Learn to Draw by Tracing
It feels a bit like cheating at first, when you trace a photo.
But then you begin to learn a bit more about line and shadow.
And then it feels really cool.
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Two Ways to Build a Cathedral
When you’re building a cathedral, some days you’re drawing the master plan, and some days you’re just laying bricks.
One is in the ideal. Envisioning the final eloquence, and dreaming in the highest values.
The other is down in the dirt, with your aching back and your bloody fingers.
Both ways are building the cathedral.
And both of them matter just as much as the other.
Photo by Nikhil Dev Chunchu
How Discipline and Contemplation Combine
Discipline Is Remembering What You Want.
Remembering what you want is following your True North.
Finding your True North takes patience, contemplation, and quiet.
Finding patience, contemplation and quiet in our busy lives takes discipline.
Discipline and True North are two sides of the same coin.
Where will you find them both today?
Photo by Natalie Rhea on Unsplash
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Distracted by Shiny Objects? The Real Shiny Object is Your Diamond Dream in the Dirt
You Don’t Have to Don’t Fall Into the Trap of the Shiny Object Again
I just got a new Mac.
An inexpensive, very fast, new machine.
I’m in love, but…
I’m trying not to fall into the trap again.
The Trap of the Shiny Object.
The Shiny Object has so much promise!!!
But the specs mean nothing.
All my thrill is worth nothing.
What matters is not the promise the Shiny Object brings.
What matters is what’s at the root of the promise.
The reason I use these shiny tools is to make things.
What I make is the Real Shiny Object.
The ugly, clumsy, not-as-good-as-you-want,
Not-living -up-to-your-standards,
Not matching your high level of taste,
The piece of work that’s a “piece of work”.
That’s the Real Shiny Object, the diamond in the rough
The diamond you would step on and grind into the dirt
If you did not know to look for it.
Today, I’m reminding you (and me)
To look for those tiny rough diamonds in the dirt.
Gather them up by creating and sharing them often.
Ship when it feels hard to ship.
Because the Real Shiny Object
Is the Joy of doing this work.
The true joy is the satisfaction of knowing
That you did your best,
Even when (and especially when!)
You thought your best
Was not that good.
If you can relate to Shiny Objects; you love them but want to own them vs being owned by them?
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How to Get Quick Clarity in 20 Questions
Last week I was Irritated.
Something was bothering me and I could not pin it down.
Then I realized I was because I was trying to ship content without a super-clear idea of what I needed to say.
I was annoyed because I lacked clarity.
Why Clarity Helps
If you don’t have a clear idea of what you want, you spend a lot of time doing things that don’t matter. You get irritated more easily and things don’t flow well.
If you don’t have clarity, you second guess yourself.
Life’s too short to ignore this problem. To make your work and life matter more you need to seek clarity, especially if you are at the end of a creative cycle like I was last week.
For me, the end of any creative endeavor is where I reevaluate and solidify my new learning and beliefs. At the end of the cycle, I can take my new Truths to the next level and take on the next challenge with greater strength.
I start with a Problem, take Action, realize the Results, then revaluate my new Truths and Beliefs. It’s a framework that helps me to never get lost while creating.
We need to seek True North.
This List Will Help You Get The Clarity You Need
In fact, you will be amazed at what taking just 20 minutes to go through this list will do.
Yes, you could spend a lot more time than 20 minutes, but a quick run-through on the first pass will help you see what matters.
Step 1 to Get Greater Insight
Go through this list quickly and see what jumps out to you. Be curious and see what resonates. Which question makes you want to dig deeper?
High Level Clarifying Questions
- What’s Your True North?
- Who Are You?
- What Is Your Story?
- What Values Do You Hold?
- What Deeply Motivates You?
- What Matters To You The Most?
- Who Matters To You The Most?
- What Material Things Matter To You?
- What Words Define You?
- What Brings You Joy?
- What’s Your Deepest Belief?
- Where Do You Connect?
- What Is Your Why?
- How Would Your Friends Define Your Uniqueness?
- Where Do You Spend Your Time?
- Where Do You Lead?
- How Do You Follow?
- What’s Your Greatest Gift?
- What’s Your Biggest Hope?
- How Would You Prioritize These Questions?
Step 2 – How to Get the Most Out This Clarity Exercise
My favorite way to answer these questions is to do a quick blitz.
Answer them all intentionally but quickly. Sit down with a large sheet of paper, your favorite pen, set a timer for 20 minutes, and get cranking.
Better yet, shut the door, download the free and awesome Otter.ai transcription & recording app, and use both your writing and speaking brains for this exercise.
To Finish Your Clarity Session Strong
Take a short break, then follow up with a few clarifying questions.
What questions resonated with you the most?
Where would you like to go back and dig deeper?
Then go back and ask the big ones.
Who Are You?
What’s Your True North?
