Generosity

Ship It

We are all artists. No matter what you create, there’s a distinction between creating art and shipping it.

Seth Godin teaches us to go beyond the status quo by creating remarkable art. As leaders cultivate a creative practice, Godin also suggests that if we don’t ship our art (i.e. send it into the world), the effort is self-limited. There’s value to creating more than we consume, but art creates connection. If what you construct is not shipped, there is no connection, and therefore, Seth Godin says it’s not art.

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Does (re)defining art change how you think about your own contributions?

What is your art? Entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs, side hustlers, students, and community builders who are willing to ship, fuel positive change with their art.

Unfortunately, the ego fears external evaluation. This fear is compounded when progress feels slow, which is part of the dance. As apprehension calcifies over time, it’s hard to resist the temptation of hiding our thoughts, emotions, and activities within the safety of solitude.

Creating art to enjoy by yourself can build real skills and provide internal layers of sentimental value, but to go beyond the status quo, push past the fear of feedback. No need to waste time shouting just to make noise, but know that we need you to ship the art.

This encouragement is not an excuse to rush into bad ideas, ship something that hasn’t received proper attention, or not deliver on a promise. It is, however, a friendly reminder that pursuing perfection can devolve into an enemy of progress.

We’ve all heard inspiration like that before but listen to those you admire. Perfection is rarely required when all you need is enough success to continue creating art. Let such liberation fuel confidence. Translate expanding confidence into fresh curiosity. Augment this curiosity with creative action. Rinse and be isochronal in your creative practice.

As belief in oneself grows, one interesting hesitation is disguised by good intention. We tell ourselves it’s not wise to be too self-serving. This is virtuous, but sometimes endless humility makes silence feel safe. As we protect ourselves by staying quiet, a self-limiting restraint develops. For example, many find a journal to be therapeutic but are quick to dismiss sharing these beautifully raw writings with others. It’s good to internalize thought, but as you learn more about yourself through writing, even if it’s only for those you love, know your art can only connect when it ships.

Ready to ship your art? Double-click on your superpowers and the people you care about. Pouring a hint of discipline over what you’re best at and who you seek to serve will provide genuine value over time. Experiment with small actions, and as this develops into a practice, expand the connected nature of your creativity. As your art connects with those who care, find a cadence that allows you to be consistent. A daily blog? A weekly podcast? The monthly newsletter? An annual event? One size does not fit all, and the right tempo depends on the art you’re planning to ship. To find a signal, consider your personal bandwidth and the target audience. Talk with others and take action, then tweak timing to find the right rhythm.

If you’re shipping art, I’d love to hear what makes it stand out and how you remain consistent.

Perhaps there is a renewed desire to connect more of your intelligence? As you take action, know that your contributions matter. Even when the immediate impact is undetectable, thank you for being courageous enough to ship it.

Brewed From Within
#14 📖 Entrepreneurship

By Ben McDougal, ago

Die Empty

Graveyards are full of good intentions, untold ideas, disconnections, and missed opportunities.

As we celebrate year-end holidays and look to 2022, it’s easy to make audacious plans for what’s next, but perhaps it’s wise to pair big ideas with small actions?

This obviously means something different for everyone. For example, there are times in our lives when we seek to do so much more. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when cool ideas, good intentions, and even positive action doesn’t lead to the anticipated outcome. For those who face this mental mountain, first give yourself grace by remembering that we either succeed or learn. This will help you find closure with past failure(s). As you push through this self-limiting mindset, lean back into your community of fellow founders. It’s even harder to show up when you’re experiencing a dip, but movement activates motivation and leaning into the prosperity of others will percolate helpful conversations. Pair this curiosity with a pinch of vulnerability and you’ll be reminded how generosity builds trust and helps you solve new problems.

In contrast, there are other times when a profound sense of accomplishment leaves us wondering what more can be done? This would seemingly be a privileged state, but our sense of purpose can waver when goals have been met. This can cause even the most ambitious spirit to feel lazy. A sense of achievement dysmorphia can also set in, which downplays our accomplishments in an effort to create space for more. Perhaps one way to counter this type of mental moment is to pair celebration with relaxation, creativity, and humility. Rejuvenation often emerges from self-care rooted in gratitude. This form of vulnerability brings peace, which often provides clarity on prolific ways to make a deeper impact on familiar fronts, or energy to explore brand new ways to fuel positive change.

The nudge you need will be dynamic based on the complexity of your ever-shifting environment, but a willingness to persist allows us all to keep building.

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The YDNTB audiobook was just released and listeners love it! It is now available as a direct download (with bonus features) in this special Holiday Bundle. It can also be found on Audible, iTunes, and Amazon.

It’s impossible to measure the amount of time and effort it took to narrate, edit, and professionally publish this 5-hour audiobook (here’s how I did it), but that’s not what matters. What matters is that I have a remarkable relic to be proud of forever. Enjoy the show my friends!

Along with what you’re able to undertake, appreciate all that you cannot. When idea machines have an opportunity surplus, it’s easy to over commit. It’s much harder to stay cognizant of our personal bandwidth when our connected era is always introducing new ways to spend your time. These are crossroads where you’re invited to be honest about your own purpose, by allowing the superpowers of others to activate something you can/should not. As you share the love, deliver ideas, resources, connections, and opportunities without hidden agendas. You can’t take such things with you, so boldly give them away with a sense of abundance and find renewing joy in helping others bring more good things to life.

My hope is that after reading this year-end reflection, you observe the blunt title less around loneliness, and more as positive encouragement for doing all that we can with our precious time in this life.

A sustainable cadence leads to longevity, but a profound legacy awaits those who exhaust all their love, intelligence, connectivity, and energy to leave satisfied in the end.

By Ben McDougal, ago

Santa is Real

Humans tell stories.

Storytelling is the way we communicate and a key to humanity’s evolution. The stories we share come in all genres, but each one builds a different type of connection.

Stories often exist for a moment, but some are passed for generations. The most successful stories humans have told may be those about science, mathematics, religion, or money, but holidays may also land on this list of extraordinary, generational storytelling.

In the United States, 11 federal holidays are all observed in their own way, but Christmas (and comparable year-end celebrations around the world) creates a special atmosphere. In fact, the entire calendar and our fundamental sense of time seem to revolve around this cozy time of year.  

Christmas is when we pause to remember the year that was and look forward to what’s next. With such a shared inflection point, the year-end holiday season has created many recognizable symbols. Many traditions revolve around religion and just as many do not, but the legend of Santa seems synonymous with the holiday spirit.

Whether you believe in Santa or not, it’s hard to argue with how well this jolly character embodies the essence of treasured time, cute mystic, generosity, and joy.

Think of the generational stories, decorations, letters to Santa, gifts, music, events, movies, more gifts, and all that is integral to the holiday season. Such a story told within culture can spark an undeniable, personal truth.

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Watching little ones lean into the holiday spirit makes us grateful and fills us with pure wonder. Children may be our favorite stories of all, so have fun telling them!

Great stories bring us together. If the result is anything close to the beautiful innocence of a child’s sparkle around the holiday seasons, I’m a believer and thankful that Santa is real.

Brewed From Within
#103 📖 Life & Happiness

By Ben McDougal, ago

Generosity Builds Trust

The art of connection aged in a readiness to consistently give without expectation leads to unpredictable opportunity.

Being generous can be as simple as showing up, listening, making a strategic introduction, or providing what paying customers anticipate. This form of benevolence instills wonderment and appreciation from others. Perennial contributions that accelerate others will earn credibility, and over time, trust grows. This is invaluable because humans collaborate with people they know, like, and trust. Trust then allows leaders to assume positive intent. This tightens the tribe and supports more people with big ideas.

The vulnerability required may introduce new challenges, but the risk is worth the reward as we collectively build at the speed of trust. This can be hard to understand for those who have been bamboozled in the past. The competitive nature of capitalism hardens us as well. Trust is tough to earn and easy to lose, but generous leaders know that when more people find success, the sense of abundance translates into fresh ways for everyone to thrive.

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Deliver on the promise.

As trust leads to expanded opportunities, do not dilute yourself to mediocrity. A pitfall for generous leaders is saying yes to everything. The perception is that everything is important and more is better, but overextended leaders burn out. It’s hard to give when we’re too busy so stay receptive, but learn to say no.

This can be done respectfully, and there is usually a way to remain generous, even when we’re choosing to be skillfully selfish for the greater good. Maintained capacity ensures that trust built from long-term generosity provokes the right opportunities, with the right people, at the right time.

Brewed From Within
#42 📖 Leadership

By Ben McDougal, ago