current motivations
Advice for big, daunting projects: do something right away. When a major project lands in your lap, perhaps with a deadline weeks or months away, make it your business to take some kind of concrete action on it as soon as you can, even if you won’t get to the majority of the work until later. The longer such a project sits on your plate without... See more
The Imperfectionist: Five short thoughts (plus upcoming US events)
There are so many people who don’t know what they want. And I think that, in this world, that’s the only thing you have to know — exactly what you want. ... Doing what you were born to do ... That’s the way to be happy.
Maria Popova • Iconic Painter Agnes Martin on Art, Solitude, and the Secret of Happiness
They performed their way into greatness.
the productive procrastination trap
The Beatles
Too many businesses don’t really understand that the core of their business is making people feel good. Whether it’s walking into a store or a restaurant, or being on an airplane, most people go through life hoping that good things will happen to them, and they return to businesses that make those things happen.
Alison Beard • Life’s Work: An Interview with Ruth Reichl
what you really need is exposure.The people getting “lucky” aren’t smarter.They’re just visible.They launch before it’s perfect.They publish when no one’s watching.They connect without asking for anything.They’ve built surface area.And surface area is what luck sticks to.