mattdavid.net

Goodness…april.  That certainly feels like forever ago.

Anyway, here’s a bit of what I’ve been up to.  After the april freelance gig, I was able to do another project with the same company, but this time I got to work with Academy Award winners!  Kinda cool and a bit odd since the industry we were working in was definitely not entertainment.  Since then, it’s been a bit quiet, which is nice since burning the candle at both ends was starting to wear on me.

So, for 2010, what am I going to do?  Well, I think I’m going to finish the company website.  It’s very…empty.  Also, while contracting can be lucrative, I’m just not that into it.  Sure, technically, I’m on my own, but I’m not driving the direction of the projects.  So next year will be a product year.  I’ve got a few ideas in the pipeline for some iphone apps as well as standalone software.  I think this coming year will be way more enjoyable working for myself.  I just hope I don’t end up hating my new boss

No, this isn’t some witty post tying some obscure Seinfeld episode to my daily life.  Nor is it some great philosophy gleaned from the musings of latex salesman, puffy shirts or Keith Hernandez.

Although, now that I think about it, I should probably look into those.

This post is about a simple technique I read about on lifehacker.  A fellow once asked Jerry Seinfeld how to become a better comedian.  He replied that the way to be a better comedian was to write better jokes.  The way to write better jokes was to write every day.

Jokes aside (huh huh), that’s good advice for doing anything.

That’s easy, you say.  Just do more of what you want to be doing.  I’ve said similar things myself.  Do ‘x’ more and more and you’ll become better at ‘x’.  And here I sit with a blog that started October something or other and it’s taken this long to get out a second  post.

The key to Seinfeld’s technique was how he motivated himself to write everyday.

First, get a big wall calendar that has the whole year on one page and hang it on a wall.  Second, get a red magic marker.  Everyday you write (or do ‘x’), put a big X on the day.  Write (or do ‘x’) for a couple of days in a row and you’ll have a chain.  Keep going and the chain gets longer and longer.  Pretty soon, you’ll need to keep it going.

It sounds simple because it is.

Everything I’m good at, I am because of consistent practice.  Math science, artistic ventures, whatever,  they all take commitment and practice.  It’s easy to skip a few days here and there when there is no visible reminder of what you should be doing.  Those days might turn into weeks or months or heaven forbid, never.

So why should blogging, or anything really, be any different?

I know what I’m looking for this holiday season, I just hope I get that red marker with a compass in the stock, and this thing which tells time.

I recently stumbled upon one of Steve Yegge older posts about why you should write blogs.  I always meant to setup a blog, but never got around to it.  He pretty much hit every reason why I had procrastinated setting this up.  So, now it’s done.  Here’s to hoping I stick with it.