Author: Craig Constantine

Effort with Ryan Flahive →

Published January 18, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 18

How does the evolution of a creative project influence its format and approach over time?

This conversation explores the transition from traditional publishing to podcasting as a medium for impactful storytelling.

As a father of two young girls who cares deeply about climate change but doesn’t have a lot of, you know, technical proficiency, I’m not an engineer; I’m not going to build a new solar panel, trying to figure out what I could do with my skill set to have an impact.

~ Ryan Flahive (0:52)

This conversation explores the shift from traditional publishing to podcasting as a means of amplifying impactful stories, particularly on climate change. Ryan reflects on his professional background in publishing and their decision to create a podcast instead of writing a book. He shares how this medium enables a more dynamic and accessible approach to storytelling while overcoming technical and logistical challenges.

Several topics emerge, including the importance of consistency in building momentum, strategies for engaging guests, and the adaptation required to balance personal interests with audience needs. The discussion highlights how leveraging past connections and experiences can ease the transition to new formats, all while navigating the complexities of content creation and audience engagement.

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Power →

Published January 18, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 18  ·  ,

The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.

~ Alice Walker

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Power →

Published January 18, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 18  ·  

The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.

~ Alice Walker

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Since I’m guilty of this, I often try to catch myself having power. One way I do this is to journal; If I write down, “Yesterday I did these 12 things, and people said such-and-so about my having helped them,” that’s glaring evidence that I’ve affected the world by exercising my power.

Another way I try to catch myself is to zoom farther out and look for longer-term successes. So if—for example, just sayin’, askin’ for a friend—one feels they cannot affect change in the world, but the evidence after 7 months is that one created the spark that ignited a community… well, maybe I—err, not me, my friend should stop thinking they have no power.

And instead start asking: What could I do in the next 5 minutes?

My answer: I could write one blog post which might inspire someone else!

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Framed dialogs →

Published January 17, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 17  ·  

And I mean dialog which is set up with certain agreed-upon concepts and boundaries, not literally framed for hanging on a wall.

A while back—January 4th, 2021 to be specific—I made some notes about an idea tickling my brain. I had had a conversation with two people. We had decided to get together to talk about… something. I’m not sure what. It probably was something like:

I feel like I need to talk to someone. But, I’m in this place where too many people—basically, all the people I regularly interact with—see me in a certain way. They know me in a certain context. Anything I say or do, they evaluate it as a continuation of what they know about me. That’s not a criticism of them, but simply a statement of reality.

…something like that. Not saying that’s it exactly. I’m asking for a friend. ahem.

We three hopped on a call and it didn’t really go well. We didn’t have an agenda, (which was probably a good thing). But also, we didn’t have a purpose nor clear idea of why we wanted to have the conversation. We expended an hour, (of our expected 694,700 total available,) shrugged, and moved on with our day. After my mind moved on from the experience, when I returned to thinking about the tickling idea, and the conversation, somehow I felt like the conversation had been useful. So in hindsight, it felt like the conversation was much closer to being useful, then I thought it was in the moment.

Since I’m generally interested in conversation, I scratched some notes—as I mentioned, in January a year ago—about what I thought might have been the magic: Time limit, ephemeral, minimal structure, and anticipation. Those four properties seem to be the essentials for my having felt the conversation was useful in hindsight. This isn’t about “talk therapy.” But, somehow, those features (which would be a part of a talk-therapy session) still facilitate… something.

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Slide easily →

Published January 16, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 16  ·  ,

There are two ways to slide easily through life: Namely, to believe everything, or to doubt everything; Both ways save us from thinking.

~ Alfred Korzybski

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Sliding without thinking →

Published January 16, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 16  ·  

There are two ways to slide easily through life: Namely, to believe everything, or to doubt everything; Both ways save us from thinking.

~ Alfred Korzybski

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Recently I’ve noticed several conversations where the topic of extremes has come up. I’m not certain this is new, only that my noticing it is new. The idea that we each fall somewhere on the spectrum of whatever-it-is we care to talk about is not new. And I’m absolutely not implying that moderation is always better; It is not necessarily true that the correct viewpoint is towards the middle.

What I am saying—what I’ve been recently noticing—is that the people towards the ends of the spectrum of whatever topic you care to consider are the louder people. There’s always a majority of people between the extremes, who aren’t as vocal. (Who don’t speak, write, nor post as much as those toward the extremes. “Fool and fanatics” as it were.

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Failing to consider →

Published January 15, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 15  ·  

Failing to consider second- and third-order consequences is the cause of a lot of painfully bad decisions, and it is especially deadly when the fist inferior option confirms your own biases. Never seize on the first available option, no matter how good it seems, before you’ve asked questions and explored.

~ Ray Dalio

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The Long Tail →

Published January 15, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 15  ·  

Forget squeezing millions from a few megahits at the top of the charts. The future of entertainment is in the millions of niche markets at the shallow end of the bitstream.

~ Chris Anderson, from The Long Tail

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There are certain pivotal works in any field. If your work, or your business, is online. This is a work you should read. It would be better if you read it when it came out, back in 2004. But, at least you can read it now so you understand where the idea of the “long tail” originated.

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Contact with Nika Jankovic →

Published January 14, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 14  ·  

Contact with Nika Jankovic

What is the relationship between physical movement practices like floor work, yoga, and breath, and how do these practices influence personal growth and teaching methods?

Discover how confronting the hardness of the floor can transform both physical practice and personal resilience.

You want to be friends with the floor. You wanna caress the floor, you wanna melt into the floor. There’s always you in relation to this thing.

~ Nika Jankovic (2:42)

The conversation discusses the interplay between movement practices such as floor work, yoga, and dance. Floor work, described as forming a “relationship” with the ground, is explored as a practice that transforms how one interacts with space and movement. The connection between breath and movement in yoga is also highlighted, emphasizing how breath awareness influences other practices like dance.

Teaching and learning are recurring themes, as challenges in balancing simplicity with complexity for beginners are examined. The discussion touches on the teacher-student dynamic, emphasizing the necessity of full-circle growth to effectively communicate foundational skills. Personal reflections on the evolution of movement practices during times of isolation, reveal the adaptability required in both practice and teaching.

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Diligence, energy, patience →

Published January 14, 2022  ·  All posts on Jan 14  ·  ,

If you do the job in a principled way, with diligence, energy and patience, if you keep yourself free of distractions, and keep the spirit inside you undamaged, as if you might have to give it back at any moment— If you can embrace this without fear or expectation— can find fulfillment in what you’re doing now, as Nature intended, and in superhuman truthfulness (every word, every utterance)— Then your life will be happy. No one can prevent that.

~ Marcus Aurelius

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