“Whether you’re a programmer or a seamstress, it’s all about new techniques, simplifying old techniques, and consolidating steps. Making things go faster – but not worse.” – Martha Stewart, Born Aug. 3, 1941. Whatever it is you do more than once, you should always be looking for efficiencies and tricks to make that task easier… Read More →
What Makes You “Strange” Also Makes You Powerful
“A lot of life is dealing with your curse, dealing with the cards you were given that aren’t so nice. Does it make you into a monster, or can you temper it in some way, or accept it and go in some other direction?” – Wes Craven, Born Aug. 2, 1939. You know what… Read More →
Blue Jeans: The Secret of Replicability, Scalability, and Success
“I wish I had invented blue jeans. They have expression, modesty, sex appeal, simplicity – all I hope for in my clothes.” – Yves Saint Laurent, Born Aug. 1, 1936. You ever suffer from making things too damn complicated? Too specialized? Too refined and too hard to adapt? That can make it seem like you… Read More →
Do Not Fear to ACTIVELY Repel People Who Won’t Like You Anyway
“When I was a young comic just starting out, I was very cautious, as I didn’t want to alienate people. George Carlin’s bravery became a benchmark. I became perfectly fine with alienating some people in the audience. That just comes with the territory.” – Paul Provenza, Born Jul. 31, 1957. So you want to… Read More →
Build Your Fortune As You Build Your Business: Word by Word
“Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs.” – Henry Ford, Born Jul. 30, 1863. Everyone knows this. It seems like something Ford would have said as a throwaway, knowing he pioneered assembly line manufacturing. But don’t let this one slide by without considering it. Every big, ambitious project that you want… Read More →
Anyone Can Write, But *WRITERS* Finish What They Start
”Ideas are not – ideas come at me all the time; it’s just the way I’m wired. It’s just a matter of focusing it in and figuring out what to do with that.” – Gail Simone, Born Jul. 29, 1974. Everyone has ideas. So what? Dime a dozen. Dime a MILLION. Who cares about your… Read More →
When You Focus on the Work, The Simplest Tools and Tactics Serve Best
“A determined soul will do more with a rusty monkey wrench than a loafer will accomplish with all the tools in a machine shop.” – Robert Hughes, Born Jul. 28, 1938. Ah, the monkey wrench. A large, solidly made tool – that can repair big machines… Or if deliberately tossed into a running machine, wreck… Read More →
A Random Encounter with the SECRET of Winning the “Game”
“The secret we should never let the gamemasters know is that they don’t need any rules.” – Gary Gygax, Born Jul. 27, 1938. Business is like this and art is like this: Just like a game. Role playing games in particular have a strong metaphorical correlation with the info-marketing guru-type professional internet celebrity “industry”. There… Read More →
When Can a Non-Response Can Be Taken as a “NO”? (Almost Never)
“The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place.” – George Bernard Shaw, Born Jul. 26, 1856. The guy who gave me a career in copy (Andy Jenkins, RIP) was a big fan of this quote, and he used it a lot when I worked for him. Mostly in a… Read More →
How to Obligate *Willing* Reciprocity in Potential Prospects
“There is sublime thieving in all giving. Someone gives us all he has and we are his.” – Eric Hoffer, Born Jul. 25, 1902. Cialdini called this the “Law of Reciprocity”, triggered when you do a favor for someone unbidden. They then feel a strong obligation to return the favor. We don’t like being forced… Read More →
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