This recent article in the Verge describes a trend in design towards something called “Airspace” in cafes, web design, and Air Bnb-Style micro-accommodation. Essentially, the idea is that a certain group’s desire for authentic experiences has inadvertently driven designers across industries towards a homogenized sameness — achingly tasteful artisinal accents embedded within a bright zen […]
Read More
One of the buzziest marketing words out there is the notion of “tribes” – groups of people with a shared worldview – which was popularized by Seth Godin’s eponymous title. A tribe in this sense doesn’t generally organize along demographic lines, but rather through shared values and passions. Of course marketers want to be able […]
Read More
That’s what it comes down to, that feeling when you seem like you’ve lost your way on a project, on a career track, on the life you’d always imagined. Sometimes it falls apart. Sometimes it’s insanity to keep clinging to a vision, despite all of the sacrifices you’ve made to get this far — despite […]
Read More
While I currently have two books in the works that I’m readying for release, I started working on an idea for my next one several months ago. I use that word “working” pretty loosely. All I did was watch a bunch of movies on a theme and start keeping my eyes open for interesting and […]
Read More
Seventeen was a great age for finding others with shared interests. Because of the structural limitations of high school, everyone you knew was getting most of the same information as you. They also knew all the same people. Additionally, at least when I was seventeen, most people shared the same cultural references because we got […]
Read More
At 15, French dubstep whiz Fytch remixed a Little Boots song called “Earthquake”. In doing so he took a so-so dance tune and turned it into something spectacular: In the process, he launched himself as a highly respected artist who now at 19 books with some of the best DJs in the world. How did […]
Read More
When I’m writing at my finest, words seem to align with the experiences of life in a completely harmonized way. Not a single note misses. Not one is out of tune. These are the happiest moments of my life. Their meaning radiates outwards, bringing joy and connection to everything else I do and see. It’s […]
Read More
“We shape our tools, and then our tools shape us.” – Marshall McLuhan This week on my Facebook page, I posted a list of things that didn’t exist (or barely did) when I was 18. Things keep coming to me, so here’s an expanded version: Artificial Intelligence Amazon Big data Cyberbullying Data plans Digital cameras Digital […]
Read More
Michelangelo famously described the sculpting process like this: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” Antoine de Saint-Exupéry described the writing process this way: “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” What a fascinating resonance […]
Read More
Recently, I identified a pattern that has severely hindered my ability to do an outstanding job on the last stages of my long-term projects. I reach a point where I’m basically 80% done everything and then all of the sudden, I start shutting down and doubting the validity of the work I’ve done. At that […]
Read More