as leading his self-initiated fashion label Off White. He…
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The secret isn’t in the recipe
An apprentice is sick of his job at a high end restaurant. It pays poorly, he’s stuck doing the menial tasks, and the head chefs don’t give him any recognition or affirmation. A manager at a rival restaurant approaches him with a deal. If the apprentice steals the restaurant’s recipes, the manager will give him…
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A good brand honors a group
Nike honors great athletes. Apple honors people who think different. Stripe honors people with high agency who value intellectual ambition, as well as economic and technological progress. Every good brand is built on honoring a group of people. Who is your group? What do they respect and value? What are you making that will honor,…
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When overdelivering fails
There’s a book entitled, “Overpromise and overdeliver.” The title is a good principle generally. As James Altucher explains, “Over-promise sets you apart from the people who under-promise. Over-deliver sets you apart from people who just delivered.” The principle breaks when overpromise or overdelivery puts you in a position to fail to deliver entirely. If it…
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New Material
My friend Hamza and I started a show entitled New Material. We discuss creativity and productivity, through the lenses of business and art. It’s been a great opportunity for me to learn firsthand the intricacies of recording and publishing a podcast. I’m not entirely unfamiliar with it—I developed, managed, and launched the first season of…
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Work arrangements can be flexible
My friend was the perfect candidate for a job opportunity. He already had the respect of the CEO and the team, a depth of familiarity with the company’s product, and his skills were perfect for the role. He would have gotten the job already, except he was in a different country that the company couldn’t…