These are a few of my favorite articles, records, Sign up for our newsletter to get them in your inbox.
read
Kristina Karlsson, the woman behind the inspiring global success story, kikki.K, shares personal insights from her amazing journey, from humble beginnings on a small farm in Sweden to the 3am light bulb moment that led her to chase and achieve dreams that are now inspiring a worldwide community of dreamers.
Filled with simple and practical magic – and inspiring stories and wisdom from people who've dared to dream big – this book will show you how to harness the power of dreaming to transform your life in small, simple steps.
“The job is what you do when you are told what to do. The job is showing up at the factory, following instructions, meeting spec, and being managed.
Someone can always do your job a little better or faster or cheaper than you can.
The job might be difficult, it might require skill, but it's a job.
Your art is what you do when no one can tell you exactly how to do it. Your art is the act of taking personal responsibility, challenging the status quo, and changing people.
I call the process of doing your art 'the work.' It's possible to have a job and do the work, too. In fact, that's how you become a linchpin.
The job is not the work.”
“what we choose to focus on and what we choose to ignore—plays in defining the quality of our life.”
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” - George Bernard Shaw
The least favorite students were the non-conformists who made up their own rules. Teachers tend to discriminate against highly creative students, labeling them as troublemakers.
“Generosity is, by definition, disinterested.”
"It's all really very simple. You don't have to choose between being kind to yourself and others. It's one and the same."
"Try this experiment. Start with an ordinary situation such as riding in a taxi, buying paper at a stationary shop, or sitting in the train. Then try exchanging a few words with the taxi driver, making eye contact with the salesperson, striking up a conversation with someone on the train. For some of us, that happens spontaneously; others have to do it deliberately. Be fully present in this brief contact, and expect the other to be so as well. Suddenly a change occurs: Something becomes unblocked and energy circulates. It might not be an encounter of two souls. But it surely will be an exchange of vital energy between two people."
“Like a kid in a candy store” is one of the most iconic images of joy in our culture, expressing the wild, almost delirious pleasure we take in being let loose in a bountiful world. When I first started hearing about the places that give people joy, I realized that many of them evoke this giddy feeling of abundance: carnivals and circuses, dollar stores and flea markets, and giant old hotels like the Grand Budapest of director Wes Anderson’s imagining. The same feeling also exists on a smaller scale. An ice-cream cone covered in rainbow sprinkles is like a candy store held in your hand. A shower of confetti, a multicolored quilt, a simple game of pick-up sticks, have this irresistible allure.
Even the language of joy is rife with excess. We say we’re overjoyed or that we’re brimming with happiness.
We say, “My cup runneth over.” And this is very much how it feels to be in a moment of joy, when our delight is so abundant it feels like it can’t be contained.”
Busy is a decision. – Debbie Millman
Do what you can, with what you have, where you are. – Theodore Roosevelt
Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted. – William Bruce Cameron
“Make stuff you love and talk about stuff you love and you’ll attract people who love that kind of stuff. It’s that simple.”
“Your influences are all worth sharing because they clue people in to who you are and what you do—sometimes even more than your own work.”
“Teaching people doesn’t subtract value from what you do, it actually adds to it. When you teach someone how to do your work, you are, in effect, generating more interest in your work. People feel closer to your work because you’re letting them in on what you know.”
I love this book SO much. “Be curious about the world in which you live. Look things up. Chase down every reference. Go deeper than anybody else--that's how you'll get ahead.”
“Your job is to collect good ideas. The more good ideas you collect, the more you can choose from to be influenced by.”
This book is so smart! “Any time in life you’re tempted to think, ‘Should I do this OR that?’ instead, ask yourself, ‘Is there a way I can do this AND that?” I find myself thinking back to this book every time I am faced with a tough decision.
entrepreneurship
BEING BOSS: Becoming an Enthusiastic Leader
CREATIVE PEP TALK "Real creativity happens when you admit that you don't have all the answers."
MARIE FORLEO: Franchesca "Chescaleigh" Ramsey on being a "multi-passionate entrepreneur":
It's funny because when I was growing up I would run into people in my family and at school who would say you have to pick one. And I thought - well I don't want to pick one. I like all of these things. And I very much think that if you have lots of interests, you should explore them to the best of your ability because you never know how they're going to interplay or which one is really going to take-off. For me, my graphic design helped me have a great website and make sure that I had beautiful business cards and helped me edit my videos. My interest in beauty and hair helped me make sure I looked cute on auditions. All of those things worked together for me.
In the beginning, it can seem or feel scattered. But if you have that sense of courage and willingness like - "I'm just going to keep going for it."
Even if they don't fit together in a traditional sense, that's all the more reason to try to make it work because that's going to separate you from the pack.
marketing
DR. JOEL MIER: Can We Stop Fooling Ourselves? Generational Marketing is a Myth. Generational marketing is nothing more than the power of averages: looking at large groups of consumers banded together by the years they were born. To help marketing be a driving force of organic, sustained growth for our companies we need to do the hard work of truly understanding those we aim to serve and no longer rely on generalities and averages of the masses.
FORBES: How Much Do People Trust Your Content? Serve your audience first, and your business goals second. There is no better way to build trust and hold people’s attention. Think there’s only one right way to do something? That’s fine, but mention the other ways it can be done. Explain why they’re not as effective. You’ll be more convincing than just pretending they don’t exist.
QUARTZ: Steve Jobs saved Apple—and Nike—with the same piece of advice: Focus trumps opportunity. This is why doing one thing well works. With the floodgates of the internet permanently thrown open, we’re drowning in options and information when all our brains want is something simple.
If you can tap into that simple, focused message, you’ll stand out.
inspiration
watch
ISSA RAE: We have a tendency to network up, but it really is about networking across. Who is next to you? Who is struggling? Who is in the trenches with you. Who is just as hungry as you are? Those are the people you need to build with. [It's not about trying to hit up those that are already super successful] It's about calling your college-mate, calling your coworker, and saying "hey, are you trying to do this?"
learn
KAREN MCGRANE: Content & Context: Content Strategy for a Mobile World
ADWEEK: Why It’s Critical Brands Take a Stand on Tough Social Issues
Customers want to know where brands stand on issues. Brands cannot expect to play Switzerland as the rest of the world picks a side. Consumers want the companies they support to harness their power for good, not lay back and let injustices happen."
GOALCAST: These 9 life lessons from comedian Tim Minchin will make you laugh — and learn
FREE CODE CAMP | 200 universities just launched 560 free online courses.
my favorite tools
My Favorite Tools
Throughout the years I’ve collected a few online tools and apps that make my job easier. here are my favorites…
how to
JERRY POTTER: How to add more than Five Instagram Accounts to your phone.
APPLE: How to record the screen on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
BUILT VISIBLE: How To Use Talkwalker Alerts for Journalism / PR outreach
NY TIMES: How to use social media in your career.
TFB: How to Make A Shareable Custom Facebook Profile Frame
MAC OBSERVER: How to use How to Use iOS 11 Screen Recording
AMY LANDINO: The Only Video Equipment You Need: This video just might give you the push you need to start incorporating video into your content strategy and marketing. We ordered the mic she recommends.
tips
SOLAMAR: 10 Tips For Running A Successful Facebook Group
SEARCH ENGINE JOURNAL: A Beginner’s Guide To ADA Compliance For Websites
HOOTSUITE: What it Takes to Create a Great Social Video: A 10-Step Guide
ENTREPRENEUR: 7 Things You Must Do to Grow a Fanatical Following Online People spend their time creating more content for the same audience, when in actual fact they should be focusing on getting their existing content in front of more people.
Introducing our newest program, Media Production. Careers in #media #production begin with a passion for making #videos, taking #photos, working with #audio and capturing the story. Learn more on our website: https://t.co/RPG3zXGK1o
@VCUCHS
That's Keya Wingfield's on the top right!! https://t.co/l43qNdmToq
Back from a snowy afternoon of McNugget bouquet deliveries. ❤️🥰🍟Happy Galentine’s!
Super excited that our client @twiffanyjana is going live with Seth Godin today (Friday 1/29) at 12 ET. Spread the word! https://t.co/Ax11TJ2fS5
Your influencers are all worth sharing because they clue people into who you are and what you to
- sometimes even more than your own work.
- Austin Kleon
