Austin Kleon does it again. He’s a wonderfully accessible writer / creative who provides poppy, easy-to-access books about things that make creatives better at their crafts. His latest book is easy to grok and very useful on my journey.

Buy it wherever books are sold (or at the little store called Amazon by following this link).

Only a few years ago, you needed hundreds of thousands of dollars and manufacturing middlemen overseas to get new products made. Today, creating physical prototypes and small batches, and even full production runs has become faster, cheaper, and more transparent. New manufacturing startups and technologies have made this possible. My favorite new resource for producing nearly anything that I make for personal and pro projects is Xometry — one of many awesome companies that helps people take projects from 3D digital designs to real working prototypes in only a few weeks. 

The SmartLess Podcast I miss hanging in my college dining hall – where I’d pal around with my best friends and friends of friends – smart yet wonderfully self-effacing Yalies. Perhaps that’s why listening to the ultra-successful actors Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, and Will Arnett is so much fun! These three superstars and best friends started 'Smartless' to stay connected while social distancing mandates were in place at the height of the pandemic. The format of the show is straightforward enough. One of the guys invites a mystery guest who is revealed during the taping, and then they stumble through sometimes smart, sometimes dumb questions with the guest. You know, normal people like Jordan Peele, Jose Andres, Courtney Cox, Joe Biden, and more. It’s really funny, sometimes crude, and always educational. Catch it wherever you listen to podcasts. (Or right here.)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock this month… actually even if you’ve been living under a rock… you know that the 2022 World Cup was here (well… in Qatar). The football gods were on full display, along with some incredibly satisfying upsets – go Morocco (and Africa)! The final match between Argentina and France was one of the most exciting sporting events of all time. I hope that you grabbed extra oxygen during those final minutes as Messi and Mbappe showed us what it means to be brilliant. But if you somehow missed this year’s tournament, just wait another four years. I’m definitely going. After all, the next World Cup is going to be hosted right here in North America by the USA, Canada, and Mexico!