LISTEN TO THIS | Why Nobody Came
I’m a podcast junkie, and LISTEN TO THIS is a recap of my favorite tidbits, soundbites and short bursts of brilliance from this week. After digesting 900 minutes of podcasts, here’s the top 3 must-listen-to moments.
Thinking Can Be the Enemy
BACK TO WORK | LAMP for Your Productivity
Merlin may have added one too many Stok Black Coffee Shots to his coffee before the show, but then again, maybe it was the right amount. At 55:11 he hits one of his classic moments of clarity and provides a stirring rant on not over-thinking things, yet dealing with the reality of a complicated life. Nice!
Attention > Page Views
CMD+SPACE | Memberships and Being Classy with Shawn Blanc
I’m liking where Myke Hurley is taking CMD+Space. He’s lined up some fascinating guests, and I see him growing as interviewer. He does his research, gets his guests to share openly, and leads solid, thoughtful discussions. On episode three, he talks with Shawn Blanc about being nice on the internet and building a strong membership base. At 56:10, Myke asks about the difference between attention and page views. Shawn provides an excellent, specific explanation of the age-oId question of quality versus quantity. If you have a little extra time, jump back 5 minutes prior and listen to Shawn’s approach about assuming the best in others.
“I believe everyone wants to be the best version of themselves that they can be.” ~ Shawn Blanc
I Wondered Why Nobody Came
This interview with Laura Amico provides a powerful perspective from friends and family of the homicide victims. It also walks through how to get a jump on the cops with diligent reporting practices and strategic search tactics. The story peaks when host Brooke Gladstone compares Amico to Miami crime reporter Edna Buchanan. The title link above is direct to this segment, or if you’re listening to the full podcast, fast forward to 25:20.
Podcast Test Drives:
I listened to 512 PODCAST | Firing on One Cylinder based on a tweet recommendation from Michael Schechter (by the way, his name is quite easy to spell despite what he tells you). This was not the right episode to listen to this podcast for the first time. The title tells why, as Stephen was only firing on one cylinder. I can see how regular listeners would find the honest portrayal of being in a funk more engaging, but not having background with these guys, it just felt aimless to me.
OTHER PODCAST POSTS YOU MIGHT ENJOY:
I’m on the lookout for podcasts about learning. Any recommendations? Also, I want to see if I can break 1,000 minutes of listening to podcasts within one week. Wish me luck.
LET YOUR WRITING SIT | It's Still Cooking
You know how teachers used to recommend the approach we should take in writing research papers. Start researching early. Capture notes on 3x5 cards. Outline. Draft. Edit. Rewrite. Edit. Revise. Edit. Finalize. I always wanted to try that approach. It seemed like a smart approach. But I often opted for a more last-minute process. Wait until about 7 p.m. the night before. Open three books on the subject. Say, “Oh that looks good,” and stay up late rephrasing the lifted content just enough to avoid claims of plagiarizism.
Quality on a research paper was never my main objective. I wanted to do well, but I wasn’t out to actually persuade thinking or influence behavior. Other than the grade, I didn’t have a lot of passion around why my papers had to be written. I was simply shooting to meet the requirements with minimal effort.
Today, things are different. I want the stuff I write to have impact. A) I want people to read what I write, and B) I want it to help people improve. The problem is my writing habits were formed using the cramming method. I knew the teacher recommended method would produce better results, but I kept writing at the last minute.
This is true with projects at work, with writing for this blog, and the lesson has really been driven home on my daily quote site, Observation Paper. I can, in a crunch, find a quote, compose it in a visually compelling image, and post it in about 15 minutes. The quotes are okay when I do that. They meet the requirements. But when I let a quote cook for a day or two by letting it sit and playing with a few visual options, that’s when quality hits.
There’s power in the practice of the pipeline. Start something, let it sit, move on to something else, come back to it, polish, refine. And just when you think it’s done (yes Ma I mean “done” and not “finished” - I’m working on a cooking metaphor here), put it away for a least a day.
It’s just like taking a ribeye off the grill. It keeps cooking. You have to let it sit because if you cut right into it, you lose the juicy flavor.
Allow the meat to rest before you slice it. Here’s why: As meat cooks, its proteins coagulate, or uncoil and reconfigure themselves squeezing out the moisture that is trapped inside their coiled structure. The heat from the grill drives these freed liquids toward the cooler center of the meat. As the meat returns to a lower temperature after cooking, this process partially reverses, and the protein molecules reabsorb some of the liquid. When you let the meat rest, it loses less juice when you cut into it, which in turn makes for much juicier and more tender meat. ~ The Cook’s Illustrated Guide to Grilling and Barbecue, p. 103
What would you like to give more pipeline time to?
LISTEN TO THIS | Mind-blowing Trumps Justice
I’m a podcast junkie, and LISTEN TO THIS is a recap of my favorite tidbits, soundbites and short bursts of brilliance from this week. After digesting 14 hours and 43 minutes of podcasts, here’s my top three must-listen-to moments.
Though Parts of Her Were Considerably Younger
THE CULTURE GABFEST | 25 Sex Moves He Secretly Wishes You’d Try Edition
With the passing of 90-year-old Helen Gurley Brown, the Gabfest crew explores the positive and appalling sides of how she influenced women in America. I love listening to the debate about all the wonderful advancements she did along with all the negative stereotypes she helped reinforce. It’s the first story in this episode, so you can start at the beginning or fast forward to 1:55.
And If I’m Proven Wrong, I Want to be Part of It
BUILD AND ANALYZE | This Person Isn’t Really Here
Marco and Dan discuss the launch of app.net starting at 23:10. What makes this conversation worth listening to is the dialog around the effectiveness of the fund raising campaign and Marco’s proposed next steps for success. I also found the points on the function of each social network and the purpose of posting on each thought-provoking (38:50). If you want to hear a little more about app.net, Dan York also covered it on his report on For Immediate Release at 31:15.
The Thermal Detonator You’re Carrying
JUDGE JOHN HODGMAN | Probable Cos-Play
This podcast has earned it’s way into my top five subscriptions. The format is so different, and Hodgman is engaging, clever, and smart. This week, the court docket included a couple headed to a Star Wars convention with their 4-year-old son. Dad and son are planning to dress in jedi garb, and dad was seeking a ruling to mandate mom dress up as well. After the ruling, Judge Hodgman came back into the virtual, fake courtroom and asked the husband to step out. Then he offered a fantastic idea for the wife stating that the ruling stands, but “Sometimes mind-blowing trumps justice.” Not sure if it will make much sense without listening to the entire case, but his bonus suggestion starts at 32:52.
Podcast Test Drives:
I branched out quite a bit this week trying two new shows on 5by5 and another two Slate podcasts. In addition to Build and Analyze and The Cultural Gabfest above, I also listened to:
- The Incomparable - delightful panelist conversation on the Pixar movie Brave. I like and will keep testing for a few weeks.
- The Political Gabfest - I was not that thrilled with this week’s discussion, but two of the normal panelist were out. I’ll give it another shot next week.
I also went back to my old Daytum account and set up a dashboard for podcasts listening to actually track what and when I’m listening to.
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What about you? What podcasts did you enjoy this week and what do you recommend? Leave your favorites in the comments below.