Sep 7, 2011
"

The truth is that perfection is impossible and “good enough” is good enough. I need to lower the standards I have for my own work. But as a designer, this task is insurmountably difficult. It feels like defeat. It’s a tacit admission that I am not good enough to create things that meet the same level of quality that I demand from others when I evaluate creative work. My “taste” exceeds my own ability.

It’s interesting that the source of my internal battle lies buried in something as innocuous as “taste”. For most people, taste is just the basis of opinion. It describes the point at which something flips from being “not good enough” to “ok, decent”. But for creative people, it’s something different. Taste is everything. It is what drives us. It is the definition of success, the ceiling of what is possible, and the source of everlasting internal frustration. Being creative is a battle fought over the slow conversion of a mere idea into something tangible that you think is great. The question is: When do you stop the conversion process?

"

The gap Dustin Curtis

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tags / quote / productivity / article / design / creativity / writing
Aug 5, 2011
My week on narcotics – Jeffrey Zeldman Presents The Daily Report

Well written, though it left me feeling somewhat disturbed. As someone with a family member who’s a lifelong recovering addict, and who recently lapsed on painkillers, I hope Jeffrey doesn’t call the surgeon and beg for more. And I have more compassion for my struggling relative.

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tags / writing / addiction / painkillers
Aug 4, 2011

(via selfinspiration)

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tags / writing / reading / literature / quotes / wisdom
Nov 26, 2010
"Many have told me that they have a book in them. And yes, you probably have one in you too, but, no, you probably won’t ever write one. This isn’t because you don’t have a good story to tell, or a great writing style. Yours may be one of the best. The entire issue comes down to whether you have the diligence to peck away at a typewriter while episodes of Mad Men and Weeds beckon from the television in the adjacent room."

Eric Karjaluoto, via To Self-Publish or Not to Self-Publish / Cameron Moll / Designer, Speaker, Author

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tags / quotes / design / writing / focus
May 12, 2010
"This dance, this particular proton dance, will never come again. This tune we’re too busy to hear will not be played again. Never forget to be thankful for your life."

Life is Beautiful – Jeffrey Zeldman Presents The Daily Report

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tags / Quote / wisdom / writing / zeldman
May 7, 2010
"Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia."

Kurt Vonnegut, one of eight rules for writing a short story [via] (via bobulate)

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tags / quotes / writing / wisdom
Oct 25, 2009
All Hallows’

Hoping the phone would not ring is probably an apt metaphor for my own inability to deal with emotion

A beautiful essay by Mr. Coudal about the ways we deal with loss. The scene he paints sounds surreal; it makes me wish I could have been there. Also, I want to write this well someday.

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tags / writing / inspiration / death / grief / halloween / link