Guts, because it might not work.
And generosity, because guts without seeking to make things better is merely hustle.
The innovator shows up with something she knows might not work (pause for a second, and contrast that with everyone else, who has been trained to show up with a proven, verified, approved, deniable answer that will get them an A on the test).
If failure is not an option, then, most of the time, neither is success.
It’s pretty common for someone to claim that they’re innovative when actually, all they are is popular, profitable or successful. Nothing wrong with that. But it’s not innovative.
Allow generosity to take the lead and you’ll probably discover that it’s easier to find the guts.
August 13, 2019
Optimists are always a little disappointed.
If you live with possibility, the idea that things can get better, that with consistent generous effort you can make a contribution, then you also end up feeling just a bit let down that it didn’t happen this time.
The alternative is to insist on limits, to be a pessimist, to simply play it as written and only do your job, expecting the worst.
Sure, you could probably avoid a little disappointment that way, but how could it be worth the journey? What’s the point of all this risk, effort and connection if we’re not going to use it in search of better?
August 12, 2019
Are you hesitant about this new idea because it’s a risky, problematic, defective idea…
or because it’s simply different than you’re used to?
If your current normal is exactly what you need, then different isn’t worth exploring. For the rest of us, it’s worth figuring out where our discomfort with the new idea is coming from.
August 11, 2019
Discipline, rigor, patience, self-control, dignity, respect, knowledge, curiosity, wisdom, ethics, honor, empathy, resilience, honesty, long-term, possibility, bravery, kindness and awareness.
All of these are real skills, soft skills, learnable skills.
But if they’re skills, that means that they are decisions. A choice we get to make. Even if it’s not easy or satisfying in the short term.
These skills are in short supply sometimes, which makes them even more valuable.
August 10, 2019
In every era, traditional media channels will diminish, dismiss and ignore the new ones. They do this at the very same time that they are supplanted by the new ones.
While they will occasionally spend some time or money testing a new medium, they rarely leap.
This is the posture of the business people/publishers, but it also has an impact on their editorial approach.
Radio shows rarely became TV shows. TV networks didn’t embrace cable as they could have. The book industry generally ignores every innovation in tech.
As late as 1994, Bryant Gumbel was spending time on network TV being befuddled by the ‘internet’. And in 1999, Conde Nast bought the print half of Wired but intentionally left the web version behind.
Twenty years ago, newspapers were in a perfect position to establish blog networks—they had their reader’s attention and advertiser’s trust. But they blinked.
New media tends to be adopted by amateurs first. And it rarely has a mass audience in the early days (because it’s new). But professional content for the masses is precisely what old media stands for. As new media gains traction, the old media doubles down on what they believe to be their value, because they no longer have a monopoly on attention.
The editors at Encyclopedia Brittanica were proud of the control they had over every page, so they ignored Wikipedia. The producers and directors of movies love the gloss of film, so they ignored video games. And the editors of newspapers like their local hegemony so they fight against distributed content.
So the Times publishes a snarky, poorly written takedown of podcasts. Not because it’s based on the economic or cultural reality of today, but because their self-esteem requires there to be a chasm between all of these amateur podcasts and the few professional ones that they deign to create and publish.
Businesses make their own choices and suffer the consequences. The Mutual Broadcasting Network was a powerhouse in radio, but no longer. The problem is that these media businesses also narrate our cultural conversation, and that narration is historically wrong and prevents people from seeing what’s possible until it’s already well underway.
There were thousands of newspapers before there were only a few profitable ones. There are millions of YouTube creators, but only hundreds make a great living at it. And the same will be true of podcasts.
But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start a podcast. You should. Because a podcast is a generous way to share your ideas. Because it gives you a way to clarify your thinking. Because you can assemble a group of people who want to go where you’re going.
The Podcast Fellowship starts this week. Check it out.
August 9, 2019
Today’s the 11th year in a row of daily posts on this blog. Nearly 5,000,000 words since my first post twenty years ago, and I haven’t missed a day (given some time-zone wiggle room) since 2008.
Streaks are their own reward.
Streaks create internal pressure that keeps streaks going.
Streaks require commitment at first, but then the commitment turns into a practice, and the practice into a habit.
Habits are much easier to maintain than commitments.
I’m pretty sure that the blog would still have an impact if I missed a day here or there, but once a commitment is made to a streak, the question shifts from, “should I blog tomorrow,” to, “what will tomorrow’s blog say?”
And once you’ve made that shift, it’s 100x easier to find the voice that you’re looking for.
I didn’t set out to have this particular streak (I don’t remember the day the blog went from ‘most days’ to ‘every day’) but I’m glad to have gone on this journey. Thanks for being part of it.
PS you can subscribe to this blog for free, as always. You can follow my blog on Twitter, or on Facebook, or get the posts by email or even better, unfiltered via RSS.
August 8, 2019
It’s essential that we make new mistakes.
We don’t make nearly enough of them. Not enough original effort, not enough generous intent, not enough daring in search of something better.
But at the same time, we need to stop making the old mistakes again and again. What did you expect to happen when you did the very same thing that didn’t work last time?
For some of us, it’s more frightening to do something new than it is to retry something that failed.
August 7, 2019
This is the moment, right here and right now, to start your podcast.
Not because it will make you rich. Hardly. There are too many other ways for people to spend their attention for you (or me) to possibly assemble a large enough audience to make a killing selling ads.
There are three good reasons to start a podcast now:
- You have something to share, and a podcast is a great way to share it. It gives you a microphone and a platform to say what’s on your mind, to generously share what you know.
- It will connect you. A podcast connects you to those you interview, and it also connects you to the listeners who have enrolled in the journey with you. Drip by drip, your narrative has a chance to resonate.
- A podcast helps you think more clearly. When you know you need to talk about something you care about, you’ll work to make your thinking more accessible and cogent–and because it’s spoken, not written, you may very well get past that block we were taught in third grade.
Over the last year and a half, Alex DiPalma and I have offered the Podcasting Fellowship, an Akimbo workshop that helps people find their podcasting footing. (Alex is the producer of my podcast and many others). Nearly 1,000 people have been through our Podcasting workshop, and it works. Our alumni have created thousands of hours of material, including at least one iTunes Top 10 podcast.
We’re running it for a fourth time, because this is the best moment to begin.
Enrollment starts today. I hope you’ll check it out at the link below. Look for the purple circle today to save a few dollars.
The Podcasting Fellowship
August 6, 2019
Take it seriously. Of course. That’s required.
But you don’t have to take it personally.
In fact, if you want to be a professional, it’s impossible to do both at the same time.
August 5, 2019
Our days are filled with the path to future skills, tasks and commitments that we believe we can’t possibly take on. We’ve seduced ourselves into believing that we’re not born with the talent, or that the obstacles to doing the work are just too great.
In fact, it’s more likely that we’ve simply decided that the work isn’t worth the effort.
Or the fear is too much to bear.
But it’s hardly impossible.
We just don’t care enough.
August 4, 2019
