racoma.com.phJ. Angelo Racoma on technology, economics, writing, problogging, and getting things done

Being the nocturnal person, where I am (or at least perceive myself to be) more productive during the wee hours of midnight to early morn when everyone else is in their various stages of sleep, this is usually my message signing off when friends, colleagues or some sprit of the night say their good-byes in (sometimes productive, sometimes counter-productive, always interesting) instant messenger conversations. Last man standing, I usually consider myself.

No sleep for the weary.

I usually try to ponder the meaning and significance of this line time and again. I’ve come to realize that this line is usually preceded by “There is …” and then followed by “... until …” Ergo, this would mean my firm resolve to finish whatever it is that I am trying to finish, and not rest—even when burdened by troubles and weariness—until I have satisfied myself that I have done my best for the day, and must henceforth retire, rest, and perchance sleep, in order that I can face the next with further renewed energy and undying exuberance.

Passion, Perspiration, and a bit of Inspiration

Sometimes I succeed, and sometimes I do not. That usually depends not just on my level of energy (for energy can be misdirected and misspent), but on the passion and commitment I have put into my task. Yes, sometimes it does take a bit of inspiration to follow through with my efforts, but it mostly depends on perspiration (success after all is 99% this, with the former constituting the remaining one percent).

What inspires me to do well, then? First and foremost, there’s the feeling of accomplishment and pride with what I do. And then of course there are the financial considerations.

Sex & Cash

In the Sex & Cash theory parlance of gapingvoid,

The creative person basically has two kinds of jobs: One is the sexy, creative kind. Second is the kind that pays the bills. Sometimes the task in hand covers both bases, but not often. This tense duality will always play center stage. It will never be transcended.

My profession and current line of work involves both the sex and the cash aspect of that duality, most of the time. Knowing that I get to accomplish both needs at the same time—sex being the need for a sexy job that I can be passionate about, and cash being the job that pays the bills—I could usually retire for the day knowing I have accomplished something good.

Sometimes, though, it’s good to keep the sex and cash separate from one another, that I may pursue undertakings that are of pure passion and glory in nature. And that’s where stuff like this blog falls under, and also potentially great things, like Go-Ogle and other budding startups I’m dreaming up in my mind (and hope to turn from ether into reality soon).

How to Be Creative

For now, I leave you with this article from Hugh MacLeod’s gapingvoid, with interesting pointers on how to be creative. You’ll get bold statements such as Ignore everybody, Dying young is overrated, and Power is never given. Power is taken.

This is not exactly new, but I do hope those in need of a boost in their creativity whether in the arts, business, or in anything, would find this piece helpful—enlightening and entertaining in the same light.

Now A Word From Our (Former) Sponsors

A usual co-conspirator, fellow Man-blogger Mike Villar, asked me to help spread the word about the soft-launch of version 2 of Calliope, the engine that powers i.PH (used to be my baby back at dotPH). Lots of good stuff added. I have to admit, though, that it’s not really for me (for I love to be in full control, and I’d rather go for our free com . ph domain offering, the initial batch of which we’re actually registering today), but Calliope would appeal to you if you’re looking for an all-in-one package that’s easy to manage without necessarily having techie skills.

So adieu for now! Remember, there is no spoon!*

*Another favorite sign-off line.

Do you believe in fate? Do you believe that there are forces outside of your own control that can somehow govern your destiny? Well, most would probably argue to the contrary, and I would be one to argue such. After all, even though there are indeed forces outside of our own volition that can influence how things come to be, we humans still do have the free will to ultimately decide each action (or instance of inaction), and ultimately what becomes of us. That is God’s gift to humankind, isn’t it?

However, as for Serendipity, that’s another thing. Sometimes when you set out to do something and for a certain goal, the results can turn out to be quite surprising.

A week ago, I posted about having the blogging blues and went on to link to other sites that I found interesting. I do a lot of blog reading, after all and I thought I’d share with my readers (all three of you) what I’ve been reading up on lately. I intended to divert the attention from my stuff, for the meantine, to other people I find to have more interesting insights than I do.

However, things usually go beyond how you intend them to be. And now, after one thing leading into another, I’m glad to say I’ve had two of those people I linked to—Phillip and Ia (or is it supposed to be “Ia and Phillip?” Bah!)—working with us in one of our major undertakings. I’ve gone into dealings with them several times over the past couple of years, but I didn’t expect we’d be working together on something (and something quite financially rewarding, too).

Actually, I’ve been seeking out people for this purpose (you might remember references to “headhunting” in some of my previous posts). I had been looking for creative people, and I can say I’ve approached quite a few so far, but our work didn’t seem to be the good match with ‘em goodfellows. The good match was right under my nose all along. These guys can sure weave magic with words and imagery each on their own! But as a team? One word: synergy (which in this case is something that’s beyond my comprehension, by the way. Go figure!).

So here’s to our creative team. Here’s to great works. And great deeds.

Is it possible to be creative on a deadline?

This is a question probably oft asked of us in the writing / designing / artistic lines of business. Sure, creative types unconstrained by deadlines and requirements—and bills to pay—can go ahead and take their time working on their masterpieces. But for us who rely on our talent and creativity to make a living (or earn our riches, perhaps), it’s a bit more difficult than that. There are times when you feel you’re uninspired and whatever you try to create just turns out as crap!

Kathy Sierra of Creating Passionate Users has this to say about creativity and the muse:

... creativity is not something you “wait for the muse to appear before starting.” ... you just sit down and start the hard work, and trust that it will happen, even if it doesn’t feel like it.

Or simply put,

When it comes to being creative, you have to make the first move!

Okay, this is pretty old—it’s more than one year since Kathy hit the publish button on that one. And I might have skimmed over that particular post when I first read it that time, as I was not yet in a creative line of work (well, semi-creative perhaps, but still mostly a corporate drone). But thoughts like these are timeless and will hold water until the time people cease to view creativity as a gift.

Kathy writes that it’s much more harmful if you just sit there and do nothing. So stop justifying that you’re waiting for inspiration! Sorry, buddy. That’s wrong. Just. Plain. Wrong.

It’s best of you start doing something—anything. Just make sure it’s not something routinary. What matters is that by doing something, your mind does some brainstorming (hopefully from the creative side) and before you know it you’re on to something.

I wrote awhile back on having blogger’s block, and in hindsight, I’d tend to think it wasn’t due to the muse not coming or my not doing anything at all (i.e., making the first move)—in fact, it was probably because of doing too much! Sometimes, even when you’re at the peak of inspiration, things just break down and, well, you get tired and sleepy and all that!

At any rate, I think what I’m trying to say is that if you’re having a hard time trying to squeeze out every ounce of creativity but it seems nothing good’s coming out, there’s probably something wrong. Maybe it’s time to take a little break. Relax. Do something else—anything else. Or maybe you can do things differently, hence jumpstarting your brain by looking at things from a different perspective. Things will start moving smoothly soon after you get back your flow.

So here’s to mind- and life-hacking and getting things done!