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

Got my Moleskine notebook in the mail last Friday. It was sent in by a generous US-based Pinoy reader who read about my interest in the notebooks. I was actually putting off going to the post office as I thought the notice was for my latest batch of Ubuntu CDs (Dapper Drake), which I already have a copy of (care of Jason), and thus could afford to wait. But I was also expecting the notebook. Good thing it had already arrived.

I can say it’s teh cool and it’s teh sexy.

Actually, what makes the notebook cool isn’t the material or construction itself, but the way people are so passionate about their using their Moleskines, whether for writing, drawing or getting-things-done. Well, the paper and the binding are teh sexy, too. It’s in the way you can lay the notebook flat on a table (perhaps while drawing or sketching) and the way that the paper absorbs ink or pencil graphite.

At any rate, I think pictures speak louder than words. So I’ll just post a few photos here.

The package itself. Okay, nothing interesting.

Still in plastic wrap. Can’t wait to open it.

Out of the plastic cover. Feel the texture of the cover and the paper. Mmm … sexy paper.

The notebook comes with a set of stickers (or a postcard). Great for sticking on your laptop lid or wrist-rest, to remind you to write, write, write. Wait, what are we going to use the notebook for, then?

Laid flat on its back, the pages stay still. Told you so.

The back cover has an expanding pouch, for keeping those tickets, stamps, cards, or perhaps some currency or even a pencil.

If you’d like to learn more about the Moleskine, I found a blog that regularly features stories, artwork and testimonials from artists and writers who use (or used) the notebook and Moleskine enthusiasts alike. Do mosy over to Moleskinerie.

As for my notebook, I’ve yet to decide what to use it for. Am mostly online/electronic these days, but having something on paper would be cool for a change.

There comes a time in your life as a blogger when you can’t write s#!t. You want to be productive. You want to have some interesting output, whether on your personal blogs or other blogs (if you blog for network or team blogs). But you’ve squeezed out every ounce of creativity into your last masterpiece. You’ve tried and tried to outdo yourself this time, but to no avail.

Well, yes, there is always the temptation to just put up one-liners with links and blockquotes like those “hey, this is cool, check this out,” posts. Lately, though, I’ve been avoiding doing this, or else I would probably just be echoing everyone else on the blogosphere without adding value to the conversation (i.e., at least my unequivocal, principled personal opinion on something). You can do the citations from other sources, too, with some added commentary, but hey, isn’t something substantial and original better (at least in terms of the style and point of view, but maybe not always the content)? Don’t we aim to be different from the rest?

Stop and smell the flowers

In our desire to be more productive, we end up over-exerting ourselves.

This is probably the anathema of creativity. Forcing yourself to be creative would only push you to come up with crap and then you’d feel bad about it later on. Yes, pressure is good at times. But when your motivation for doing something is because you have to do it, rather than want to, it would sure be less fun. And that takes the kick out of doing anything, doesn’t it? And it’s one way to ensure that whatever you come up with would be far from the beautiful oeuvre you would’ve been able to create had you been the inspired, passionate little fellow.

You get things done, but do you get them done right?

Sometimes you have to pause awhile and experience life to recharge.

Go read a book. Go watch a movie. Go visit an art gallery. Go out and play with your kids, date your wife, walk your dog, chat with your cute next-door-neighbor, execute that excellent practical joke you’ve been dying to try on your gullible sister.

Go and do anything worthwhile. Let life happen. Live life.

This is when your next big idea will likely pop up in your mind. Don’t forget to write it down. Better yet, start conceptualizing, start working on it as soon as you can (not in the middle of that date, mind you). Life’s made up of many small interesting streams of thought, and only a few big ideas worth losing sleep on. Capitalize on that big idea. Work on that idea. Be passionate about that big idea.

The small ideas–your everyday stuff–are okay, but it’s the great, big ideas that change the world.

Hey, Archimedes was taking a bath when he had that Eureka! moment (or so legend says).

Read, read, read

Fellow blogger Clair reads and reads.

Writing for a living has trained me to write anything – no matter what. But of course. it is tougher. Writing three blog entries a day and editing other people’s entries (grammar, etc) could be quite painful too.
…
I read and talk about things that got me interested. If not about the article itself but maybe the circumstances around it, the person who wrote it, how I could relate, etc.

I try to read a lot, too, and I try my best to learn from what I read. My readings don’t necessarily have to be about the topics that I write about (mostly tech). In fact, I prefer reading literary pieces because this is where I learn about style, usage, context, and exposition. Most of the time, the way I write is influenced by what I’m currently reading at a given time.

I read juvenile books (e.g., Lois Lowry), light American classics (e.g., Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn series), heavy novels with morality issues (e.g., Alexandre Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo), and even Dan Brown stuff (not much for good narrative and exposition, but storylines are more or less OK). Oh yes, I’ve been fond of reading up on my newest favorite writer of late (though I’m in want of more, more, more!).

My mood and style of writing are usually influenced by what I’m into at any given time. For instance, I’m now midway into Monte Cristo, and you may be sensing dark undertones in my postings. Or perhaps it’s because I’m currently feeling low and moody, anyway. Or maybe I’m feeling low because of the book in the first place.

At any rate, reading is good. It expands your vocabulary. It takes up your horizon to new heights. It brings you closer to worlds (and words) previously-unknown. You’re likely to also get into the groove of writing, and even get that big idea you’ve been wanting to come up with to have for the longest time.

Live life. Read up.

So here’s to that Eureka! moment!

Have you ever found yourself staring blankly into space, doing nothing when you’re supposed to be productive? Had there been times when you were seemingly on the verge of breakthroughs (in whatever it is that you do), but the next moment you suddenly lose your groove and have to start from scratch? Do you find it difficult to start being productive, and when you finally find your flow, do you struggle to keep it? Do you easily get distracted?

Well, I’ve been in these situations time and again. Probably every other writer trying to come up with his or her masterpiece for that day (or week, or month, or year) has, too. And it’s likely that anyone else in any field would have his or her downtimes in terms of productivity.

Whether you’re tired, burned out, stressed, sick, or simply uninspired, you would inevitably find yourself in situations where you just want to stop what it is you’re trying to do, get some rest, and pick up from where you left after a while.

But, alas! In some cases this just isn’t possible. Like for me, when I get cut from what I’m trying to do, I simply lose my line of thought and I’d have to start from square one. It’s like retracing one’s steps to find something you’ve lost. Yet instead of finding what I’ve “lost,” in many instances, I find myself arriving at a totally different scenario or perspective.

Sometimes it’s good–I get to come up with something better. Sometimes, not.

I’ve been checking out a handful of lifehacking and GTD sites earlier, for something I’ve been drafting for FG on productivity. Ironically, life happened and I had to pause for a while (a long while). So I ended up having to start from scratch, and so I come up with radically different idea. And hence I’m writing here, as it seems more appropriate for the J Spot.

Let’s cut to the chase

In the course of my reading up on GTD sites earlier, I’d picked up something share-worthy. If you want to get things done, you’d better stay focused and stay motivated!

These aren’t exactly new concepts. Still, it’s good to be reminded of the simple things–such advice usually goes a long way.

I hope you would agree with me when I say that humans aren’t built for multitasking, or at least it’s very very difficult for those in knowledge-based and artistic work to juggle several things at the same time. To do well in this regard, you would need to be focused in what you are doing. Whether you’re writing, designing, conceptualizing something, or other such activities, you need to keep your mind free from distractions.

You need to direct all your energies into accomplishing your goal.

However, staying focused is usually not enough. You’d also need to be motivated, so you will stick to what you’re doing to the end. Whether your motivation is money, love (makes the world go ’round), fame, helping people out, or a little bit of all, it’s good to have something inside you that pushes you to do better, and that sees you through to the end.

Get things done!

There are a handful of other factors that help us get things done, such as the productivity tools that we use, whether these be high tech (PDAs, computers, the Internet) or low (pens, paper, moleskine notebooks, strings tied on forefingers). But the best “tools” are those intrinsic to us, like drive, determination and passion, and of course being focused and motivated.

Right now my mind’s still a bit too cluttered and disorganized to come up with anything else that can be useful (and I’ve probably been rambling for too long on this post, too).

So for the meantime, I leave you with a handful of resources and articles that I’ve been reading up on. I hope you also find these helpful and useful.

* The 4-day workweek from A List Apart
* 43 things
* 43 folders
* To-Done (closed, but nonetheless great reads!)
* Lifehacker
* How to accomplish anything with your words from Pearsonified

Update: How could I have forgotten to include David Peralty’s LifeSpy? Enjoy reading, folks!

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!