Just MAKE!

Last night as I was watching Much Ado About Nothing, the 2012 version directed by Joss Whedon, I was reminded of a quote of his. I think I first found this quote on pinterest, but it actually popped up on Lifehacker last year.

I recently read an interview with you in Mother Jones magazine. “Geek God” I think was the term they used for you. How do you feel about your success? What advice do you like to give other “geeks” with good ideas? — Jennifer Russell

If you have a good idea, get it out there. For every idea I’ve realized, I have ten I sat on for a decade till someone else did it first. Write it. Shoot it. Publish it. Crochet it, sauté it, whatever. MAKE.
— Joss Whedon

Then this morning I came across a tweet by Abbey Glassenberg, who runs the popular and fabulous While She Naps blog (and designs sewn soft toys, something I might have to learn more about now that I'm going to be an Auntie!)

And you know what, I need to start making and doing.  Rather than talking about doing, just doing.

Recently I was speaking with my father, who is a great advocate of just doing, about his experience on a board of directors for an organization that is going through some significant financial challenges.  One of his comments to me was that he is frustrated by the way that the board has a habit of discussing whether they should discuss their problem, rather than just doing something about that problem, or even discussing what changes they can make and how to implement them.

Far too often the board of directors that run my brain have this problem, where I think more about the work I have to do than actually doing the work.  This has been something that has followed me from childhood, just one mention of the "bird report" is enough to make me still fill shame, and trigger memories of other situations throughout my schooling.

Today, I work hard to not avoid the work I don't want to do, or am too embarrassed to ask for help with when I get in over my head.  As with everyone I'm a work in progress, but my latest technique for dealing with these situation is to just MAKE, in all caps.  

Thank you Joss Whedon, in addition to giving me some of my favorite TV shows (Firefly & Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog) and being the glue behind the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe, aka. all the Marvel movies) you have given the world a great clue on how to be important. 

Of course not everything he has to say is incredible.

So I'm working on MAKE-ing and best as I can, and now I have to get back to work, because I have some work to do!

Something old, something new

Serial and the unknowability of truth