Dickie Bush

If you're reading this, you understand why you need to start sharing ideas online

But how does one build and sustain such a habit?

After asking some of the world's most prolific creators, these six steps emerged:

1. Start sharing

2. Share the work you're already doing

3. Find your sacred hours

4. Create an idea repository

5. Never start from a blank page

6. Commit for the long haul

I asked 60 of the most prolific online creators a simple question:

If you could give one piece of advice to someone who wants to start creating online, what would it be?

There were three pieces of advice that popped up over and over. And given how successful these creators are, they must be onto something.

2021 is the year to start sharing ideas.

People are spending more time online than ever before. But it's those sharing their ideas that are getting all of the value.

The only thing standing between you and the tremendous power of the internet?

Sharing your ideas.

There is far greater demand for than supply of quality content online.

Why?

Because consumption is easy. Creating is uncomfortable.

Problem: You want to start creating but the ideas aren't flowing.

Solution: Create a system for effortless idea generation.

The internet is full of ideas. With the touch of a button, you can access resources to learn anything.

But there's a problem here. It feels good to consume this information. Too good.

Following smart people on Twitter, reading books, listening to podcasts - these activities feel productive. You're "researching," right?

But after months of consuming, you're no further along. The ideas flowed in and then right back out.

Sound familiar?

I spend a lot of time on the internet.

Lately I’ve been trying to be mindful of the information I let grab my attention.

What I create and how I see the world is a function of what I consume - my idea flow.

I'm addicted to jumping rope.

When the pandemic started and gyms closed, I scrambled to order gym equipment. Most things were sold out, but I got my hands on a jump rope.

During my first few sessions, I was clumsy. I could only string together a few jumps before tripping over the rope.

Balance doesn't work for me.

I believe that my actions, decisions, efforts, and attention are best placed at the extremes. Think: black or white, fully on or fully off, very safe or very risky, sprinting or resting.

I call this concept Polarity. It's one of my personal operating values: a broad concept I use to guide my actions and decisions. And it's one I use everywhere.

I have an obsession with podcasts.

After going through these notes, I came away with the five podcasts episodes that had the biggest impact on my life.

Here are those five episodes and the three biggest lessons I learned from each of them.

There’s never been a better time to learn online.

Newsletters are the best source of consistent, high-quality information.

But they can be hard to manage.

Here’s my workflow for creating a newsletter inbox in Gmail.

For most of my life I've struggled to make decisions.

It could be a big decision, like where to live, what projects to work on, or who to spend my time with. Or it could a small decision, like what to order at a restaurant, what book to read, or whether to go out or stay in.

I realized I needed some kind of guiding framework for making decisions.

My operating values became that guiding framework.

I've been writing online for six months. Ever since I started, people have kept asking the question "Why are you doing it?"

For six months, I've struggled to have a good answer.

I like to set goals in 60-day increments.

I've tried setting monthly goals and found them too short to make meaningful progress, while quarterly goals always seemed to drag by the end.

At the end of each 60-day period, I like to take a weekend afternoon to reflect on my key performance indicators (KPIs) that measure my progress toward those goals.

Luck has nothing to do with chance. Luck has everything to do with *chances.*

Getting lucky is a skill. The people we consider lucky are simply better at it than others. They get lucky for a reason - and it’s not the rabbit’s foot in their pocket.

This week someone asked me to be on their podcast. It would be the first time someone interviewed me, so I started to think about what they might ask.

I brainstormed 20 questions that are commonly asked to podcast guests and thought about my answers to them. But instead of just thinking about the answers, I decided to write them up for myself.

Avoiding poor decisions is easier than making the right ones.

When faced with a problem, it's natural to make a list of everything you need to do to fix it.

But it's usually things we're already doing causing the problem, not things we aren't doing. To recognize them, you must invert.

I love a crisp to-do list.

Cracking open my notebook, I'm greeted by the column of unchecked boxes set the night before. I’m motivated by the potential for a day well-spent.

But after finishing my first task, the day starts to crumble. I soon find myself lost in transition.

Few things flood my brain with dopamine more than planning. My brain basks in this planning process because it feels so productive, but involves minimal mental effort.

The antidote? When I find myself gathering gear, I grab a shitty rod and start fishing.

Attention is the scarcest commodity of the 21st century. Honing your attention is thus a 21st-century superpower. In order to leverage the power of the internet, you must be proactive, mindful, and deliberate with your attention. Instapaper helps you do just that.

Much of the work we spend our time on is doomed to decay in the depths of a forgotten folder. But it doesn’t have to be this way. With just 10% more effort, we can unlock new opportunities, become clearer thinkers, and provide value to others.

All you have to do is start sharing.

Quarantine and working-from-home have lead to a more solitary and quiet environment. What are some of the tactics I’ve learned for quieting the inner voice during this time?

With uncertain times ahead, I talk about a few of the things I am doing to turn this uncertainty into opportunity.

In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis and volatile financial markets, I try to crystallize some lessons and observations.

Parkinson’s Law — work expands to fill the time available for its completion. Understanding it can make us more efficient in our daily operations. But there’s a bigger idea at play here — constraining a resource leads to better utilization of that resource. Understanding this and applying it to our lives changes everything.