8:15am
Saint Paul
You were taught to write wrong.
It’s not your teacher’s fault. It’s not your fault. It’s just how the system works.
Continue reading “You were taught to write wrong.”Category: Opinion
Light a Fire Under Your A**
12:53pm
Saint Paul
There’s nothing like a deadline to get yourself moving.
Last week I received a copy of “Creative Ambush,” a book to spark creativity that I purchased in early August.
Continue reading “Light a Fire Under Your A**”What IS “common sense” anyway?
2:17pm Wednesday
Saint Paul
How “common” is “common sense?”
First, let’s define it. Wikipedia says,
“Common sense is ‘knowledge, judgement, and taste which is more or less universal and which is held more or less without reflection or argument.'”
So, it’s knowledge that is mostly universal, and mostly believed without questioning it.
So I ask you, is the following Einstein quote common sense?
Continue reading “What IS “common sense” anyway?”Use Epithets to Give Your Ideas More Power
11:51am
Saint Paul
When our kids were younger, we gave the meals fun names.
Pasta with tomatoe sauce and cottage cheese was Elsa and Ana Dinner.
Fish with rice and peas? Moana.
We had a few others too.
The hardest part was remembering what the names meant!
These names worked to persuade our kids to eat “adult” food, sure.
But naming anything—giving it an epithet—makes it more real.
Continue reading “Use Epithets to Give Your Ideas More Power”Alpha Wave Sales Copy
9:58am
Saint Paul
What’s the first thing you do when you wake up?
Like… the very first thing?
After a night of sleep, your morning brain produces alpha waves.
Alpha waves create a state of mental relaxation and alertness.
And because you’re relaxed… your critical, self-defensive mental guard isn’t up.
Meaning any information you feed your brain during an alpha state gets much more easily accepted by your subconscious.
Continue reading “Alpha Wave Sales Copy”What’s your backup plan?
10:38 am
Elsewhere in Saint Paul, Minnesota
BOOM.
And like that, my neighborhood just lost power.
I was avoiding work… ordering books from a German website that I can’t read…and now my work feels urgent… but no electricity.
Continue reading “What’s your backup plan?”Not a Mistake. Just… Ugly.
8:12am
Saint Paul
Degas caused a public uproar when he showed his “Jockeys Before the Race” (completed in 1879—back when art was important).
He was known for his impressionist paintings of ballerinas and jockeys on horses.
But this painting wasn’t so much a horse as it was… a pole. With a horse behind it.
It was considered “ugly.”
Continue reading “Not a Mistake. Just… Ugly.”J. Peterman’s Boring Ego
11:08am
Saint Paul
Remember the J. Peterman character from the Seinfeld TV series?
Last night I was watching Seinfeld (I could say that many times each week).
In this episode, J. Peterman—who sells clothing via catalog using romantic, emotional, visual copy—is taking Elaine out to dinner.
She is afraid of the tedium of listening to Peterman’s stories, so Elaine invites Jerry to join…
Continue reading “J. Peterman’s Boring Ego”My Mega-Church Sunday Visit
9:02am
Saint Paul
“Can you drive?”
It’s a Sunday morning and I’m just arriving at my cousin’s house.
“Yeah,” I say. “Hop in!”
See, my cousin had come over the previous Friday to watch the Olympics opening ceremony.
And she invited me to join her at a church service where she and her daughters had been attending.
All I could think is: Religions know how to persuade. Market Research!
Continue reading “My Mega-Church Sunday Visit”I know 2 ways to beat Writer’s Block
10:16am Friday
Saint Paul, Minnesota
“What’s the hardest part about writing?” I ask Ruby.
“I don’t know…”
She’s eleven. And this morning, she’s picking up a short story that she’s been writing, on and off, for a few months.
