consulting life
Yancey Strickler’s Nine Creative Meditations
To me or to the mean - Focus on what makes your work strange or unique rather than trying to fit in with what everyone else is doing.
You are your audience - Create work that satisfies your own desires and interests rather than trying to please an imagined mass audience.
Small is more rewarding than big - V
“Listen up buddy you’re just one clever portmanteau away from becoming a billionaire philosopher”
Paul Venuto • feed updates
The gig economy is defined primarily by the glitches, exceptions, and incoherencies of the mainstream paycheck economy. Our messy map is the reason their suspiciously clean map doesn’t fall apart.
Grace Witherell • The Art of Gig, Volume 2: Superstructures
Trend report/analyst work: This is probably the most legible kind of indie consulting work, and is the most research-y kind of offering. It also has the biggest moat for indies since it takes serious time, effort, and network capital to produce, which means you’re most likely to get this kind of work via an intermediary analyst firm. Or you burn up
... See moreGrace Witherell • The Art of Gig, Volume 2: Superstructures
If leaders are missionary, their indie consultants are mercenary. If leaders are idealistic, their indie consultants are cynical. If leaders are holy warriors, their indie consultants are pragmatic operators. If leaders are charismatic stars, their indie consultants are grey blurs. If leaders are taciturn doers, their indie consultants are voluble
... See moreGrace Witherell • The Art of Gig, Volume 2: Superstructures
Being outside their organization means you can get closer to outer realities relevant to their business, while also remaining closer to their inner realities than most outsiders. This closeness may be some form of literal closeness. Maybe you spend more of your time going to industry conferences than they do, or spend more time tracking academic li
... See moreGrace Witherell • The Art of Gig, Volume 2: Superstructures
People take jobs where their inner realities will be most relevant to the inner realities of the company, allowing them to express those realities and be seen. For consultants though, it is less important to be seen and more important to be seen through. In both senses: you are an optical instrument that enhances the vision of another and your moti
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