Heyo!
Happy Monday. I hope it's a great week. And I hope some of the stories here help you power through it.
If you're feeling inspired, pass it on.
1. Inspiration for 10x Content
A curated list by Rand Fishkin. Keep this handy when, it's loaded with inspiration.
Here are just a few of the great examples inside:
- http://www.howacarworks.com/
- http://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/complete-history-of-the-nfl/
- http://stateofstartups.firstround.com/#results
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2. Don't snack at work
No, not that kind of snacking. The time-sucking, energy-draining type of snacking.
This work is easy to justify because “it only took 30 minutes”. And when it achieves nothing useful, it’s easy to excuse because it “took us so little time”. This is not strategy – this is flapping. Do this enough times and you’ll grow a low impact team that doesn’t achieve anything.
3. "Writing doesn't just communicate ideas; it generates them."
Here's a great and short summary of Paul Graham's advice on writing.
As for how to write well, here's the short version:
- Write a bad version 1 as fast as you can;
- rewrite it over and over; cut out everything unnecessary;
- develop a nose for bad writing, so you can see and fix it in yours;
- imitate writers you like;
- expect 80% of the ideas in an essay to happen after you start writing it, and 50% of those you start with to be wrong;
4. The Big List of Zapier Hacks for Marketers
A super useful list of ways to automate small tasks, courtesy of Buffer.
5. "A desk is a dangerous place from which to watch the world."
A quote from John le Carré in the New York Times.
Have a great week!
Jimmy