How to make interesting things and meet interesting people...
Edition #069
Hey friends, happy Sunday!
I didn't send the Sunday Filter last week as I felt depleted in creative energy, instead I spent my time reading and recharging which felt great.
Who knew taking a break could be so energising 😅
This week I have a couple things to share with you:
1) Last weeks videos 17 Things Every Freelancer Needs to Know
2) This weeks video: Learn Webflow in 30 Minutes (as I'm sending this newsletter the video is still processing so sorry if the video quality is crappy, it will be 4k a little later :)
Alrighty, let's get into the Filter.
One Lesson
How to make interesting things and meet interesting people
Most people have heard the quote "An unexamined life is not worth living" but what Socrates failed to expand upon is how you actually need to live a life worth examining in the first place.
Psychotherapist Sheldon Kopp says that “The unlived life is not worth examining” and it's hard to disagree.
Steven Pressfield, author of 'The War of Art' and, the book I'm currently reading, 'Nobody Wants to Read Your Shit' has certainly lived a life worth examining.
He wrote for 17 years before ever earning a penny from his writing, taking another 10 years before his first novel was published and working in 21 different jobs across 11 states to get by.
From advertising to driving tractors to being a screenwriter, throughout his writing Pressfield shares countless stories, analogies and anecdotes to make his points.
You can see that his ideas come from lessons he's earned not just theory he learned.
If you want to make interesting content, have interesting opportunities and meet interesting people it's simple, you need to lead an interesting life.
This means taking calculated risks, exposing yourself to more opportunities and opening yourself up to serendipity.
You can't expect anyone to care unless you actually have some skin in the game.
Would you rather learn about running a business from someone who has built multiple successful businesses or someone who's studied the theory?
Once you focus on living an interesting life the opportunities you're presented, the friendships you'll build and the stories you'll collect will all improve.
The important first step is to put yourself in the position to live an interesting life.
Two Ideas
I.
Writers know something all creators should take onboard:
It's better to create something bad than nothing at all.
You can always improve something bad.
You can't improve nothing.
Next time you're feeling stuck make something bad, then iterate to good.
II.
More information is not the answer.
What you know is not important, it's what you do consistently.
→ Less talking, more doing.
→ Less planning, more action.
→ Less consuming, more creating.
Three Favourite Finds
Nobody Wants to Read Your Shit: As I mentioned above, I'm really enjoying this book and I'd highly recommend it for anyone who wants to get better at storytelling.
Dividing your to-do list into 3:
Doing this makes life 1000% better.
I've been front loading my weeks with things I have to do, then spending the end of the week on what I want to do. Surprisingly things other people want me to do are never that important and seem to take care of themselves most of the time.
Profit First: Entrepreneurs are often great at solving problems in front of them but not so great at solving potential future problems.
As a result we're happy when there's money in the bank account and panic when the bank account is low. To solve this we sell more and collect invoices then move on until the cycle starts again.
Profit First is a system you can implement in your business that helps you manage your money much better.
End note
The Sunday Filter relies on word of mouth to reach more people, if you’re enjoying the newsletter I’d really appreciate you sending it to a friend or sharing on Twitter.
Have a fantastic week!
- Stephen