The Sound of Irrelevance

I am standing on a street corner in downtown Fargo, jokingly holding a pay phone receiver to my ear. There’s an odd buzzing sound thrumming through the earpiece. It takes me a moment to realize what it is.

Although I haven’t heard from her in a while, I remember her well, sedulous Ms. Dial Tone, singing her monotone song each time I lifted my phone from its cradle. But that was a while ago, back when I had home-phone service. These days, however, Ms. T. hardly comes around at all; occasionally she’ll make an appearance at the office, but even there she sings less and less each day, displaced by email and texts and data and, of course, mobile phones.

Not surprisingly, no one has missed Ms. Dial Tone; no petitions are being signed to bring her back. Even though she played a vital role for 130 years, she’s no longer relevant. And she never will be again.

So here I am, pay phone in hand, listening to the droning sound of irrelevance.

Likewise, there are material items in our lives that’ve added value for years—clothes, kitchenware, electronics, furniture, etc. But in time, even the most useful belongings become irrelevant. After which, we must let go, lest we cling to irrelevance.

What possessions do you own that’ve lost their relevance? What would it take to let go?

 

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The Stench of Success

Let this week be the week where you Win at everything you’re faced against.

Take charge of your Monday,

The gun has just sounded- Time to Get It #TGIM !!!

http://goo.gl/83sJFI

Company Growth Supersedes Paychecks

Everything That Remains Tour 2014

Throughout 2014, The Minimalists will embark on a 100-city tour across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, & Australia to share their story of living with less and celebrate their new book, Everything That Remains.

Come listen to Joshua and Ryan speak about their journey into the simple life, followed by a short reading from their new book, a brief Q&A session, and an optional book signing and photos. Each event is 90 minutes.

Admission is free. So are the hugs. Click the link next to your city below to reserve your tickets. You are also welcome to pick up a copy of the new book, but you certainly aren’t required to. (Note: although tickets are free, some cities will have a limited number, so it’s best to get yours now.)

Follow The Minimalists on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for updates, photos, and stories from the road. Join the conversation: #minstour

Want to help with the tour? The Minimalists need assistance with bookstores, photos, video, local media, local event-calendar placement, Wikipedia, sponsorships, and various other ways of spreading the message. Details here.

Tour Dates

—Book Preview Event 2013—

November 13, 2013 (Media & Public) — NYC (details)

—United States 2014—

January 24 — Tampa, FL (free tickets)

January 27 — Miami, FL (free tickets)

January 30 — Orlando, FL (free tickets)

February 2 — Jacksonville, FL (free tickets)

February 5 — New Orleans, LA (free tickets)

February 8 — Jackson, MS (free tickets)

February 11 — Birmingham, AL (free tickets)

February 15 — Atlanta, GA (free tickets)

February 17 — Knoxville, TN (free tickets)

February 19 — Nashville, TN (free tickets)

February 21 — Memphis, TN (free tickets)

February 23 — Little Rock, AR (free tickets)

February 25 — Tulsa, OK (free tickets)

February 26 — Oklahoma City, OK (free tickets)

March 1 — Dallas, TX (free tickets)

March 4 — Houston, TX (free tickets)

March 7 — San Antonio, TX (free tickets)

March 10 — Austin, TX (free tickets)

March 13 — Albuquerque, NM (free tickets)

March 16 — Tucson, AZ (free tickets)

March 19 — Phoenix, AZ (free tickets)

March 22 — Las Vegas, NV (free tickets)

March 25 — San Diego, CA (free tickets)

March 28 — Los Angeles, CA (free tickets)

March 31 — San Jose, CA (free tickets)

April 2 — San Francisco, CA (free tickets)

April 6 — Sacramento, CA (free tickets)

April 9 — Portland, OR (free tickets)

April 12 — Boise, ID (free tickets)

April 15 — Salt Lake City, UT (free tickets)

April 18 — Denver, CO (free tickets)

April 21 — Omaha, NE (free tickets)

April 22 — Des Moines, IA (free tickets)

April 23 — Kansas City, MO (free tickets)

April 25 — St. Louis, MO (free tickets)

April 27 — Louisville, KY (free tickets)

April 29 — Indianapolis, IN (free tickets)

May 2 — Cincinnati, OH (free tickets)

May 5 — Dayton, OH (free tickets)

May 8 — Columbus, OH (free tickets)

May 10 — Pittsburgh, PA (free tickets)

May 14 — Charlotte, NC (free tickets)

May 15 — Greenville, SC (free tickets)

May 17 — Columbia, SC (free tickets)

May 19 — Raleigh, NC (free tickets)

May 21 — Virginia Beach, VA (free tickets)

May 23 — Richmond, VA (free tickets)

May 26 — Washington, DC (free tickets)

May 28 — Baltimore, MD (free tickets)

June 1 — Fargo, ND (free tickets)

June 3 — Philadelphia, PA (free tickets)

June 5 — New York City, NY (free tickets)

June 7 — Hartford, CT (free tickets)

June 9 — Providence, RI (free tickets)

June 11 — Boston, MA (free tickets)

June 13 — Portland, ME (free tickets)

July 3 — Buffalo, NY (free tickets)

July 5 — Rochester, NY (free tickets)

July 7 — Cleveland, OH (free tickets)

July 9 — Ann Arbor, MI (free tickets)

July 11 — Grand Rapids, MI (free tickets)

July 14 — Chicago, IL (free tickets)

July 16 — Milwaukee, WI (free tickets)

July 18 — Madison, WI (free tickets)

July 20 — Minneapolis, MN (free tickets)

August 3 — Seattle, WA (free tickets)

August 6 — Spokane, WA (free tickets)

August 11 — Missoula, MT (free tickets)

—Canada 2014—

June 16 — St. John’s, NL (free tickets)

June 19 — Halifax, NS (free tickets)

June 22 — Quebec City, QC (free tickets)

June 24 — Montreal, QC (free tickets)

June 26 — Ottawa, ON (free tickets)

June 29 — Toronto, ON (free tickets)

June 30 — London, ON (free tickets)

July 2 — Hamilton, ON (free tickets)

July 22 — Winnipeg, MB (free tickets)

July 24 — Regina, SK (free tickets)

July 26 — Saskatoon, SK (free tickets)

July 28 — Edmonton, AB (free tickets)

July 30 — Calgary, AB (free tickets)

August 1 — Vancouver, BC (free tickets)

—UK & Ireland 2014—

October 9 — London (free tickets)

October 11 — Southampton (free tickets)

October 13 — Bristol (free tickets)

October 15 — Cardiff (free tickets)

October 17 — Birmingham (free tickets)

October 19 — Manchester (free tickets)

October 21 — Leeds (free tickets)

October 23 — Newcastle (free tickets)

October 25 — Edinburgh (free tickets)

October 27 — Glasgow (free tickets)

October 29 — Belfast (free tickets)

October 31 — Dublin (free tickets)

—Australia 2014—

November 4 — Brisbane (free tickets)

November 6 — Gold Coast (free tickets)

November 9 — Sydney (free tickets)

November 12 — Melbourne (free tickets)

November 15 — Adelaide (free tickets)

November 19 — Perth (free tickets)

Questions?

Is your city not listed? Sorry, we can’t make it everywhere (yet!). Stay updated on when The Minimalists will be in your city by subscribing to our essays via email (no spam, ever).

Other questions about the tour? Email: tour@theminimalists.com.

Previous Tour Stops, Photos, Video

Big thanks to the 4,000+ people who attended The Minimalists 51 tour stops during 2012/2013 (list of previous cities, plus photos and tour reviews here). If you can’t make it to one of the events, you can watch a video of The Minimalists’ Seattle meetup

 

[follow The Minimalists on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for even more exciting info.]

“He is the best programmer who doesn’t care about our vision.”

Courtesy of Rolling Stone Magazine (2011)

The title quote is from the biographical film, Jobs (2013). It’s a statement that was made by Steve Jobs (Ashton Kutcher) when one of his team members failed to see/share the vision that he had for the fonts on the Lisa Project and the programmer was subsequently fired.

This past week has been pretty interesting.

The business has taken the turn for the better- for the first time in I don’t know how many months– and with that, came a myriad of lessons. I learnt about what perseverance really means to skeptics, critics, investors and consumers alike.

It’s that look in the founder’s eye that says:

 “Really, this project is going to happen. And it WILL be a breakthrough success. I am here, to rule the world.”

This is what my next feat is: being able to express to future investors our intentions and our ability as a team to make good on all our deliverables. Many would think that a couple of years of experience (where it matters), some great ideas and a well thought-through plan of execution is enough to woe any potential “buyer”. But I think that the above is actually secondary. What the buyer wants to see is more than mere ability but a combination of ability and passion/drive/zest. That is, how badly do YOU want to see this succeed?

When the going gets tough, it is the belief and dedication of every member of the team that determines whether you crumble under the pressure or you rise-up to the occasion. Forget, for a moment, the list of qualifications which accompany the various organs of the company. Yes, organs.

The company as a whole is like the human body with every team member being a different yet vital organ…Vital to the performance and wellbeing of the overall body. And believe me, the going really does get tough. There are times when nothing seems to be going your way and every attempt to move forward seems like a leap towards the back. It is in these times where tensions rise and with them comes a googolplex of overwhelming frustrations that sadly can not be remedied by anything but success. A programmer that believes that he deserves to get paid according to his contribution and his expertise will fail you at this point because you are unable to fulfill these needs. You’re still a startup. Which by definition is:

“…a human institution designed to deliver a new product or service under conditions of extreme uncertainty.”- Eric Ries, The Lean Startup

So you need people that will be willing to endure these conditions because they possess a clear understanding and belief in the vision of the startup. And they are determined to do all that they can to achieve this vision because they know- that their efforts will yield success and this success will be worth all the time and money sacrificed for this team of revolutionaries.

That’s what you want: dedication throttled by belief; not mere action driven by compensation.

So, look amongst your crew members and ask yourself whether these are the right people to be the custodians of your vision of a better tomorrow.

A Rolex Won’t Give You More Time

A friend recently emailed me to communicate the buyer’s remorse he was experiencing after purchasing an expensive watch. Even though he’s a successful entrepreneur who can afford to drop $10k on shiny wrist-ornamentation, he expressed pangs of post-purchase grief, sorrow, and regret.

But he wasn’t entirely sure why he felt this way, so he emailed me for advice. This is how I responded…

I know where you’re coming from. As a guy who has owned several expensive watches (I owned more than one fancy watch during my lotus-eating twenties, although I don’t own a one now), I understand the allure. I could of course recite a dozen platitudes here—an expensive watch can’t give you more time, a puppet who enjoys his strings still isn’t free, you are not the sum of your material possessions, our possessions possess us, etc.—but the what it really comes down to is two things: Value and Quality of Life.

In terms of Value, does the watch actually add value to your life? Or does it drain value? I’m not talking about monetary value (price is just an arbitrary measurement); I’m talking real, intrinsic value. Is that watch worth $10k of your freedom? Is it worth the emotional stress you’re going through while thinking about it?

I know these questions sound rhetorical, but they’re not. I’m currently wearing a $100 pair of jeans, and, yes, they are worth $100 of my freedom to me; they are also my only pair of jeans, ergo I get immense value from them since I wear them almost every day. Does the watch do the same for you? If so, wear it with pride. If it doesn’t, though, then you might want to ask yourself why you still own it—not why you bought it, but why you still own it. Is it a status thing? Is it part of your identity? Is it just an expensive personal logo?

At this point, the purchase is over; you needn’t beat yourself up over it because you can’t change it. It’s a sunk cost. But you can change what you do going forward if you’re not getting value from the purchase. Again, though, if you get value from the watch, if it truly enhances your life, then why not keep it?

And when… [Read more at The Minimalists]

The Idea Guy

Almost everyone has a noggin filled with great ideas. That innovative invention. That groundbreaking book. That next big thing.

Unfortunately the vast majority of remarkable ideas will never be realized as real-life creations because many Idea Guys want someone else to do the work for them. What these Ideas Guys don’t realize, though, is that Action is more valuable than the Idea itself.

A well-executed mediocre idea is infinitely more beautiful than a magnificent idea not acted upon. Ergo, great idea or not, one must act accordingly.

[Read more inspiring truths from The Minimalists]

Tinkering: the diary entry of an obsessed Linux user.

Not too long ago, tinkering was reserved for those geeks and nerds that spent hours and hours just typing away at their keyboards trying to change this and that because of this and that only to change that once again (two days later)because of this.

Let me first point out that, I am not ‘that guy’. In fact, ‘that guy’ would probably sneer at the mere utterance of our so-called resemblance. What I am, however, is a liker-of-things. Cool things, things that are different and have a revolutionary quality to them- things that actually matter.

With that being said, a year or so ago I purchased a refurbished netbook that came with no operating system- I then installed Ubuntu Linux onto it. And thus spawned the beginning of a lengthy love/hate relationship between myself and the OS. The great thing about Linux is the fact that it is open-source meaning that there are now millions (perhaps hundreds of thousands) of nerds that are working towards making this OS better and better. They create tools regularly in order to make their lives simpler, better and perhaps easier. As a result of the wonderful community of Linux users that already exists, these iterations can also be used to make every other user’s experience of Linux THAT much more pleasant. This is the intrinsic beauty of the Linux operating system.

With this beauty, however, comes a bit of dedication that is required from the user.

Linux systems vary from Windows and Mac systems in that the software that Linux uses is not coming from a handful of companies but from a myriad of avid hackers and engineers. This openness, does bring with it the infinite potential for errors, bugs and calibration/compatibility issues. At this point the user could either turn to the Linux community for advice or choose to fix the issue himself through a series of tinkering sessions aimed at eventually discovering the solution for himself. In my experience, I’ve realised that both options go hand-in-hand. When I first started using the OS, I was always trying to find solace and support through seeking for help in the various forums available to a Linux user (all of which are great). As time went by, I had probably visited the Ubuntu forum about 10 000 times and each time I’d come out with a solution. All of this was essentially educational as my skills were continuously enhanced with every problem I faced. Now I find myself trying out a bunch of solutions from my bag of acquired tricks when faced with an issue. And more often then not, I will have solved it myself.

Looking forward about a year later and I now find myself tinkering endlessly at my machine. Not because solutions are needed but because with Linux, change is imminent. There is always some new alternative version of a particular type of software being released to the community. And that entices a user to want to use it. And most of the time, the modifications are not particularly essential. They could range from simply installing a new conky to your desktop to trying to run 3-different OSs on one machine. Why do these things?

Because they’re cool and most importantly, because we Can.

Workspaces Courtesy of Google+ user Michael Murphy

Follow @ZooLooConcepts on Twitter.

Worthy

I often feel unworthy. I face this feeling when I write on serious topics. I question whether I’m qualified to write about certain subjects, conjuring a tornado of negative thoughts: I’m not perfect. I’m not a Zen master. I’m not Dr. Nicodemus. I’m not worthy.

I could blame my upbringing for this psychological defect. I wasn’t encouraged to be more than I was. However, I clearly remember being told what I wasn’t. Whenever I catch myself inside this whirlwind of negative thought, I recognize what I’m doing and redirect my self-talk toward a more positive direction. Instead of what “I’m not” I focus on what “I am”: I am kind. I am genuine. I am adding value. I am worthy.

Our level of self-worth is directly affected by the rules we’ve built for ourselves. If you have a rule for yourself that says “I am not a baker if I don’t own a bakery,” then guess what—you’re not going to feel worthy enough to call yourself a baker until you open a bakery.

Most of our internal rules have been shaped by years of reinforcement. That doesn’t mean we have to live by those rules for the rest of our lives, though. When we catch ourselves feeling unworthy, we should look for the rule we’ve established that makes us feel this way.

Regardless of what we’ve done in our pasts, we still get to decide our own levels of self-worth based on the rules we’ve established. As long as you are living up to those rules, you are worthy

– Ryan Nicodemus

[Read more inspiring essays from The Minimalists]

The History of Opportunity

Read up on more articles relevant to startup addicts at Funders and Founders