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The Best Things Take Time
The best comebacks come to mind long after you need them. Usually they arrive shortly after you’ve given up waiting for them, while you’re in the shower, or on a long car drive. Same with the best ideas. That’s why, when possible, take Adam Grant’s advice, and procrastinate on purpose. Get the problem into your…
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Inspiration is Found on Land
Matias Corea, co-founder of Behance, describes the typical search for inspiration for any graphic designer, and many of us in any field these days. Google. When hundreds or thousands of examples of projects similar to our next brief or a click away, why go anywhere else? But Corea has a different approach: For website design,…
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Thank the Shoulders You Stand On
My late friend and mentor Jan was a stellar guitarist, and a student of the craft. I would occasionally mention an amazing guitarist I’d heard with a unique style. After he listened to their music, Jan would rattle off all of their influences, most of them guys I’d never heard of. The guitarists I thought…
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Raising the Connection Machine
We often speak of the Internet and new technologies as something happening to us, taking over every industry, consuming our attention. One of my struggles with media and new technology is our infatuation with the new, without questioning whether some technologies really make our lives significantly better. The connection machine (thanks Seth Godin for the term)…
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Coffee, Craft and Connection
I recently watched Barista, a documentary about coffee-makers competing in the National Barista Championship. For the competition, baristas have 15 minutes to create 12 cups of coffee and demonstrate their proficiency at pouring shots and blending tastes, and also at creating a great experience for coffee-drinkers. Imagine the most coffee-loving person you know, then double it.…
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Spirit
This reflection appeared first in my quarterly newsletter. Subscribe at the bottom of the page if you’d like to be in on the next one. If you’ve ever been to a kids dance or music recital, you’ve seen it. That thing is subtle, almost imperceptible, but makes all the difference in a performance. The conductor…
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Complain by Creating
Complaining about the broken things in the world can be enjoyable, but at the end of the day, it’s not very helpful to yourself or those around you. As James Murphy said, the best way to complain is to make things. Some of the best tools we use today were built out of a frustration…
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Engaging Deeply
To engage meaningfully in a hyper-connected, always-on ecosystem, it’s important to make space in your daily rhythm for deep thought and deep work. Only when we tend to the source of our stream and create margins in the midst of our routine can we bring our ideas and energies to a world that requires our…
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Things Residual
You probably have a dream or a passion you’d like to pursue, if you had the time. You might find yourself saying, “If I could clear my plate for a (month, week, half-hour, whatever) I’d do this thing.” But that plate never clears, emails keep coming in and kids keep waking up from their naps.…
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The Morning After
This reflection appeared first in my quarterly newsletter. Subscribe at the bottom of the page if you’d like to be in on the next one. Have you poured yourself into any big events lately? Maybe a you gave a presentation, shipped a product, had a big exam, or an important conversation? As creative people, we…