So I’m starting to automatically import highlights from Instapaper to Evernote, and then I’m going to work on transferring these quotes to DayOne once a month.
Sure, I could just automate this process further, but I want to actually dwell back on these highlights and rethink on them.
A cocktail for putting dents in the universe
”If you don’t know how hard something is going to be, you’re less likely to be discouraged. If you don’t know it can’t be done, you just might do it”.
I fly 747s for a living. Here are the amazing things I see every day.
“the portion of the earth’s surface on which an unclothed human could survive for 24 hours is around 15 percent. I don’t know how accurate that number is, but from the cockpit of a 747 it sounds (and certainly looks) about right”
It’s interesting how you hear people always talking about the Earth’s population being too high and how we need to start controlling it, when in fact everyone simply chooses to live in small cities instead of spreading out into other areas on the Earth.
“Before I became a pilot it also never occurred to me that a plane might lose a third or more of its weight between takeoff and landing. That that jet leaving Singapore might start the night and its flight at 390 metric tons, and reach morning in London at 250 tons — the difference being the fuel burned along the way.”
This weight different is huge. I never realized it but pilots probably have to completely adjust the planes settings towards the end of any flight because of this.
“I could be in a park in London one afternoon, running, or drinking a coffee and chatting to the dog-walkers. Later I’ll go to an airport, meet my colleagues, walk into a cockpit, and take off for Cape Town. I’ll fly over the Pyrenees and Palma and see the lights of Algiers come on at sunset, then sail over the Sahara and the Sahel. I’ll cross the equator, and dawn will come to me as I parallel the Skeleton Coast of Namibia, and finally I’ll see Table Mountain in the distance as I descend to the Mother City. Then, less than an hour after the long-stilled wheels of the 747 were spun back to life by the sun-beaten surface of an African runway, I’ll be on a bus heading into Cape Town, sitting in rush hour traffic, on an ordinary morning in which, glancing down through the windshield of a nearby car, I’ll see a hand lift a cup of coffee or reach forward to tune the radio. And I’ll think: All this would still be going on if I hadn’t flown here. And that’s equally true of London, and of all the other cities I passed in the long night, that I saw only the lights of. For everyone, and every place, it’s the present.”
What a paragraph. I think of this often times yet I could never really put it into words. We live in a world where we can literally be in one city drinking coffee in the morning, and be in a completely different state in the evening having dinner with a friend. However, everything else keeps moving no matter where we are. There are still people in that coffee shop after you’re gone, and there are going to be new people eating dinner at your table long after you have finished.
“There’s a passage in A Tale of Two Cities that nails this heady sense of all the world’s lives and moments: “A solemn consideration, when I enter a great city by night, that every one of those darkly clustered houses encloses its own secret; that every room in every one of them encloses its own secret…” It’s a sentiment I recall when I arrive in Delhi, say, at 1 o’clock in the morning, and drive into the vast, quiet metropolis, where nearly everyone is sensibly sleeping. It’s something I ponder, too, when I’m flying at night, and I suddenly see the lights of a town far below, and then watch as the dark earth they’re resting on slowly turns away.”
Building off of the last quote, it’s amazing how we think everything revolves around us until we start realizing that every single human being also thinks this way. Each home consists of people who have their own personal thoughts, stories, and experiences.
Why you shouldn’t exercise to lose weight, explained with 60+ studies — Julia Belluz & Javier Zarracina
“A pound of human fat represents about 3,500 calories; therefore cutting 500 calories per day, through diet or physical activity, results in about a pound of weight loss per week. Similarly, adding 500 calories a day results in a weight gain of about the same.”
Cutting out 500 calories a day isn’t as easy as it sounds. I find that a combination of cutting and working out is a lot more manageable.
“The researchers behind the study found that people who have had success losing weight share a few things in common: They weigh themselves at least once a week. They restrict their calorie intake, stay away from high-fat foods, and watch their portion sizes. They also exercise regularly.”
Life Lessons from a Lifestyle Business — Indie.vc, Matt Haughey
“I crave simplicity and I don’t want complications. I’ve counseled my friends many times to just make things that make a little bit of money and make you happy. Why isn’t that good enough?”
Processing Points — Why We Need Them — Lee Garrett
“Your mind is for having ideas, not holding them”
Recently, I’ve been reading “Getting Things Done” which goes into depth on this concept. We can’t remember everything we promised and are responsible for — we simply aren’t built that way. This is why having a system to capture, store, and revisit your obligations is so important.
And Now, I Unfollow Thee — Katherine Rosman
““Unfollowing is the best,” said Ms. Cassidy, 31. “I think that social media is so pervasive in our everyday life that it can be easy to forget that it is entirely optional. You can get into a cycle of being irritated and not remember that you don’t have to participate.””
I’ve had multiple situations were people get upset about me unfollowing them. It’s interesting because it really isn’t anything personal. It can be as simple as you posting too much, or you posting things I don’t really care about. People are too sensitive about these things.
The day we discovered our parents were Russian spies — Shaun Walker
“The best kind of intelligence is to understand what your opponent will think tomorrow, not find out what he thought yesterday.”
Staying ahead of the competition versus always being one step behind. You can apply this to any profession or sport.
Learning Chess at 40 — Tom Vanderbilt
“Adults need to explain to themselves why they play what they play. Kids don’t do that. It’s like with languages. Beginner adults learn the rules of grammar and pronunciation, and use those to put sentences together. Little kids learn languages by talking.”
Virginia Woolf on What Makes Long-Term Relationships Last
“Arnold Bennett says that the horror of marriage lies in its “dailiness.” All acuteness of a relationship is rubbed away by this. The truth is more like this: life — say 4 days out of 7 — becomes automatic; but on the 5th day a bead of sensation (between husband and wife) forms which is all the fuller and more sensitive because of the automatic customary unconscious days on either side. That is to say the year is marked by moments of great intensity. Hardy’s “moments of vision.” How can a relationship endure for any length of time except under these conditions?”
This makes a lot of sense to me. I’m not married, but I have been in a serious relationship for almost 4 years now. People always seem to wonder how this is possible without getting bored, but I think Virginia explains it well. Things are regular 60 – 70% of the time, but then something irregular happens and it reminds you why you appreciate this person so much more. Humans take things for granted (including people), but it’s good to know the little things matter the most.
Ways We Work – Cooper
““Personas tend to be very misused and misunderstood. Goals are one of the most important aspects of a persona, and this is often what we see missing. We look for those goals in our research and then design for them in our scenarios. These are stories of how our personas accomplish their goals, using the product or service we’re designing.””
Lately I’ve been working on some persona projects from some of my clients. I love the approach of working backwards. In other words, what are the goals with doing this research? Once you know the goals, you can ask the right questions and build your personas to match those goals.
Please don’t learn to code — Basel Farag
“He knew that banging out code would not solve the problem, but cool, collected problem solving would.”
I’m not a developer, but as a consultant I can say that it’s incredible what stepping back from the computer and taking a walk to strategize does for campaigns. Just because someone looks like they’re working doesn’t mean they’re working.
Choking under pressure — What we can learn from those who have and how to avoid it — Nathan Kontny
“Choking can occur when people think too much about activities that are usually automatic. This is called “paralysis by analysis.” By contrast, people also choke when they are not devoting enough attention to what they are doing and rely on simple or incorrect routines.”
“From years of running businesses, I have realized over and over again how important it is to bite off small projects. It’s too risky to do large things, and too hard to measure. So increment everywhere you possibly can.”
Even with huge projects, it’s important to break them down into manageable pieces and tackle them one by one. Additionally, setup reviews after each portion to make sure you are on the right track when it comes to the bigger picture. For example, if you are a general contractor and are building a home, you don’t just say “I need to build this house”. Instead, you break it down into parts. “First, I need to do x. Once this is done, I can do y.”
Failure as Progress — Jon Phenow
“The time boxing of a goal is also important. If you have a supposed infinite amount of time to succeed or fail, then you never fail. You’re really just in a constant state of in-progress until you “succeed” which, aside from being unrealistic, doesn’t teach you anything because you don’t get to learn from any sort of failure.”
“In Software Engineering there’s a well known development technique called TDD — Test Driven Development. Rather than writing code and then testing it, you write a test and then write the code that makes that test pass. One reason people find it useful is that finding proof that your works comes fairly naturally.”
The slow death of purposeless walking – BBC News — Finlo Rohrer
“But there’s something else people get from choosing to walk. A place to think.”
“”Your senses are sharpened. As a writer, I also use it as a form of problem solving. I’m far more likely to find a solution by going for a walk than sitting at my desk and ‘thinking’.””
As mentioned earlier, I highly recommend taking a walk and just strategizing and plotting out your actions. Clear your head and focus in on what needs to be done.
How to Raise Your Credit Score, Fast — Suzanne Woolley
“The rule of thumb says you can tap 20 to 25 percent of available credit before you risk hurting your credit score.”
I’m still amazed at the lack of factual information on credit scores and the art of improving them. They need to have classes in high school that teach the do’s and don’ts of this.
Holistic Management — Cap Watkins
“We have to stop thinking about just the people or team we’re directly responsible for and start considering the impact we could have on everyone if we work together.”
What We Lose In A Streaming Music World — Richard J. Anderson
“When there’s an all-you-can eat buffet for $9.99, what’s the incentive to order something that isn’t on the menu?”
How to Flake Out on Plans If You’re Depressed — Jacqueline Novak
“Deep down, everyone just wants a snow day. When you suddenly cancel on friends, you are doing them a favor. You are in effect giving them a snow day, even if they didn’t realize they wanted one.”
I’m guilty of this. I hate making plans when it comes to hanging out with friends because in the back of my mind I know I can be doing something else or I simply want some time to myself. As work gets busier and life gets more intense it’s important to manage your time wisely when it comes to friends.
“Eat, sleep, code, repeat” is such bullshit — Signal v. Noise — Dan Kim
“That’s because they know that a truly balanced lifestyle — one that gives your brain and your soul some space to breathe non-programming air — actually makes you a better programmer.”
Generation Nintendo — The Digital Antiquarian
“If hardware companies are designing a machine for one purpose, they will do a better job than on a multi-function machine.”
So true.
Building on kindness — Signal v. Noise
“Sometimes, the kindest thing you can do for a person is to tell them to go fu** themselves.”
Stop being so nice to people. If someone is talking too much or is out of control, they are hijacking your precious time. There is nothing wrong with telling that person to stop. If a client isn’t willing to change and doesn’t want to listen, let them know. Be honest, be up front.
Mainstream precludes cool — Signal v. Noise
“Enjoy the ride, accept when it’s over, and stop pining for the past.”
‘Mad Men’ Creator Matt Weiner on His Hollywood Struggles, and How George Lois Is Like Tony Soprano, Not Don Draper — Eric Konigsberg
“As consumers, we think of advertising noise, as these messages we don’t want to hear. But the people who make it, the ones who know what they’re doing, are holding up a mirror, and they’re saying, “This is the way you wish you were, this is the thing you’re afraid of,” or, “Here’s something new that’s better. I know you will like it.” A really, really good advertising person is like an artist, channeling the culture. Don Draper, especially in the Fifties, reflecting an idealized version of ourselves.”
I loved “Mad Men”. Matt Weiner is insanely smart and I completely agree that advertising, although frowned upon by many, is an art in itself.
Quitting Your Job to Pursue Your Passion is Bullshit — Janelle Quibuyen
“Nowadays we are bombarded with messages that life could only be meaningful if we do what we love (which is subjective anyway).”
“I don’t want anyone who works a 9-to-5 to feel like a fool for staying at a stable job, or feel wrong if they actually enjoy it.”
You aren’t an idiot for working a 9-5. You aren’t an idiot for attending college. You aren’t an idiot for doing something, anything, that’s right for your future.
Molly Crabapple’s 15 rules for creative success in the Internet age — Molly Crabapple
“our country punishes anyone who wants to go freelance and pursue their dream by telling them they might get cancer while uninsured, and then not be able to afford to treat it.”
“I’ve never had a big break. I’ve just had tiny cracks in this wall of indifference until finally the wall wasn’t there any more”
Little wins add up to big wins.
The Future of Getting High — Maggie Koerth-Baker
“In fact, the first thing ever sold online, in 1972, was a bag of weed.”
Of course it was!