A story + practical guide — If you think you need experience to get hired for something, think again. In my early twenties, I was a freelance designer and creative. I spent years designing brochures, flyers, and websites, as well as shooting and editing product photography, promo videos, and so much more. …

See: how to use context to become a more effective communicator — Have you ever been told something and felt like it made no sense? Like you were given some arcane piece of information that you needed to decipher? Like you definitely needed more context? How about in reverse? Have you noticed that your spouse, colleagues, etc. often ask you to clarify…

Why writers must be highly self-aware of our own perspectives — It’s a fine line we writers walk. Often times, we take a bit of valid research and apply it to an entire topic on which we think we’re knowledgeable. It happens to the best of us, and I’ll willingly loop myself into this statement: Writers must be more self-aware of what we think we know As writers, we can easily recognize…

How the founder of a Texas startup for cat owners taught me the real power of founder-market fit and community-building — One of the pillars of Seth Godin’s thought leadership is that you either stand for something or stand for nothing — that we must find 1,000 true fans who will drive across the country for us. …

The case for brand names that users can “verbify” — Popular online video conferencing software appear.in is now calling itself Whereby. Why? Here’s an excerpt from their press release: While ‘appear.in’ has been a good name, it also had a few challenges. Are we Appear? Appearin? Appear dot in? You get it. Oh and to be super honest… there was…

It’s 2026 and I’m sitting in a self-driving UberTesla, getting ready to submit my proposed changes to People’s Proposition 240-A, reminiscing on how we got here. I remember middle school Language Arts, discovering Google! and saving essays on floppy disks. I remember when iRobot made artificial intelligence seem like an…

A better way to think about networking — “Network! Connect with people! Expand your network! Make more connections!” This kind of tireless “business” rah-rah seems to wear on us all. …

Goals are commendable, but only work to align a team’s efforts when they meet a certain set of criteria. The reality is, we far too often tend to set goals that feel inspiring and powerful, but fail to consider the details that will make such goals work for you. The…

Redefining what it means to be — or feel — successful — I’ll never forget when I first heard this statement from Dom Faussette, when I was a young creative hired to film and produce his speaker’s reel. I remember the influence Dom had on me, even then, because everything he said was shockingly relevant and the furthest thing from sugarcoated. So…