THE STREAM
×3 sparks · oct 19
- “Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke." Oh yeah, well what if fixing shit that ain’t broke is my long cherished coping mechanism that helps me feel safe and worthy in a world where I’m terrified that one wrong step will…
- The drive to master information is a drive to feel in control of a fundamentally unctrollable reality.
- Weird how the more we try to control the world through force and logic the less alive everything feels, huh?
×2 sparks · oct 13
The false division of human and machineSorry Wendell, but I cannot pick a side
×5 sparks · oct 12
- there’s a stark difference between performing as if you’re trustworthy and actually BEING trustworthy
- the trustmaxxers shall inherit the earth
- you’ve gotta be trustmaxxing
- my relationship with reading has shifted in a cool way of late. i used to churn thru books as if consuming info was the entire point. but now, i find myself sitting with passages that resonate, journaling about them,…
- A good product with reliable distribution are table stakes now. It’s trust, relationship, and integrity that will decide the winners of the next era. These are the moats that cannot be copied.
Added The Return of the Prodigal Son to the library.
Started a conversation with The Prodigal Son.
Added Henri Nouwen to my teachers.
Added Martin Buber to my teachers.
Beginning againOn writing, kettlebells, and AI
The money is in the bookWhat if I take my dreams seriously?
Early morning ramblesOn service, dreams, young love, and re-imagining the past
Heartily recommends Zhan zhuang (站桩) 10 day series.
— I just finished practicing along with this series for the last ten days, and I am fucking stoked about Zhan Zhuang as an ongoing practice. It feels very connected to my goal of…youtube.com ↗A bittersweet eveningThe feels, they are a swirlin’
It beginsIn which Rob attempts to write himself out of a real financial pickle
×2 sparks · sep 30
- Why do I habitually follow that which reinforces the story of my brokenness? Why, when following the breadcrumbs of resonance is always an option before me, do I turn my back and head in the opposite direction?
- Resonance is a felt sense of recognition. It’s a full body remembering that can only occur when you encounter something in the world that speaks the language of your wholeness.
Heartily recommends short song about the ai apocalypse.
— No joke, I think this guy is going to be the Bob Dylan of the AI generation. He’s a poet and a trickster of the highest order.youtube.com ↗×2 sparks · sep 29
×3 sparks · sep 23
- Who influences the influencers? Got a suspicion that answering this question deeply would explain a lot about the modern world.
- Mystical spreadsheets. Who’s working on this?
- A recovery meeting is like a fire that the exhausted and weary and downtrodden gather around, where we feel a warmth and sense of belonging that we’d written off as impossible.
×2 sparks · sep 21
- I’ve always heard “othering” used in a pejorative sense—like you’re doing something wrong by making a person “the other." But when I think about Buber and the philosophy of encounter, to behold anyone or anything as…
- Type of guy who’s scared of failure, success, AND mediocrity. So if I’m gonna be scared no matter what, might as well go after what I want with everything I’ve got.
I am VERY confused about AIWhat the hell is even going on??
Write like no one’s readingI want to feel free
×2 sparks · sep 14
- the paradox of transformation For a long time, I've believed I needed to "solve" my mental health challenges and shame before I could step forward into a better life. But it's increasingly clear my shitty mental health…
- The world feels so fucked because we've spent two centuries conceptualizing humans as machines, and now we've built machines that can out-machine us. But the future is one where humans are free to become more human, and…
Added True and False Magic to the library.
Added Phil Stutz to my teachers.
Heartily recommends Paperman.
— A lovely little app that overlays paper texture on your computer screen. Makes the light coming off the screen softer and makes the digital world feel less sterile. Can’t imagine living without it.paperman.cc ↗Added A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Building a Great Business to the library.
Added Ari Weinzweig to my teachers.
Befriending shameHello darkness, my new friend
Started a conversation with The Handless Maiden.
The Product Builder ManifestoA manifesto & community for the next frontier of software development
Started a conversation with The Lindworm.
The Resonant Computing Manifestoa vision for the future of computing
The LookAway Manifestoreclaiming our humanity from the seductive glow of screens
Conversational Creativity (v1)A six sentence manifesto for a new relationship with creative work
Money & WorthinessA six-sentence manifesto about divorcing work from worth
YOU NEED A MANIFESTO50 reasons to declare your independence
Soul work and securityHow can I balance the work I feel called towards, and my need for financial security?
The Living QuestionAn epilogue to a manifesto, and a new beginning for my personal writing
Every meal is a miracleBaby’s first “six-sentence manifesto”
Exhaustion is an invitationA micro manifesto for the endlessly-exhausted
The Lightpage ManifestoIn an age of avoidance, a tool for those who choose life
Of mice and manifestoschoosing connection when the world is conspiring to isolate you
the human dojoon strengthening the best aspects of our humanity
Sketches of the enemyThe first dispatch in the Lightpage Chronicles
The Lightpage ChroniclesAI & humans (a love story??)
ONE HUNDRED MANIFESTOSThat’s how many I’ll write
Experty McExpertmana very silly name for a very serious survival strategy
write the manifesto you need to readno one else can alchemize your frustrations as well as you can
watch me write my next manifestothis is going to be ridiculously meta
manifesto energythree elements of creative power
On self-renewalManifesto-writing as a tool for transforming stagnant lives and institutions
Tidal wave, incoming!Don’t say I didn’t warn you
Manifestos are magic spellsA thesis about how the written word can bring us to life
Mini manifestosOn staging revolutions in tiny slices of your life and work
The Source 🌊A manifesto of hope for the chronic self-saboteur
Trust-based marketingIs the antidote to control-based marketing
writing dojofinding freedom, one imperfect sentence at a time
coming undoneon learning to be human in public
Manifesto Quest ⚔️Let’s make writing spicy again
MEMES WE LIVE BYa vibecamp manifesto
Business PoetryA hunch, a murmur, a leap of faith
A more joyful businessMy plan for un-sabotaging my business, and becoming more human
All that remainsDevoting myself to the work I can no longer hide from
Curiosity MappingHow to make a map of the corners of the internet that spark you to life.
Digital SpelunkingHow to explore the dark, vast cave system of the internet, and discover your people
Finding the othersAn introductory essay to a Very Important Concept
The identity auditAn inquiry practice for unearthing the stories and labels you use to define yourself
The deathbed auditIn which we dance with death, so that we may live more fully
The deathbed testDiscerning what’s easy from what matters most
The mimetic desire auditAn inquiry exercise for determining whether your goals and desires are leading towards or away from flourishing
The desire auditAn inquiry practice for unearthing your subterranean desires
New domain, who dis??On finding the perfect domain for an increasingly weird website
FreespeakingOn using your voice to explore the depths of your inner world.
Manic Mind DumpsA practice for riding the wave of intuition and inspiration
Notes on FreewritingMy favorite tool/practice for coming into deeper relationship with yourself
Resonance ReviewsA technique for discerning the wisdom of the body amidst the noise of the intellect
Targeted InquiryA repeatable process for peeling back the layers of your inner world, and discovering what matters most.
Creative IndividuationOn becoming more fully yourself in your creative work
The PatternOr, why the internet feels so utterly fucked
The Real WorkOut beyond notions of economic utility and optimization, there is a forest. I will meet you there
Welcome to The ForestWhat the hell is this place?
The Artisan’s WayThe age of average writing is over. The future belongs to artisans
Steal our media strategyHow Foster Media is navigating an uncertain future by leaning into work we can be proud of
Entering the forest 🌲It’s time to weave together my entire philosophy of 1,000 true fans
The mechanics of “choose your own price”Inquiring minds wanted to know how I run my coaching calls, so here’s a deeper dive!
Rob’s writing roundup!Single-sentence summaries of everything I wrote this week
On serendipity & magicSome cool shit is happening over here, y’all
Should I start writing with AI?Why I’m so resistant to merging myself with the machine
Revisiting Perennial SellerUntangling one of the roots of my perfectionism
The pointThis marketing stuff is just a trojan horse for something deeper
Earning the clickA philosophy for people who hate clickbait
Sticking the landingTaking another crack at an essay with big potential
rob’s writing roundup! (week two)14 days into this challenge, and I am still alive and kickin’
The Ungated Manifesto, RevisitedTwo paragraphs that bother the shit outta me
I nuked today’s post (lol)Instead, here’s a juicy question I’m starting to explore
Pricing alchemyThe unexpected magic of “choose your own price” coaching calls
One customer at a timeInside of me there are two wolves
From niches to networksI am hereby retiring the word “niche” from my marketing lexicon
Slowing down, finding balanceThe hidden cost of my very prolific week
rob’s writing roundup! (week one)an executive summary of my shockingly prolific week
The questions that bring me aliveTwo creative containers with roots that go deep
Containers of AlivenessInstead of niching yourself into a prison, find the questions that bring you alive, and live them.
The perils of niching downThe way we’re taught to pursue 1,000 true fans is broken
Measuring what mattersAn experiment in rethinking “data-driven marketing” from first principles
The daily invitationMy first big experiment in non-coercive marketing
Building a more beautiful internet (part 1)Growth ideology, 1,000 true fans, and a vision for the future of artisanal digital business
Three cool thingsWhat I’ve been working on, and what’s coming next
why i’m leaving thrivecartit’s been a nice run, but it’s time to put my money where my values are
The oasis builders manifestoA manifesto for the proliferation of internet oases 🏝️
Substack?? (lol wtf)Why I’m publishing on Substack after two years of open hostility towards it.
The non-coercive marketing manifestoWhat would marketing look like if it nourished our humanity?
Digital local businessBringing the ethos of small, local business back into the infinite digital world
The Arena - A PrimerA process for coming alive in your creative work, and becoming who you are
The Ungated ManifestoThe Pattern, and the Battle for the Soul of the Internet
Non-Coercive Marketing: An Origin StoryHow learning to trust myself turned my marketing worldview upside down.
Subversive CreativityOn the downstream effects of being brave and calling bullshit.
Bottom-up businessOn the desire for certainty, the need to feel in control, and the power of letting go.
Cultivating a community of courageUnveiling the next iteration of the Ungated Collective
Pivoting to CourageUnveiling the next iteration of Ungated
You don’t have to scale your businessYou really don’t. It’s ok. I promise.
Courage & CommunityOn discovering an abundant new source of courage in a world that desperately needs it.
The two questionsAnd the wildly different paths you can take for answering them.
My new approach to communityAn experiment in community management from the bottom up instead of the top down.
Bridging the trust gapOn building a friendlier internet by defaulting to generosity
Past-Self AntagonismPresent Rob should probably stop being a dick to Past Rob.
Marketing emergence in real timeA very cool thing that’s happening with my business and marketing (like, right now)
Contortionists & ExpansionistsOn containing multitudes, and not being shy about it.
I am not an expert…despite any contradictory signals I might send
Inside-out businessThe answers you seek won’t be found in the external world.
My marketing strategy for 2022It’s very sophisticated.
An SEO Redemption StoryHow I let the golden goose get away, and the plan to bring it back.
Imperfectionist, Learner, ExplorerOn discovering a healthier, more adaptive source of self worth.
lowercase magichow ignoring the rules of capitalization catapulted me into the land of cathartic creativity
A letter from future RobAn experiment in quieting the voice of self-doubt, and making myself feel better on a shitty day.
My definition of marketingThe old definition doesn’t vibe with me anymore.
Exploration & CommitmentA meditation on falling apart, discovering what matters, then putting yourself back together.
Three anecdotes about influencer marketingAn inquiry into the nature of trust, shared values, and harnessing influence.
Goodbye, Gift EconomyIt’s the end of a (very brief) era. Here’s what I learned, earned, and what’s coming next.
I gave up on trying to find my nicheI followed my own niche advice, and ended up somewhere I never expected.
I’m over-complicating my business… againIn which an old pattern of self-sabotage returns in a new form.
The Ungated Worldview (Part 1)My entire belief system fell apart last year. And now I’m piecing together what comes next.
On GenerosityIs it a virtue, or a vice?
Gift Economy - A Strategy UpdateThis new business model is seriously messing with my head. Here’s how I’m quieting down the fear response.
Transitioning to the Gift EconomyHow I plan to build a thriving business by making my products available for free.
Don’t be a commodityWhy it’s so important, and so difficult, to differentiate yourself in a noisy world.
Default to generosityOn creating a renaissance of trust on the internet, and leaning into the Gift Economy.
Rabbit holesOn creating contextual pathways of delight, and making it easy to dig deeper into your creative universe.
My unconventional business principlesWhy I’m ignoring the norms of online marketing, and maybe you should too.
Why I Moved from Webflow to GhostIn which my wild ride with membership websites comes to its dramatic conclusion.
What the hell is a niche?Let’s settle this, once and for all.
Dispatches from the Long GameAn uncomfortably transparent look inside the Ungated business from February 21st to April 11th, 2021.
A process for finding your nicheThe art of discovering Creator-Market Fit, and laying the foundation for a business you’ll love.
The Quest for CommunityHow I killed five birds with one stone and built the community of my dreams.
3 levels of “finding your niche”It’s an overused phrase. And you’re probably tired of hearing it. But holy smokes is it powerful.
Build an oasisThe internet is a hostile, sketchy place. But your creative business doesn’t have to be.
NicheCraft: An OverviewHow to build a creative business that stands the test of time.
Adventures in NicheCraftAn assortment of tools to help creators niche down, and build a business fueled by true fans.
Create proprietary ideasHow to become well known in a crowded market.
Show them where the money goesHow to ensure your customers and fans feel really, really good about doing business with you.
To niche, or not to niche?A simple answer to the creator economy’s most heated debate.
Tiny mirrorsWhen you rig up your business with tiny mirrors, your ideal fans won’t be able to look away.
Create inside jokesA shortcut for fostering a sense of belonging amongst your fans.
Subvert shitty normsLet’s talk about obnoxious, insulting, predatory pricing practices.
Bring them togetherCreate a space where your fans can connect, and where they feel like they belong.
Measure what mattersOn the uncomfortable tension between marketing metrics and true fan creation.
Play the long gameWhen it comes to building a true fan business, short-term thinking is a cancer.
Give a damn about your peopleThe art of being a good citizen of the internet.
Make them the heroAn uncomfortable truth about how your creative work fits into the lives of your fans.
Audit your flame-outsFind the ways that other creators have let you down, so you don’t repeat their mistakes with your own fans.
Define your ideal fanDo you know who you’re creating for? Or are you just winging it?
True Fans & True FriendsSomething magical happens when you start treating your audience like friends instead of as internet abstractions.
Magic mirrorWhen people gaze into your creative universe, what do they see reflected back at them?
Build an audience mapA process for generating emotional resonance with your audience.
The one-sentence persuasion courseThis is the most powerful sentence in the world. Please use it responsibly.
Build a branded personaHow to create the ultimate spokesperson for your creative business
Give them a nameThe shortcut for creating shared identity with and amongst your fans.
Do things that don’t scaleTime spent connecting with your fans is never wasted, and can pay off in ways you’d never imagine.
True Fan ToolsA menu of tools for ambitious creators who want to transform 1,000 True Fans from theory to reality.
Invite them into a bigger storyAs creators, many of us are telling stories with our lives. Nothing will delight your fans more than the opportunity to play a role.
Stand for somethingWhen you draw a line in the sand, you make it easy for your true fans to stand with you.
Stand against somethingIn which Rob goes on a rant about shitty, manipulative internet marketing.
Stories worth revisitingMost creative work isn’t worth consuming more than once. And that’s a huge missed opportunity.
The golden ruleIf you wouldn’t appreciate a marketing tactic being used on you, don’t use it on your fans.
Audit your fandomsThe tools for creating true fans are hiding in plain sight.
True Fan FundamentalsEarning true fans is simple, but not easy.
Ecosystems of delightEvery true fan takes their own unique path through your world.
Consistent generosity, reliable delightBeing consistent with your creative work serves two purposes. Earning true fans, and keeping them.
Make a worthwhile promise, then keep itWe all strive to do “quality” work. But if your goal is to earn true fans, you’ll need to completely rethink what “quality” means.
How to make your creations magneticPositioning is a bit like magic. When done right, potential fans will stumble across your work, and shout “hell yes!”
Creating true fans through radical specificityTrying to make work for “everyone” is a one-way ticket to irrelevance.
It’s all about emotionThe game we’re playing as creators isn’t about “making good content.” It’s about making people feel something.
The ingredients to create true fansFive simple questions that’ll help you earn true fans in a noisy world.
Welcome to Ungated 2.0I couldn’t find a proper instruction manual for 1000 True Fans. So I’m spending the year 2021 writing one.
The Gatekeeper MythTo be gated or ungated? That is the question.
On Commitment, Fear, and Publishing ConsistentlyMake the commitment to show up and publish consistently. Your fans—and your bank account—will thank you.
Adventures In Marketing EmergenceA story about how creative work spreads, and how a little bit of systems thinking can help us stand out in a noisy world.
Building the Perfect Membership Publication Tech StackSubstack, Ghost, WordPress, Webflow, Oh My!
The Filmpreneur ManifestoA playbook for indie filmmaking liberation
Filmmaker’s Process ManifestoBaby’s first “manifesto” (June 2015)
Where it began. At least for me.