Quick Notes for June 7, 2010

I've been busy, and also playing too much Star Trek Online, and I'm behind on writing my Groundhog Day Resolutions update for June 6. I'll have to get to them after I'm done with the solid day of meetings I have, but for now here's a few interesting tidbits:

• Sid Ceaser and I recorded a long-overdue podcast last Friday. It's up now on the podcast website. You can also subscribe on iTunes, if that's the way you like to roll.

• I've come to acknowledge that I love complexity more than I like simple solutions. Or more accurately: to get to a simple solution, I like working intensively in a complex design process that results in simplicity, elegance, and so forth. You can't get one without the other, at least as far as my process is concerned. So I need to redesign my design website to emphasize that, which means emphasizing that this takes time and money. The way to really meet the desire for simplicity is to make simple products, not promise simple solutions. That way, the simplicity is fixed into a product that is self-evident in its simplicity. To promise simplicity in the design process up front is hobbles someone like me, who thrives on sorting complexity and nuance.

• After talking to my friend Gary this morning about how hard it is to find really good people to work with because I hate not picking everyone. He pointed out that this was a limiting belief, and that if I actually asked for "franchise players", which I take to mean people who are highly-skilled, that already wanted to work with me, that would would be a huge game changer. There's a few things I'm very good at (absorbing complexity and distilling actionable principles from it, designing system architectures), and I'm very discerning in other areas like programming, project management, graphic design, and illustration. The major thing I'm bad at: working without an inspiring partner. If you're someone who is good at what they do, and can imagine working on something with someone like me for any reason, shoot me an example of your work and I'll shoot you an example of mine.

• Here's a recent interview, conducted via email, on the productivity blog Half-a-Dozen Monkeys.

Outsource Your Laziness!

I was browsing Marina Martin's blog Sufficient Thrust, which I find consistently fascinating because she has, like, a ZILLION suggestions on how to hack life to fit one's own peculiar needs, and the sense of energy is awesome! This recent post in particular caught my eye: How to Make Money by Outsourcing your Procrastination. I'd recently tried this myself, inspired by Tim Ferriss' description of outsourcing in his Four Hour Work Week book, and felt rather good about it. I was also quite moved by How a Stray Pizza Hut Flyer Saved My Life, in which Marina describes how an almost random decision to deliver some misplaced mail to its rightful destination lead through a chain of events that literally changed her life over the next several years. So cool.

Inedible yet Appetizing

Apparently if you just WRAP food in a McDonald's wrapper, kids will say it tastes better. The power of advertising on young children! I myself am still rather fond of McDonalds, though the "buy 10 nuggets, get 10 free" promotion recently had me questioning my wisdom in this regard. Really, the nuggets are just a vehicle for the sauce (I like the "hot mustard" one).

Yarr! It be Talk like a Pirate Day!

Today be Talk like a Pirate Day, one o' me favorite holidays! Tis nay really a holiday t' be sure, but if thars a reason t' celebrate an' be silly, then today be th' tide.

Here`s a handy Buccanneer Talk Generator fer yer pleasure. Alarm an' charm yer shipmates, coworkers, an' foes. Be havin' a nice tide!

20ish Movies for a Desert Island

I was browsing Corey Marion's blog, catching up on the inner lives of the peeps at IconFactory, and saw that a number of their crew have posted their lists of top 20 movies to have on a desert island, plus a few guilty pleasures. The lists, to my mind, are like comfort food for the eyes, and it reminds me of some good ole' days back in grad school when I watched Ged cut together video excerpts from some of his favorite movies into one seamless sequence. Ged, Corey, and Anthony Piraino have all posted their lists publicly, with the kind of personable commentary you'd expect from the nice guys at IF. I haven't made my list yet, but don't let that stop you from enjoying theirs! To start, I'd probably pick Ratatouille (really close to my soul in a lot of ways, saw it 3 times practically back to back) and The Last Starfighter as a guilty pleasure (early 3D computer graphics, arcades games, and high camp space opera, oh yeah!)

101 Reasons Freelancing Rocks

I was alerted to this link of 101 Reasons to Freelance, which I clicked on out of mild curiosity. It's actually a pretty good list, and by the end of it I was like, "Yeah, being a freelancer rocks!" A nice boost for a dreary Tuesday, though I will still need to hit the coffee shop if I plan to keep working :-)

Sub Standards

I hadn't realized that Gedeon from the IconFactory had been blogging for a few months. In addition to the excellent pop culture commentary that I love, he's also started reviewing submarine sandwiches in the Greensboro area. He's been looking for a worthy local replacement for Dibella's Old Fashioned Subs out of Rochester, NY (and oh, how I know this pain). True to his roots as a designer and write he's created an awesome set of photo-illustrated reviews supported by slick information graphics. Very inspiring and yummy :-)

Which reminds me, I need to get down to Worcester, MA one of these days and revisit the old Boynton Pizza near WPI to see if it still holds up.

Leave Faith Hill The Heck Alone!

I came across this article about the airbrushing of Faith Hill for Redbook Magazine. Professionally, I find photo touch-up very interesting, but apparently I have drawn a line when it comes to messin' with Faith Hill, who sang this song The Secret of Life that I really like. I don't know exactly why I'm so irked, but it just seems wrong. Via Smart People I Know.

Virtual Reality and Circa Mashups

A reader recently contacted me via Flickr to say hello, and checking out his blog I was very intrigued by the combination of virtual reality, social media, and hot videos of levenger products doing things that are, shall we say, not listed in the main catalog. Oh, it's completely tame; the combination of social media and productivity tools is just too interesting for me not to pass along.

» Ryan Rasmussen's Collaborative Ideation.

Two Storytelling Links for One

Note to self: visit jwynia's site more often. Not only is he always writing about empowered-geeky projects that I find interesting, but he also maintains a finely-curated collection of links. This Ira Glass on Storytelling post, for example, with video links to Ira Glass himself talking about his story process. The advice that Glass passes along about the talent gap---that depressing condition when one's fine taste exceeding one's craft---is priceless for creatives who are hitting that proverbial wall. /me raises hand.