Hey there,
I am writing this newsletter on a Sunday evening, after having lived through the brief regret of not having sent this issue out yesterday.
But things have their own way of working out. I can now turn this issue into a Teacher's Day special edition. And incidentally, I just happen to have a lot of thoughts about that.
In the last month, I finished reading The Bullet Journal Method by Ryder Carroll and 3 of Austin Kleon's books: Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work and Keep Going.
Those are the two people from whom I've gained a lot of insight lately which is why I think that they are the perfect people to mention for this Teacher's Day special edition.
Ryder Carroll is a digital product designer by profession and he created and refined the Bullet Journal as he progressed through his own career. Being in a sister field as him, myself, I can relate to the pains and problems he might have faced that made him come with solutions for himself in the form of the Bullet Journal. I've been bullet journaling for three years now and it's only in my third year that I picked up the book on it. Fortunately, I was able to read this book with a book club and we read it chapter by chapter; trying to break down the lessons into digestible chunks of information that we could apply to our own bullet journaling processes. We became the students and in turn, Ryder had so much to give to us.
This book has been one of my most definitive reads of the year so far. I took 8 months to read, digest and imbibe lessons about a system that has improved the quality of my life.
Next in line is Austin Kleon. To be honest, when I started reading Steal Like an Artist, it did not strike a chord with me immediately. I found the initial lessons to be a 'little too out there'. But things started to make sense as the book progressed and I could see why he has chosen those lessons for the readers. Steal Like an Artist is followed by Show Your Work which is then followed by Keep Going.
While all three books can be read independently, they just made more sense as successive reads. To me, the 3 books seem fused into one, each tackling a different aspect of being a creative. After 30 important tips and lessons, I am now a loyal fan of Austin Kleon.
Again, being a student paid off.
People have a lot to offer to us. We simply need to drift through life with a curious mind and the willingness to let people teach us what they know.
If you're willing to be a student, everyone can be your teacher.
