Find more pleasure in intelligent dissent than in passive agreement, for, if you value intelligence as you should, the former implies a deeper agreement than the latter.
~ Bertrand Russell
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Intelligent dissent →
Where to file a Thorn? →
Dreams come true. You just have to be willing to work for them.
~ Annie Mist Þórisdóttir
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Apparently, these two-fer posts aren’t as rare as I thought.
Without thinking, as I transcribed that quote, I used their preferred way of writing their name—at least, that’s how they are attributed in the source I had at hand. (Every web site I find romanizes it to Thorisdottir, offensively—in my opinion—sterilizing the family name to simple roman letters.) I was feeling all proud about even being able to write that character.
And then I went to file the quote in the slipbox. Uh… “Houston, we have a problem here.”
Step one: What is it? It’s a Thorn. Wikipedia helpfully, (that’s sarcasm,) explains:
[…] in modern Icelandic, it is pronounced as a laminalvoiceless alveolar non-sibilant fricative [θ̠],[1][2] similar to th as in the English word thick, or a (usually apical) voiced alveolar non-sibilant fricative [ð̠],[1][2] similar to th as in the English word the. Modern Icelandic usage generally excludes the latter, which is instead represented with the letter ðæt ⟨Ð, ð⟩; however, [ð̠] may occur as an allophone of /θ̠/, and written ⟨þ⟩, when it appears in an unstressed pronoun or adverb after a voiced sound.[3]
~ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorn_(letter)
I didn’t quote the part where they say, it’s not actually related to the letter P, which we get from Greek.
Well it looks like a P. That suggests filing this person under “PO”.
Iceland is the only place that has not, long ago, replaced it with “th”, and it’s pronounced like “th”ick. So I’m going to treat it like “TH,” and then Þórisdóttir gets filed under “TO”. (Wait, why not under, “TH”. Because my index of people is arranged by first-letter, plus next-vowel—not by the first two letters.)
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Leadership with Anette Carlisle →
How has podcasting impacted Anette Carlisle’s life, goals, and creative journey?
Creative fulfillment emerges as a significant benefit of building a body of podcasting work.
It’s been a way to share some really relevant information around the issues happening right now you know not just in Texas or Amarillo. But across the nation when it was important to do that.
~ Anette Carlisle (1:36)
The conversation explores the transformative power of podcasting in the speaker’s life, emphasizing its role as a creative outlet and a platform for sharing meaningful stories. Topics include the logistical and emotional shifts caused by the pandemic, leading to a more focused approach to podcasting. Anette discusses the transition from in-person interviews to remote ones and highlights the adaptability needed to address contemporary issues effectively through the medium.
The dialogue also addresses Anette’s evolution in communication styles, transitioning from data-heavy presentations to more engaging narrative storytelling. Insights into goal setting and creative fulfillment emerge as central themes, with reflections on how podcasting has influenced personal and professional growth. She values the permanence of podcast episodes as a body of work and appreciates the opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations that align with their broader goals.
Vitality →
Brett McKay: But how can men maintain that vitality, even when they have those responsibilities they have at home?
Vic Verdier: I personally use two strategies, if you want. The first one is very easy. It’s to read books, books and biographies, novels, books of adventures, books of people taking risk. I’m thinking Hemingway, Jack London, but also biographies of great leaders who took risks, and thanks to you, Brett, I learned more about Theodore Roosevelt and the way he reinvented himself all the time, challenging himself. And when you read those books, you realize that you don’t really have anything to lose by trying new things all the time. So that’s my first strategy, getting some inspiration from reading. The second strategy for me is to, on a weekly basis, to do some kind of self-assessment, meaning every week I’m thinking about my life and what I’m doing, and when I start to settle down, I know it’s time to do something different. Do you remember this movie, Groundhog Day, when Bill Murray is repeating the same day over and over again?
Brett McKay: Of course.
Vic Verdier: I think… If I live twice the same day, somehow I wasted one day. So I try to have some diversity in my life, and every time I think that I fall into some kind of routine, I know I have to explore something else or go somewhere else or do… Take another course or learn some new skills.
~ From How to Stay Physically Fit As You Get Older | Art of Manliness
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This wide-ranging conversation with Verdier touches on everything from his military and deep diving careers, to Parkour, MoveNat and general ways to stay fit and healthy. Worth a listen, and doubly-so if you’re a dude over 40. (Or know one.)
There’s an embedded player on that page, or find episode 704 of The Art of Manliness podcast, How to Keep Your Edge as You Get Older.
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Intention with Yolande Conradie →
How does transforming a face-to-face course into an audio and digital format affect the teaching process, and what lessons arise from that experience?
Shifting to virtual teaching reveals how technology and podcast-like approaches can deeply connect with students.
I think it’s interesting. [I] try and think now of where do I get that energy from, when I come and sit in front of microphone or video. But I think, from years of face-to-face lecturing, and I’ve learned to almost fetch that from somewhere inside before I start.
~ Yolande Conradie (8:46)
The conversation explores the process of transforming traditional face-to-face teaching into a fully digital and audio-based format during the lockdown period. One significant focus is the effort required to adapt classroom exercises for online learning while ensuring engagement and energy remain high. Yolande shares her discovery of unexpectedly manageable aspects, like working with green screens and layered videos, alongside the technical challenges of ensuring high-quality audio.
Yolande also reflects on the importance of delivering content with energy and intentionality, even when speaking to an unseen audience. Years of face-to-face lecturing have helped her prepare mentally to connect with virtual learners effectively. Additionally, the discussion touches on how her listening habits for podcasts—particularly those with innovative soundscapes and storytelling—have influenced her approach to teaching and audio content creation.
Forge on ahead →
Why all this guesswork? You can see what needs to be done. If you can see the road, follow it. Cheerfully, without turning back. If not, hold up and get the best advice you can. If anything gets in the way, forge on ahead, making good use of what you have on hand, sticking to what seems right. (The best goal to achieve, and the one we fall short of when we fail.)
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The real fake-it-til-you-make-it →
The improvements in Eliza’s speech alone do not confer the opportunities. But being able to speak like a duchess puts her in the company of people from whom she can learn the sentiments and sensibilities of the upper class. When she begins to speak like them, they treat her differently, giving her an opening to expand her capabilities.
~ Shane Parrish from, The Pygmalion Effect: Proving Them Right
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I’ve always been unhappy with the phrase, “fake it ’til you make it.” It’s always seemed that there was something missing. (Yes, sure, it’s meant to be short and simple, not long and accurate.) But this bit from Parrish hits it on the head.
By acting as if I already were the thing I want to be, I’m practicing being the thing. That’s obvious. What’s not obvious is that doing so creates a positive feedback loop as other people then treat me as if I really were the thing. I make a change, and then as if by magic, other people offer me new opportunities. I use the work magic because what I might change—for example, how I speak, as in Eliza’s case—should have no bearing on what opportunities I am offered. But it does.
Why? Other. People.
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Deep dive into books →
Today I thought I’d share a thorough explanation of what I do “to” a book these days. This process—which to be honest I don’t follow for every book I read—is the result of combining a few different ideas:
- I love the physicality of books. The typography, the paper, writing in them, desultory bookmarks, (I add my own ribbon bookmarks,) and numerous sticky-notes poking out the side.
- I love the peaceful, inertness of books. They literally sit there and do nothing. There are no alerts, and no interaction, (from anyone beyond the author’s original magic spell.)
- I’ve always wanted to retain more of the knowledge from a book once I’ve read it.
- I’ve wanted to be free of my self-imposed rule of reading every page.
- These days I have a slipbox, and I want it to grow.
- I love to collect quotes.
- I’ve always wanted a set of crib notes, summary, or something that I could lay hand on after reading a book.
Arrival
Fortunately, books arrive slowly. It took practice, but I learned to do all of the following in a minute or two.
If it’s a new book, I take a few moments to prepare the spine. (Please tell me you know how to do that.) I affix a small, white, circular label on the spine, and I slap a sticky-note on the first face opposite the cover.
I skip over to librarything.com and find the book in “Your Books”—my books, that is. Most arriving books are coming in after already being in my “wishlist” collection; They get moved to the “library” collection. Otherwise they get searched for and added to my collection. Books get tagged as “physical,” (as opposed to those tagged “PDF,” “iBooks”, or “Kindle,” because, yeup, I track those too.) I see what MDS number Library Thing says the librarians of the world have chosen.
On the sticky-note, I write “LT”, (for “this book is entered into Library Thing,) and the MDS number. I write the main, three-digit part of the MDS number on the label on the spine.
Finally, I skip over to bookmooch.com and remove it from my Wishlist over there to ensure I don’t forget about it. (Lest I accidentally “spend” my Book Mooch points requesting a book I now have.) If this is a book that someone sent me because of Book Mooch, I hit the “Received!” button instead.
This book is now “ours.” And some amazing things are now possible just by having spent a couple minutes on each book as it arrives. (Please ignore the entire week I spent bootstrapping ~500 books when I started doing all this. :)
- Physical bookstores are fun again! What books are on my wishlist? (500+ at the moment) …okay, what wishlist books are tagged, “priority”? (about 250 — yes I have a problem.) Picking up a book… “this looks interesting…” Do I already have it in the house, maybe now is the time to buy it? Did I once have it, and it’s no longer in our collection, (part of my collections in Library Thing is “had but gone now”)?
- Long-term storage of books doesn’t mean they are lost. A big portion of the books in our house are here because we want to keep them. They sit for years untouched. Those are shelved by MDS number. Ask me for a book, and I can walk directly to it; It’s either laying about somewhere and top of mind, or it’s shelved where it can be found immediately.
- This is morbid, but if the house burned down I could decide what books to replace.
Books are for reading
Well, technically, one can also build a thing called an anti-library. But eventually, hopefully, or at least this is what I keep telling myself: I start reading the book.
I do tend to read the entire book. But generally I read the table of contents first to see what I’m getting into. If I think the book is going to be a really deep read—something I want to read more than once, refer to, and really ingest—I probably read the Afterword first. The Afterword was written dead-last, after the book was done and the author is a different person at that point. Then maybe the Foreword, or some books have a Summary, or a Preface, whatever.
I’ve no qualms about skipping parts. For example, in books like Trust Yourself by M Wilding I skipped all the anecdotes and skipped all the workbook/exercises stuff. I ended up reading only about one-third of all of the pages. (Still, a good book by the way.)
As I’m reading, if anything quotable jumps out, I’ll capture that on the spot. This leads to me making some marks, allocating a slipbox slip address, and I’ll leave a small post-it sticking out the side. I’ve never met a book worth reading that didn’t have at least one quotable bit awaiting me within.
Slipbox
As soon as the first slip gets created from the book, that slip needs to refer to the book. That means the book itself needs to be in the slipbox. Apparently, I always wanted to be a librarian.
And now I can leave a “(2tu1)” reference on the quote’s slip.
So that’s a bit of detour, but it really only takes me about a minute. You’ll notice—first photo at top—that the sticky-note for this example book has a slipbox reference, “(2tu1)”—the parens mean “this is a reference”. I didn’t put that on the sticky-note when the book arrived. That was added when I put the book into the slipbox by creating slip “2tu1”.
But mostly, I’m just reading the book.
Identify summarizing bits
One day, I’m finished reading.
I find that even if it took me months to finish, the book’s contents remain pretty fresh in my mind. I flip through the book cover-to-cover, just skimming and noticing what I recall from reading. When I see a good, representative bit, I simply stick in a blank card at those spots. This lets me gauge how many slips my “summary” will be; Two is too few, and 20 might be too many.
Each spot has some key point that I want to include in my summary. I don’t write anything at this point. The goal is just to stick the cards into all the places that I want to include in my summary.
(I once tried using a printed template whose layout facilitated taking brief notes and had pre-printed page numbers. Folded, it doubled as a bookmark so I could build some notes as I read. When an idea leapt out, I’d find the page number on the sheet and jot a note. It was a neat idea, but didn’t work out for me.)
Summarization
Finally, I go through all the spots I’ve identified and I do a little underlining. I jot the basics of the idea on a slip and address it. So for this example book, whose slip is addressed “2tu1”, this first of the summary slips goes “below” as “2tu1a.” Next summary slip would be, “2tu1b”, “2tu1c” etc.
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Opposing ideas →
The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.
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Just create →
But the unintended consequence of, what one might call, total brand and business control, is that it diverts attention away from the most essential part of any creative profession. You know, making great stuff.
It’s hard to do that under ideal circumstances; harder still when you’re tweeting or visualizing your next Instagram story or flying to some industry conference.
~ Ryan Holiday from, Your Work Is the Only Thing That Matters | by Ryan Holiday | Human Parts
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The only thing better than finding something worth sharing is not realizing who the author is until after deciding to share it. Holiday—I’ve just learned—also writes on Medium, and I didn’t recognize the site title, nor his style. But that’s not my main thrust today…
An artist’s job is to create masterpieces. Period.
~ as above
Usually I’m all like: My latest podcast episode isn’t downloaded a million times? “Nobody loves me.” Paltry likes on Instagram? “Nobody loves me.” My LinkedIn post gets ignored? “Nobody loves me.” No new weekly email list signups? “Nobody loves me.” …ahem.
But sometimes I manage to remember to just. do. the. work. And then all’s right as rain.
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