If I talk, who listens? Where and with whom do I already spend my time, online and offline? In what situations am I most authentically myself? Who do I hang out with, even though I don’t really like them, but it’s worth it since we share something more important in common?

Creators make things, charge their audiences for those things, and then use that money to make more things.

You don’t learn, then start. You start, then learn.

Why wasn’t Gumroad good enough as it was? After all, I had a sustainable business serving a group of customers I loved. What more could I want?

And it doesn’t have to be millions; “enough” is what you decide it is, not a specific amount.

Creation begets more creation.

it took me years to decouple my self-worth from my net worth and to realize that I hadn’t failed.

Being a member of a community is a start, but the real magic happens when you start to contribute. Authors and bloggers Ben McConnell and Jackie Huba call this the “1% Rule”: On the internet, they say, 1 percent create, 9 percent contribute, and 90 percent consume. They’ve shown this rule to be true when applied to sites like Wikipedia and Yahoo,

You don’t learn, then start. You start, then learn.