mojoPortal Developer Community Bloggers

What happens if, instead of one sales call a day, you make ten?

Or if instead of 3 freelancers working on scaling your work, you have thirty?

What happens if you add a zero in places where it feels impossible to handle... what then?

Scale isn't always the answer, but if it is, then scale. Build the systems necessary to dramatically change your impact. Halfway gets you nowhere.

If you set your bar at "amazing," it's awfully difficult to start.

Your first paragraph, sketch, formula, sample or concept isn't going to be amazing. Your tenth one might not be either.

Confronted with the gap between your vision of perfect and the reality of what you've created, the easiest path is no path. Shrug. Admit defeat. Hit delete.

One more reason to follow someone else and wait for instructions.

Of course, the only path to amazing runs directly through not-yet-amazing. But not-yet-amazing is a great place to start, because that's where you are. For now.

There's a big difference between not settling and not starting.

It's graduation season, so a few relevant links about school, students and our future:

Here's the audio of an interview I did with PlayBuffet

My TEDx talk about education

And a reminder about Stop Stealing Dreams, a free manifesto that asks, "what is school for?" I hope we can ask this question more and more often...

Feel free to share with your favorite graduate. Or her parents.

Bonus: 20 video minutes at Creative Mornings.

By the time the phone rings, there's already trouble. When that manager is called or this department is reached, it's because someone is disappointed, angry or stuck. Illness, broken promises or a real urgency have led to this new conversation even taking place.

So don't start with, "[Name of company] mumble mumble" as if there's a blank slate just waiting to be written on. There's already a lot of writing on that slate. Don't demand to know the record number or begin with doubt and an edge of dismissal. Be on our team.

"It sounds like we've got a situation on our hands..." is a fine way to disarm the person you're about to talk with. He won't have to spend the first six sentences expressing his anger and urgency, because in less than ten words, you've done it for him. Or perhaps, "I'd like to help, if you'll bring me up to speed..."

It's not easy being on the receiving end of a days'-long parade of blame, but no one said it was easy. We asked you to do it because you're good and because it's important, not because it's fun.