Contents

Foreword by Danielle LaPorte

Introduction

Chapter 1. Voice 12

01. Your parents were wrong 14

02. Have a damn opinion 17

03. The things that made you weird as a kid make you great today 19

04. In the particular lies the universal 20

05. You don’t fit in 22

06. You become who you pretend to be 24

07. Work is serious play 26

08. Creativity is dangerous 29

09. You ain’t weird, you’re free 30

10. Your lot in life 32

Chapter 2. Fear 34

11. You, the reluctant hero 36

12. The success of failure 37

13. Freedom is something you take 38

14. Tombstone 40

15. Beware flaccid platitudes over stock photography 42

16. There ain’t no rules 44

17. Feck perfuction 47

18. This is only a test 48

19. Your ego can’t dance 50

20. Teach your tongue to say, “I don’t know” 51

21. The wrongest answer 52

22. The struggle is everything 54

Chapter 3. Start 56

23. Just start 58

24. All beginnings are hard 60

25. Begin before you’re ready 62

26. What is success? 64

27. Assume success 66

28. Have a plan 67

29. Improvise 68

30. Change the world 70

31. The first rule of business 72

32. Make yourself happy first 74

33. Confidence is sexy 75

34. Excitement breeds excitement 76

35. The cost of freedom 78

Chapter 4. Action 80

36. Action, action, action 82

37. Love, attention, and consistency 83

38. Seek the muse 84

39. Run from comfort 86

40. Help me, help me, help me 87

41. Hold the line 88

42. Always ask for more 90

43. Accept less 91

44. Kill your phone 92

45. Artists sign their work 94

46. Do the work 96

47. Sharpen the ax 97

48. Coffee notes 98

49. Inspiration without action 100

Chapter 5. Habits 102

50. Kill the critic 104

51. Stop deprecating all over yourself 106

52. Brave and scared shitless 107

53. Complaining is not conversation 108

54. The secret of the universe 110

55. The second arrow 112

56. Beautifully flawed 114

57. Pobody’s nerfect 116

58. You’ve got a big but 118

59. You have no friends 120

60. Poison and medicine 122

61. Let go, kitty 124

62. Warrior not worrier 126

Chapter 6. Purpose 128

63. Love something other than your selfie 130

64. Trust as inspiration 132

65. Trust yourself 134

66. Judge not 137

67. Your work is a gift 138

68. Health 141

69. I’m a fake 142

70. Learn everything 144

71. We all teach, all the time 146

72. For god or money? 148

73. Don’t chase money 149

74. Because I wanna 150

75. How to change the world 152

76. A younger me 154

77. Make work that matters 156

Acknowledgments 158

Credits 159

About the Author 161