Unexpected Benefits of Being Vulnerable on the Internet ⚓︎
Patrick Maguire shares an interesting outcome of being more open, vulnerable, on the internet through his writing. I never thought by opening myself up can lead to others doing the same to me. An interesting perspective to ponder over.
Sharing who I truly am — my struggles, strengths, hard-won knowledge and weaknesses — has made me, in the eyes of others, more approachable, more human, and perhaps even more safe.
Annie Mueller is back with her pointed observation on creativity.
Fear stifles your mind. Anxiety stunts your ability to make connections. Connections are the core of creativity. You can’t connect what you can’t see.
I would add anticipation to the list too. Anticipation chains you, mars your ability to be free. A thing that is paramount to creativity. The anticipation of the outcome limits you, an apt segue into Annie’s next observation.
You think the most important part of creating is having the idea. That’s not true. The important part is the conflict that will inevitably happen: the conflict between your ideas and your limitations. The most important part is how you handle that conflict.
I’m in the Final Third of My Life ⚓︎
Derek Sivers has this gem of a wisdom about sharing the thoughts online.
Thoroughly sharing my thoughts online is life after death.
Respecting that sentiment, I myself am not too far away from how Sivers feels about the time I have got left on this planet. Even I am in the final third of my life and I need to sort a lot of things out. One of them is my undying habit of procrastination. I am living a paradox - lesser the time I have got left, lazier I am becoming.
Ben Werdmuller has a brilliant analogy describing why adding people to a team doesn’t always solve the problem. I wish this worked with more corporate people than I know it would.
Hiring more people when a team is struggling is often like trying to untangle a knot by adding more hands: without clear roles, it only gets messier.
“How many more people do you need?” is a question that I get way more frequently than what I am proud of.
Shane Parrish has this gem of an insight in this week’s edition of his newsletter.
We attach prestige to what mystifies us. Complexity intoxicates both the creator and audience, drugging us with the illusion of wisdom.
I observe this both at work and outside. If I don’t understand it, it must be brilliant. If I create something that no one understand, it will be brilliant. Such is the prevailing, albeit misguided, logic. The value of simplicity consistently outweighs the preference for the complexity.
As a creator, create something that’s easy to understand. As an audience, question what is not easy to understand.
A smile costs absolutely nothing. So why not spread it on the face. I just wear it on and live on. Without really caring if it does benefit me or not.
Wise words from not so wise man, from 17 years ago. Such jumbled words, yet so free. I envy this “dumb” guy.
You’re Not Lacking Creativity, You’re Overwhelmed ⚓︎
Jorge Medina highlights the perils of the choice if not addressed appropriately.
As the paradox of choice states, when there’s too wide an array of available choices, people experience stress, anxiety, and ultimately dissatisfaction or decision paralysis rather than liberation or happiness.
I have been burnt by this decision paralysis a lot more times than I am proud of. Rather, every time I am spoiled by a choice, I don’t make any at all. I wrote about it only recently talking from the perspective of the choice of blogging platforms. Choices put you in the risk of feeling overwhelmed.
As much as I find working from home as productive, I agree with Martin Fowler’s point on view on the importance of periodically organizing in-person gatherings from a team’s perspective. Especially its impact on the conversations and the eventually relationship.
Human interactions are always richer when they are face-to-face. Video calls too easily become transactional, with little time for the chitchat that builds a proper human relationship.
Some of the closest bonds that I have formed with my colleagues are those during the coffee breaks.
Annie Mueller has the most succinct advice on how to start making the thing.
What we do is make things. That’s what we’re good at, humans. So do the thing. Make something.
I tend to overthink about everything, even things that hardly should matter. I need to stop doing that, get rid of every obstacle in the path that deviates me from making something.