20th Century Fox
Dan Waldschmidt thinks “faking it til you make it” is horrible advice.
But the catchphrase doesn’t mean what Waldshmidt thinks it means (spoken in my best Inigo Montoya accent). A quick Wikipedia search would have informed him that “faking it til you make it” means imitating confidence until you find real confidence—not stretching truth, bending rules, or denying reality, like the columnist mistakenly believes it means.
The first commenter on his syndicated post said it best: “‘Faking’ doesn’t mean “lying.’ It means faking that you are confident, self-assured, knowledgeable—when you, in fact, you’re not. It is excellent advice and helped me overcome many fears and doubts.” Or as Amy Cuddy says, “Fake it ’till you become it.”
Hear, hear! I, too, have faked my way to becoming a responsible adult, marketable guy, husband of one, and father of five. For me, the catchphrase is easily one of the top 10 pieces of advice on finding success.
Columbia Pictures
After more than a half year of writer’s block, I started typing the second act of my book today.
I’ve always liked the first act, and know how I want to end the book. But I’ve struggled mightily in penning the midriff.
Not anymore. I found my way again. Ain’t nobody’s gonna hold me down—not unfamiliar territory, the possibility of failure (i.e. the world thinking I’m a crap author), and certainly not myself.
In the meantime, might I suggest…
Wikimedia Commons
This edition of the Offline Newsletter is written by an unknown author as told by my father, Brent Snow. As you work to find your digital sweet spot this year, I hope this serves as inspiration.—Blake Snow
There is a story about a billion dollar luxury liner, outfitted with every possible appointment, convenience, necessity, and designed to gratify every decadent demand of its prominent passengers. This floating Taj Mahal, booked solid for months by wealthy citizens and exporters, exhibited a phenomenally delicate profit margin in which time was money. Lots of money. For this great ship to sit idle for even an hour would cost the owners millions of dollars.
As such, every effort had been made to ensure that the ship would operate at peak efficiency. The engine room had as many backup systems and fail-safe mechanisms as an Apollo rocket. No detail had been overlooked in building the most reliable, durable mechanical equipment money could buy. The engine room was staffed by officers, experts, and mechanics from around the world. Each stood vigil in a gleaming white uniform looped with gold braid and brass buttons. Computer systems, draped in matted plastics and steel, lined the walls. Nothing could possibly go wrong. Continue reading…
MGM
I watched Nicholas Nickleby over the holidays with my soulmate.
It’s worth watching, at least according to this romantic. Charlie Hunnam’s performance was uneven—brilliant when confronting his uncle, not so much when mourning the death of his friend. But it was obvious to me after watching it: Charles Dickens is a masterful storyteller. He’s proved it many times over. As have his contemporaries, including Jane Austen.
Upon finishing the movie and while channeling the most formal English I could muster, I commented to my wife, “We gotta go to England! The source of such great storytelling deserves to be honored with our presence.”
Plus, I’m a sucker for Ferris wheels, and I hear London has a rather considerable one.
See also
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xqrn2q3WCS8[/youtube]
I get it. These guys are overplayed. The Old Navy of Rock ‘N Roll. Maybe even a bit pompous.
But if the above video doesn’t alter your opinion of said musicians, you’re a snob.
DISCLOSURE: U2 doesn’t make my top 10 or even top 20 band list. But I still believe they’re deserving of much of their success. This is my favorite song of theirs. And Achtung Baby is a ’90s masterpiece.
The precipitation Gods dumped blankets of snow on my neighborhood recently. Well more than a foot, which required a lot of shoveling to maneuver.
I encountered my neighbor Gary while shoveling one day, and we both commented on the sight. “Oh, I love it!” he exclaimed with a bright smile. “I do too, I responded.”
Like all good things, snow is worth the effort. I didn’t always think that way. Continue reading…
Excepting more embarrassing personal stuff, here are the changes I hope to make next year:
- I’m gonna speak softly to my kids. I’m loud. With my choice of words and opinions as much as my volume. Children don’t need that extra emotion as they’re figuring out the world. Often times I bark at my kids when they make a mistake or disobey. On a whim recently, I tried something different. Instead of scolding my three year old with a mean face and verbal outburst, I kneeled down, leveled my eyes with hers, softly expressed my disappointment, and encouraged her to change. She lovingly accepted and immediately improved her behavior. After overhearing the exchange, her older sister said, “Dad, I like when you talk to us like that. I feel a warm spirit in the room when you do that.” Then this happened. Then I resolved to speak kindly when disciplining my children from that day forward. Continue reading…
Nicole Monteregina
Warning: This post contains existential beliefs. If you have a perfect, godless knowledge of the meaning of life, discredit my opinion and skip to next post. Otherwise, follow me, blind believers!
Either dirt has a fetish for fine art or God exists.
I say that because every winter crystals form on my office window. It’s an old, single pane window. It has no business living in an energy-efficient world. But its side effects can be mesmerizing.
Last month, during a particularly negative below cold spell, I entered the room to see something like this, only it was much more mathematical. Like something a computer would do in geometry, spilled all over the lower half of my window. But it wasn’t as mechanical as computer art. It was organic. Precise but spontaneous. As if the creator of math and science Himself had sent a memo.
The other windows in my house don’t do this, but this easterly-facing one does on occasion. Does it come from God or chaos?
Either way, it’s exquisite.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRqUTA6AegA[/youtube]
It’s difficult to describe the love/hate relationship of raising humans. This Coca Cola commercial from Argentina does a pretty good job. (Thanks, Bella—via Facebook)
The Scrib
In other words, you don’t do if for the money.
“The Brazilian World Cup is best understood as a party,” writes Simon Kuper for ESPN. “You don’t host a party to get rich. You do it to have fun, and Brazilians will have fun. Yet there’s something obscene about hosting an extravagant party in a country where millions of people need houses, electricity, doctors. That’s what bothered the protestors.”
Politics aside, there are measurable increases in happiness among a host nation’s citizens, according to Soccernomics. Not unlike the effect a good house party has on a host.
But you can still skimp on a party and have a good time. The problem is, I think the Olympics and FIFA always want a lavish party, even if the designated host can’t afford it.
Starcadian
Looking back, I won’t remember 2013 as a particularly strong year for music. But I did enjoy a handful of new and retro albums and have fond memories of listening to all of the below, ordered by most played to least played. Continue reading…
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyO-MyJ4R1g[/youtube]
Fun stuff for those who grew up in the ’80s. See also: Starcadian’s spacey Heart video
If you haven’t already, consider buying Starcadian’s Sunset Blood, from which this song came. It’s one of my top 5 albums of the year.
Amazon
This is good, embedded journalism about “the everything store” from which my family buys a sizable portion of merchandise:
There have always been rubbish jobs. Ian Brinkley, the director of the Work Foundation, calls Amazon’s employment practices “old wine in new bottles”. Restaurants and kebab shops have done the same sort of thing for years. But Amazon is not a kebab shop. It’s the future. Which may or may not be something to think about as you click “add to basket”.
I’ll think about it, but I’ll still click. I can honestly say Amazon has improved my life over the last decade. Whatever long-term cost I may end up paying for the cut-rate convenience is too murky to fear. At least right now.
See also: Amazon looks to the future
Zappos
Clever move, Zappos.
“A lot of our job candidates are from out of town, and we’ll pick them up from the airport in a Zappos shuttle, give them a tour, and then they’ll spend the rest of the day interviewing,” Hsieh says. “At the end of the day of interviews, the recruiter will circle back to the shuttle driver and ask how he or she was treated. It doesn’t matter how well the day of interviews went, if our shuttle driver wasn’t treated well, then we won’t hire that person.”
U.S. Army
Beyond the obvious weight loss and cardiovascular benefits of regular fitness, here are a few bonus consequences of working on your body:
- Your skin improves. If vanity is your top goal for getting in shape, I’ve got good news: Regular exercise, particularly when coupled with a healthy diet, does wonders to your hue. If you’re white and pasty like me, your skin starts glowing the longer you work out. It looks healthy, full of color, slightly tan. The reason: “Exercise enhances blood flow to skin,” says Dr. David Katz. Plus, sweating works as a natural cleaning agent, unclogging pores and removing oil and dirt for fewer zits. My skin has never looked healthier. What a pleasant surprise. Continue reading…
Microsoft
After failing to reverse the declining fortunes of the fourth largest company in the world, outgoing Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer teared up this week in his exit interview with WSJ.
“Maybe I’m an emblem of an old era, and I have to move on,” he said. “As much as I love what I’m doing, the best way for Microsoft to enter a new era is with a new leader.”
That must be an incredibly difficult thing to admit. I respect that. To ease his pain, Ballmer gets $18 billion in retirement. Pity him.
Blake Snow
See how my daughter is wearing her socks? I’m the only other person I know that does that, particularly if my ankles get hot.
Your ankles get hot? Yeah, my ankles get hot.
The complexing thing about this behavior, however, is that I haven’t “half socked” in years, certainly not since my daughter was old enough to notice. “Where did you learn to do that??!!” I asked in amazement the first time I witnessed her doing it. “I don’t know,” she shrugged. “Why?” I followed up. “Because my feet were hot.”
Maybe my daughter did observe me doing it and followed suit. Maybe she saw some other weirdo do it and mimicked them. I don’t doubt other explanations.
But maybe, just maybe, my daughter did it because her genetics told her to. Maybe, just maybe, human offspring remember select quirks that having nothing to do with evolution and everything to do with social continuity.
As a father, it was an exhilarating connection that I imagine gets better with age.
AP Photo/Tom Stromme
Had a lot of fun recording the latest podcast with Josh this week:
In this Halloween Special of The Offline Podcast, Josh and I discuss the “new normal” work week, an app that supposedly boosts offline encounters, how to turn a small reward into something you’ll treasure forever, and doorbell ditching (aka the best offline experience of the week). Enjoy your life! Music by KC & The Sunshine Band and Tales from the Crypt.
MP3 (23 min) | iTunes | Feed | Reruns
Happy Halloween, readers. May all your Pagan dreams come true.
Honest Slogans
Honest Slogans is good stuff. Here are my favorites: Continue reading…
Engadget
My latest for Fox News: Why the death of the PC is a myth
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls9Cg8iaq1s#t=30[/youtube]
Synopsis: British kid fails math, then passes after a year of hard work. Father loses it.
Warner Bros.
Is it wise to make an audience feel physically disoriented, claustrophobic, and unsettled? I’m not so sure. In addition to immense stress and one-too-many suspense hangers, that’s exactly how Gravity will make you feel.
This is due to director Alfonso Cuarón’s excessive use of first-person and single-shots that are heavy on pans. The effect certainly made me empathize with the lost in space heroine. But I’ve seen a lot of other movies that make me empathize with characters, not because of cinematography tricks, but because of powerful acting. Continue reading…
Yahoo
It should be obvious, but for many it isn’t. They’ve forgotten how to live in the moment, be alone with their thoughts, and use “forever empty” as motivation to better themselves. Continue reading…
Imgur
For me, 2013 is a year of tens. Ten years of marriage. Ten years of taking care of business. Continue reading…
Dungeons & Dragons
Imgur
Friends and family know this about me—a side effect of being energetic, passionate, and critical.
Interpretation of dreams
Few things make my ears hurt more than listening to an untrained violinist. It’s insufferable. On the contrary, hearing a skilled violinist is a delight, perhaps second only to an expert piano player.
I listened to an accomplished violinist by accident recently. I was working. My window was open. It was raining. And then it started: a faint viola. A good one. It played for a solid hour without hitting a single stray note. It was the best live performance I’ve heard in a while.
I wonder if the player even knew their was an audience. I hope they practice again soon.
Readers: What’s your favorite unaccompanied solo instrument?
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3QrhdfLCO8[/youtube]
You can find it here. Have a great weekend, everyone.
Ultimate Ears Boom
Reporting for Fox, here are 7 low-tech goods I’ve enjoyed this year.
Blake Snow
In addition to sporadic columns and the upcoming book, I’m publishing the first episode of The Offline Podcast today to help spread the message. Here’s what you can expect from the show: 
Continue reading…
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OINa46HeWg8[/youtube]
“I see the way people use smartphones as a phenomenon that looks to me like a publicly-accepted decline in the way people interact with each other.”—Peter Cohen via Josh Steimle
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhZrONoR29E[/youtube]
From the singer/songwriter of one of my favorite aught bands, Grandaddy. Made with a dash of Rentals.
In an effort to reduce the spam I email to friends and family, take this:
My household is in the minority. We don’t use our iPad much, preferring instead smartphones, TV apps, and good old-fashioned laptops with keyboards.
That changed this week when I discovered an accessory that transformed the family iPad into something mesmerizing. A simple, $10 wall dock. Adhere it to the wall. Slip in any old tablet, enable slideshow mode, and voila! The device becomes useful wall art.
Since assembling the dock, I’ve caught most members of the family staring at, smiling at, and enjoying the iPad for extending periods of time, thanks to the 10 years of photographic evidence on display. It’s the best way I know to move albums from a hard drive into the living room.
“I don’t mean to alarm you, but she may have brain cancer.”
That’s the scariest thing I’ve ever heard as a parent. Uttered to me by a confused pediatrician after failing to diagnose my two year-old daughter for the umpteenth time, the sentence dashed my hopes and struck fear in me like no other.
It started like this. Two weeks prior, my daughter began vomiting in her sleep. Curiously, she would upchuck like clockwork — three hours after bed. After a few days, she begin dropping weight. Her eyes sunk in. She looked sicker than any of my children had before. Continue reading…
Humans are usually influenced in one of six ways, argues Robert Cialdini in Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. I suspect there are a lot more subtle and intricate ways to influence, but I think Cialdini certainly covered the highlights in his popular book published in 1984. They are as follows:
- Reciprocity. Humans feel obligated to return favors and gifts, even unwelcome ones—which partially explains why their are so many free samples in life. Hence, giving away something for free is an effective way to influence. You can avoid this influence by distinguishing uninvited gifts from welcome ones. For example, “I didn’t want this free food sample to being with, so I won’t feel obligated in giving you anything in return if I take it. Another thing to beware of are unwelcome concessions; say a door-to-door salesman that asks you to donate a large sum to a cause you aren’t interested in, only to lower the donation amount in the hopes you’ll donate something. The takeaway: Don’t donate unless you want to, not because someone is seemingly compromising. Continue reading…
Seinfeld
In a market economy, I believe state run economic development can sometimes be a good thing. But I suspect it’s usually a bad thing. Here’s why, in which a Rhode Island state treasurer cautioned against backing a celebrity owned company that would ultimately become a $75 million bath for taxpayers:
“In general, I would proceed very carefully on this. [The company] is in the Boston area where there are 200 venture capital firms, and it is in a very hot area of gaming so if it were in fact a compelling investment I would have to think it would be well funded already by venture capitalist; the fact that many have looked at it and passed is a red flag.” Continue reading…
I was asked to compile a list of my top 25 songs for a recent family reunion. Here it is for all to see.
As for my methodology, I didn’t submit a single political or consensus vote (i.e. notice no Beatles songs or critically acclaimed “Smells like Teen Spirit”). I only picked songs that are personal favorites; great songs that have special meaning to me, even if some of them are admittedly inferior to others not included on this list. And since my remembering self is biased, the list skews to recent favorites.
Enjoy. Continue reading…
Last month, iTunes shuffled a humble group of songs to my playlist and with them a wave of nostalgia.
The tracks themselves aren’t much, just old, amateur recordings from a short-lived college band I played in. Before iTunes recalled them, I hadn’t heard them in almost a decade.
But they ain’t bad, either. I played drums. My good friend Robert played bass. And the older brother and manager (Hi, Mac!) from the singer of Imagine Dragons played guitar. That totally sounded like the 31 Flavors girl from Ferris Bueller or Chunk from Goonies, but whatever. Continue reading…
Build character, not intelligence. That’s the gist of what parents, educators, and society should do to help children succeed, argues Paul Tough in his new book.
Many of Tough’s “findings” are obvious, mind you. More scientific validation of common sense than childrearing enlightenment, at least for balanced parents.
Nevertheless, Tough succeeds in synthesizing some important focal points for raising upstanding kids. Here they are, with my added commentary:
- Let children fail. It’s tempting to want to force a child to learn from yours and other’s mistakes. Life doesn’t work that way. You should certainly own up to your mistakes while showing them others’ and hope the child listens. But you must respect a child’s right to fail. It’s the only way they’ll feel the full experience of life. Let them own their failures as much as society lets them own (if not coddles) their victories. And let them know that failure is not who they are, it’s just something they do en route to winning. Continue reading…
Ang Sarap
Like many of you, I go through food phases. Here’s what I’m particularly keen on eating, making, and cooking right now: Continue reading…
If you’re reading this, you’ve successfully traversed a foreign array of tubes, electrons, and cyberspace servers to my new home.
Welcome.
As you can see, it’s all about “me, me, me” now. It’s a vain attempt to self-promote more and a concerted effort to reduce the number of people that mistakenly call me “Harold.”
It was time. 2007 was the last time I redesigned this eight year-old website.
So I updated a bunch of stuff and added new pages of interest, including: Continue reading…
The consultant I paid (Hi, Josh!) to tell me what I already knew — and I’d do it again with a 10 foot pole… Am I saying that right? — said I needed to promote myself more. To that end, here are a few work-related accomplishments I’m proud of:
- Have written for half of the top 20 U.S. media (dozens more in the top 100)
- Have worked for a handful of Fortune 100 companies, dozens of Fortune 500 ones, and some of the coolest little guys I know. Continue reading…
God, how did you get pork ribs to taste so delicious and why didn’t you make beef or chicken ribs this scrumptious?
That’s what I’d ask him. Here’s why: Lindsey and I have made these oven baked ribs several times this summer. They’re ridiculously easy. Can be made using baby or spare ribs. The meat falls of the bone with the slightest of bites. And there are virtually no ligaments or tendons to mess with — the closest thing to cartoon characters eating hunks of meat off single bones.
It’s my new favorite BBQ dish.
Photo credit: rays of sunshine
Google decided to shut down their popular Reader service on my birthday. In other words, RSS subscriptions are dead.
So if you’d like to keep your free Smooth Harold subscription current, subscribe by email today.
Those who do will be the first to receive next week’s post: The one question I would ask God.
And since I’m teasing stuff, be on the look out for my upcoming newsletters, including my official spam newsletter which my friends and family already lovingly filter, my music newsletter, book newsletter, and writing newsletter.
Email is the future, I tell ya!
Since moving to the Western United States 11 years ago, I’ve hiked many majestic trails. All are proof the area is still very wild and as breathtaking as ever.
Last week, I hiked the most impressive trail of them all: The Narrows, which I was unable to do the first time I visited Zion. In short, The Narrows is like a taller and deeper Little Wild Horse Canyon — my second favorite hike — with a river running through it. It’s so beautiful, I think it’s all I’ll do next time I visit Zion. I need that canyon in my life.
Readers: What’s the best hike you’ve ever been on?
The Reach Total Care + Whitening. Seriously, this thing is my version of the Ora-Dent for the following reasons:
- Unlike most plastic bristles, these babies don’t just slide across your rocks, they actually have grip and texture, which help remove build-up. After using this brush, your teeth feel as though the’ve just been polished by a dental hygienist. I know because I lick my teeth after every brush now.
- The angle of the brush gives you maximum leverage, making it easier than any brush I’ve used before to access those hard-to-reach places.
- Most brush handles narrow towards the end. Not the Reach Total Care + Whitening. This handle widens at the end, providing the best grip possible. I own my teeth now!
That said, I don’t fully buy the whitening bit. If Reach is saying the brush is capable of removing more external gunk than other brushes thanks to the above, then fine. But if they’re claiming it whitens like my bleech trays, I’ll call their bluff. After all, they’re whitening claim is asterisked by “lab tests,” aka “clinically proven,” aka “this doesn’t really do what we claim, but we’d like to think it does.”
Secondly, at $3.50 a pop, the brush is 3X the price of average brushes. Regardless, I’ll never buy another toothbrush. It’s that good.
(For what it’s worth, here is the toothpaste I use. Also awesome.)
Originally published March 2011
A client recently asked for links to some of my favorite personal writings. This is what I sent him:
Photo credit: Sara Snow
