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Image via?NASA

Before John Glenn died of old age at 95 he almost died more than 9,000 times. That?s how many hours he spent in experimental aircraft. Add in his normal sorties and the hours he spent in orbit and re-entry and it would seem that he took unnecessary and unacceptable risks for the sake of his pride, his country, and science.

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Tell a story

In my work with?Typewriter?I?ve been talking to founders who are looking to write guest posts for major publications.

?We want to write something that will get us into BusinessWeek,? they say. And, me being me, I tell them that?s ridiculous.

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My amazing interview with Neal Stephenson

I had a great time talking to Neal Stephenson, author of SevenEves. He’s a fascinating writer and his book is really good. Take a look. Now that I’ve interviewed him and William Gibson I’ve completed my collection of great cyberpunk authors and can die happy.

Try “Yes.”

There?s a fun thing I do with folks I meet who want to write a book or build a startup or put up a blog post. I say I?ll help them. I give them a few pointers???for book folks I recommend they prepare an outline and we can tag-team the chapters. In this way they could finish a book in a few months. It would be their book, I?d give up all rights. Maybe they could pay me if they get paid but I basically say ?Yes.?

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My new project, Typewriter.Plus

logo.b00a58979ba4I’m working on a new project that’s designed to offer editing on demand. It’s called
Typewriter.Plus (or just Typewriter) and I started in at the and of July and we’ve already seen a few thousand in billings. In short, it seems like something people are really interested in using.

If you’d like a quote simply upload your document and the robot will give you a price. The price is high because I’m using amazing writers and editors instead of bodies in chairs and I think it’s going to be really useful. Let me know what you think.

My Talk, This Is Fine, At Impact CEE

Some startup zealots posted a quote a few months ago:

?Set your life on fire. Seek those who fan your flames?
? Rumi

This quote really bothered me. For some reason, in the doldrums of startup building, I saw it as a warning. Set your life on fire. That’s an insane proposition. And then you’ll know your enemies by how they fan your flames.

But then I realized something: this quote meant something entirely different. It meant that you had to find the right people to help you grow, to help you expand, to help you gain the most out of your adventure. They fan your flames. They help you burn brighter.

I gave a talk at Impact CEE about this quote and I’d like to share it with you. I’m not usually emotional on stage but this was one of the few times that I shared personal truths with a room full of people. Anyway, enjoy.