Branding is part and parcel of who we are as thing-making, idea-shaping, experience-crafting creatures. Few people have helped me weave meaning and mission into brand-making for myself and clients more than Marty Neumeier. Marty is Director of Transformation at Liquid Agency, devoted to helping businesses craft amazing brands. He’s helped companies such as Apple, HP, Adobe,…
I was an anxious boy, quiet, often distracted to daydream and doodle. The lovely Ms. Goodman scolded me at six years old for connecting the dots. My pencil was linking the bubbles in my science textbook illustration while my eyes watched the birds outside my classroom window. The entertaining Ms. Leach reprimanded me at twelve…
What could an agent possibly offer a novelist whose self-published ebooks are bringing in five figures a month? That’s what self-published science fiction novelist Hugh Howey wanted to know when Kristin Nelson had the gumption to call. “I don’t know,” she said, in essence, “but let’s have a conversation.” That forthrightness got Howey’s attention. It…
When Keith Richards steps onto stage, a specific horde pays big bucks to be part of him and hear his inimitable riffs on the guitar. When David Sedaris steps onto stage, a smaller but sizable crowd pays a fair sum to be part of him and to hear his inimitable riffs from the page. Both…
The piece on The Apprenticeship Gap prompted lots of thoughtful discussion about amateurs, apprentices, artists, masters, and mentors. I also recently corresponded with my friend Tara Mohr, whose work I admire, about the topic. She’s helping me think in new ways about apprenticeship and expertise. Chalk one up for conversation. Check out her piece “Understanding How to…
“No man but a blockhead ever wrote – except for money.” That’s the wry view of Samuel Johnson, the reputable British writer and author of, among other titles, The Dictionary of the English Language in the 18th century. If true, his view means that I and millions of others are utter blockheads. Yet, his wit…
Books matter to us. They change our world views and outlooks. They light up alternative realities. They crack open our hearts. Today marks our debut feature for Books That Matter. Books That Matter is our 8-week series that showcases influential wonder-trackers’ relationships with books that matter to them. We’ll feature people from a variety of backgrounds…
In the Tower of Babel that is publishing these days, it’s easy for authors to get distracted and to side-track their creative process in favor of over-thinking viable creative products. The push to publish and profit can override the hardest fact. I’m offering four spots in a program and then a free call for a select group of…
I want to tell you a brief story. It’s a story about art and salvation, about dharma and distraction. And then I want to tell you about a remarkable man whose talents merge Charles Schultz with Siddhartha. Because, really, both the story and the man are about paying attention to what’s happening in your creative…
You know you need sustained focus to execute big projects. And you’ve likely heard that distractions and daydreams, in good measure, can boon creative insights. A good dose of mind-wanderfulness aids mindfulness, and there are best rest practices for optimal productivity. But how do you mix the two? How do you sustain high focus &…
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