life
How to accidentally build an “Authentic Personal Brand” when the whole idea makes you gag
Heeeeyyyyy! Check it out! I’ve got a brand-new website! I’m proud, I’m happy… I’m definitely completely sure it’s not finished…but I’m going live anyway! Ever heard the phrase, Imperfect Action? It means take action before you have every detail nailed down. It means take the jump. It means Dare to be Bad. Imperfect action is…
Read MoreCoping With Staying at Home: How to Survive—and Thrive—While Under Quarantine
The Autonomous Creative Collective is the community of current students and alumni of the Creative Focus Workshop. Coping With Staying at Home: Wisdom from a 25-year vet of social distancing and sheltering at home If there’s anyone I trust to know something real and reliable about surviving, and thriving while trying to cope with staying…
Read MoreMaking better comics: 12 years and 12 hard-won lessons learned
The point of being human is to try things that are incredibly difficult, to reach for heaven, even if it exceeds your grasp. That’s who we are. That’s what makes it all worth it.
Read MoreWant out of the scarcity trap? Stop working so hard.
If I want to invent a new future, one where I can do more by doing less, where I can make smart choices that allow me to have more impact in the world, building in margin is the only way to get there.
Read MoreThe value of simple goals
Obviously, one can be overburdened with things that need doing, and that can make getting creative work done very difficult.
But it’s not actually freedom from all the things that makes the work possible.
How to regain your focus and get creative again
When you take a break from your creative work, whether voluntarily or not, it can feel almost impossible to rev up your creative momentum. Here’s how (free worksheet).
Read MoreWant creative focus? 7 ways to tidy up your thinking
Tidy your brain-closets to make space to focus on your creative work.
Read MoreSay yes to cheese and grapes.
Take a pause to really see what you’ve accomplished, and celebrate it. Today, I’m celebrating the release of my new podcast.
Read MoreHow Jessica met Ira
This strip is responsible, in a roundabout way, for Out on the Wire. Ira Glass came across this strip when it ran in the NewCity in 1996, clipped it, and stuck it in his files. When he was looking for a cool idea for a pledge drive premium two years later, he thought of my strip, and called me…in Mexico City, where I’d moved six months earlier.
Read More“Authenticity,” expat life, and (not) going native in France
If you ask, I’ll tell you: you should go live abroad somewhere for a while. The thing is, when you live abroad, your perspective on home changes, and is complicated to the point that “home” starts to require scare quotes.
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