Box of Crayons

Five ways email is killing you

Michael — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:40:46 +0000

I was going to repackage this terrific article from PsyBlog, but then I figured – why bother? They’ve written a compelling article that sets out the ways in which email lessens our impact in the world, rather than supports it.

They actually set out ten reasons – I figure you can pick the reasons that resonate most for you.

Me? I pick #1, #2, #3, #4 and #6.

How about you. Email me your five. On second thoughts, just put them in the comments box.

5 Ways to Get to What Matters Most

Two Great New Books by Great Work Interviewees

Michael — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 21:30:41 +0000

September brings 2 new titles from folks I’ve interviewed for The Great Work Interview series.

Chris Guillibeau’s The Art of Non-Conformity (you might recognize that title as it is also the name of his Blog) – out today on Amazon.

You can listen to Chris talking about what a good life means to him here.

Scott Stratten has just published UnMarketing. Stop Marketing. Start Engaging.

You can hear Scott talking about authenticity and human motivation here.

Five bloggers who are hidden gems

Michael — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 10:45:44 +0000

You no doubt know all the big names in the blogosphere, even if you’re uncool like me and don’t go to blogging conferences.

There’s Seth Godin, marketeer and linchpin to the world and general maverick.

Chris Brogan, the Goateed Wonder, who bends time and space while writing on social media, life, travel and anything else he damn well fancies.

How about Naomi Dunford, the Bluebeard the Pirate of small business marketing. Without the beard. And probably with more cussing.

Or a fellow Aussie Darren Rowse, the pro blogger of ProBlogger.

And Leo Babauta, who’s rumoured to be going so minimialist and Zen that he’s soon to be known only as L.

(Wait – have you noticed that Seth, Darren and Leo all have exactly the same hair style? Coincidence? I think not. And by the way, you really should be subscribed to all of their blogs.)

But wait, as Sham Wow Vince might say, there’s more…

Here are five other bloggers who I love and you might love too.

1. Gwen Bell at GwenBell.com

Somehow Gwen is both cutting edge in this digital world and also above and beyond it. It’s a curious and powerful combination, and her writing is always reflective, funny and to the point on how we might manage ourselves in our over-connected world

2. Jessica at ThisIsIndexed

Graphs and venn diagrams about the absurdities of life. OK, I know that doesn’t sound brilliant. But she’s so smart, so eclectic, so wise…

3. MakeWorkMeaningful

A blog hub, with a growing and terrific collection of contributors. I’m one of those very same contributors – and I feel like I’m in excellent company. Many of the big names of how work needs to change hang out here.

4. Tina Roth Eisenberg aka Swiss Miss

OK, Swiss Miss isn’t exactly unknown. But I only if you hang out in certain circles it seems. She’s this large, red and white magnet for all things with a funky design twist to them – as long as by “twist” you mean beautiful, clean and eclectic. Which is all right by me.

5. My Brain Trust

OK, this is a bit of cheat I admit, squeezing in FiveForOne. But I have a fantastic mastermind group, and you can see why when you check on Eric, Jen, Mark, Michele and Molly ’s various blogs.

Great Work Interview, Mark McGuinness of Wishful Thinking

Michael — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 10:00:04 +0000

How do you step up to being more creative in your day-to-day life?

To answer this question, I’ve called in creativity guru Mark McGuinness. I stumbled across Mark in the blog series Lateral Action, which is about creativity and productivity. Mark is the founder and principle of Wishful Thinking, a coaching service for creative businesses and professionals. He even has an MA in Creative and Media Enterprises from the University of Warwick, and is the author of a popular e-book called How to Motivate Creative People [Including Yourself].

Mark started his practice as a hypnotherapist and some of his best sessions were with creative types, such as artists, actors, writers and filmmakers. He saw that his enthusiasm was up, his clients were getting results, and it was a strong sign that he was in the groove of doing his Great Work.

During our conversation, Mark shares valuable insights on creativity:

Forget about being creative. Start creating.
The “cash and sex” theory of balancing creativity in your career
Getting a good system to keep the cash rolling in
The TOTE model for managing projects
How exercise helps creativity (and how you can find the motivation to hit the gym).

Connect with Mark on his website www.wishfulthinking.co.uk, his blog lateralaction.com, or on Twitter @MarkMcGuinness.

Listen to my interview with Mark McGuinness

Great Work Interview, Gina Smith of iWoz

Michael — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:04:16 +0000

Tech journalist Gina Smith had never been on TV when she was asked to appear on PBS to debate Steve Ballmer of Microsoft about Windows ’95. It was a gutsy move, but she said yes because she was determined to let consumers know her criticisms of Windows ‘95. After the interview, she was worrying “Whoa, should I have actually done that?” when ABC called and asked her to be the tech correspondent on Good Morning America and World News Tonight. And that’s how Gina started her TV career: by saying yes to opportunities, taking risks and sharing her passion.

Gina is also the New York Times bestselling author (with Steve Wozniak) of iWOZ: From Geek to Cult Icon: How I Invented the Personal Computer, Co-founded Apple and Had Fun Along the Way. She’s a radio host, wrote an award-winning column for the San Francisco Sunday Chronicle, wrote a book about DNA, and now she’s a partner in First 30 based in San Francisco, which is an incubator firm for tech start-ups.

During our conversation, we talk about Gina’s serendipitous career journey and her current role at First 30, and:

How getting a text from a friend who met Steve Wozniak at a Grateful Dead concert turned into a book deal
Bringing great ideas to life: getting the guy who’s been working in his basement for 7 years a patent, an expert team, and a million dollars in funding
The Purple Cow: what Gina looks for when deciding which projects to back
Ripping the band-aid off: how to reject people without making them resent you

Learn more about Gina’s company at www.first30services.com.

Listen to my interview with Gina Smith

Great Work Interview, Mark Pearson of Pear Press

Michael — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 17:12:26 +0000

Today I’m talking to Mark Pearson, publisher and president of Pear Press. I came across Mark because I was interested in a book he published by John Medina, a N Y Times bestseller, Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work.

The business model of traditional publishers is to publish 100 or so books per year, knowing they’ll have a few great books, a lot of good ones, and some bad ones.

Pear Press is doing things differently, and it’s a fascinating, admirable approach. They only publish one book per year, and they pursue it with full-hearted gusto. It’s gotta be a quality “great” book that can knock it out of the park and hit some bestseller lists.

In this interview, Mark and I discuss:

Standing out in a sea of 800,000 new books published each year
“Cut out the crap”: the advice Steve Jobs of Apple gave to the CEO of Nike, and what publishers can learn from this lesson
Why exercise is important for the brain and taking a break from your desk is not slacking off

Visit Pear Press at www.pearpress.com.

Listen to my interview with Mark Pearson

Quite possibly the best crayons in the world…

Michael — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 10:00:55 +0000

These crayons rock the house in about 12 different ways. Recycled. Funky. Community-based. Genius.

Make sure you check out the short video to see how they’re made.

And buy some for anyone in your life who loves a crayon. (Which is most of us.)

We are confronted with insurmountable opportunities – Great Work Quote 85

Michael — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 09:56:51 +0000

We are confronted with insurmountable opportunities.
~ Walt Kelly

I get a regular dose of quotes from Quotes of the Day, and this one showed up today. I actually laughed out loud – it’s such an elegant reminder of the possibilities that exist in every nook and cranny for Great Work if only we stopped motoring along at a gazillion miles an hour, paused for breath, and looked around us.

Opportunities for connection. For impact. For fun. For friendship. For meaning. For difference.

So no excuses then.

Great Work Interview with Matthew Kelly, author of The Dream Manager

Michael — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 10:15:39 +0000

Matthew Kelly is a fellow Australian based in North America. He is a real force for change in the world of great work and following your dreams. In his 12 books, his consulting work and speaking work (he’s spoken to over 4 million people in the last 20 years!) he addresses how we fulfill the best version of ourselves.

Matthew has sold millions of books, including The Dream Manager, The Rhythm of Life and The Seven Levels of Intimacy. He has also created the The Matthew Kelly Foundation to spread his strategies on how we become the best version of ourselves and to help high school kids figure out what they’re going to do with their life.

In this interview we talk about:

The insight that people don’t exist for organizations. Organizations exist for people.
The 12 dream areas: physical, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, psychological, material, professional, financial, creative, adventure, legacy and character
How to get members of your team to become dream managers for each other
Why you need your own dream manager, whether you’re the janitor or the CEO

Visit www.floydconsulting.com or www.thedreammanager.com to learn more.

Listen to my interview with Matthew Kelly here

Great Work Interview with Gina Trapani of Lifehacker.com

Michael — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:34:46 +0000

Tech writer and coder. That’s the header on Gina Trapani’s website, and it’s strikes me as exceedingly humble for someone who was named one of Fast Company’s Most Influential Women in Technology in 2009 and 2010.

Gina is the founding editor of Lifehacker.com, the popular blog on productivity in the digital age, which was nominated for Blog of the Decade and led to the bestselling book, Upgrade Your Life.

Even though things were going great at Lifehacker, Gina left after 4 years to find her next challenge. Currently, she is a Project Director at Expert Labs.org, where she’s leading development on ThinkTank, which is an open source crowdsourcing platform that the White House will use.

I could go on and on, but you’ll have to listen to the interview to hear what else Gina is up to.

Why Gina left Lifehacker, even though she loved her title, her staff, and her paycheck (and how she decided when was the right time to leave)
Why it’s a good thing when a new job makes you uncomfortable and maybe even makes you cry
How doing work for free can lead to work that pays
Being a distracted email-overloaded fool, and how to trick yourself into being productive and get peace of mindGet all the details on Gina’s latest projects at www.ginatrapani.org.