Et Cetera : The Art of Non-Conformity

Et Cetera

What Happened at WDS 2015? Unfiltered Attendee Reviews, Round I

Every year after WDS we receive hundreds of blog posts, reviews, and writeups from attendees. Here’s the first round of unfiltered opinions on a variety of topics related to the whole event. Check them out and decide for yourself what WDS is all about!

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLVII

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Courage, Happiness, and Gratitude -- What if you took the stage with no idea of what to say?
Jordan from the Air -- An aerial tour of one of my favorite countries
The Modern Nuns -- From a Star Trek enthusiast to a former trade union worker, women share their stories about why they chose the religious life
Amazon Publishing -- Interview with a newly published author
All Our Sons -- A real-time map of sunrises and sunsets built from Instagram posts
How Small Could You Go -- Awesome photos of a hidden, tiny Japanese hotel

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLVI

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Quiet Revolution -- an inspiring new community for introverts, made by our good friend Susan Cain
The Man Who Loved Only Marbles -- Video of a man who's been spending several hours a day with marbles for more than 60 years
Saving $150 in Airfare by Searching Better -- When connecting in a hub city, sometimes it's best to search for each segment one-by-one
Graffiti Just Like Grandma Used to Make -- Because seniors like to tag, too
Elevator Training -- Why Germany now requires people to be trained before using some elevators
The Fabricant Way -- A new webcast series featuring stories of artisans and creative entrepreneurs

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLV

I. Around the World

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Why Some of Us Don’t Have One True Calling -- Emilie’s new TEDx talk on becoming a multipotentialite
The Forgotten Houseboat Hotels of Kashmir -- Photographs from the lost golden era of tourism in Kashmir
Historical Photos of New York City from the Public Library -- Click on an interesting vintage photo, and the site shows you where it was taken on a map of New York
You Don’t Have to Be Excited to Stay Committed -- "Things that bring you the greatest joy are often not that fun while you’re doing them."
Smart Ideas for Instagram Photos -- How to improve your on-the-go snaps and shared experiences
The Age-Old Cynicism Surrounding the Dream of Book Writing -- "Younger people aren’t interested in passive consumption-they want to engage, respond, create"

Et Cetera

What Remains in the Quest for Literary Permanence

From Dear Committee Members by Julie Schumacher:

I am always taken aback when students confide in me that beneath their desire to write lies a quest for permanence. It’s odd but touching, I think, that even during this disposable age, while consigning great mountains of refuse to landfills and to atolls of plastic in the Pacific, these young would-be novelists and poets believe that art is eternal. Au contraire: we are in the business of ephemera, the era of floating islands of trash, and most of the things we feel deeply and inscribe on the page will disappear.

Et Cetera

The Habit of Giving

Today I made a small donation to a cause that inspired me. It wasn't really because of the holiday, it didn’t cost me much, and I won’t miss the money. Yet, I still felt good after I pushed the button that finalized the commitment.

Notice how selfish this sounds: It felt good to give! I was the one with the benefit.

But this is how it works. The more you give, the better you feel.

Give it a try.

Et Cetera

Where Airplanes Go to Die: High-Res Photos Show An Airline Graveyard in the Mohave Desert

Photographers Andreana Scanderbeg and Alexander Sauer went to a desert in the American Southwest and found an airline graveyard.

They call their project Decommissioned, and it features images of many of the planes long after their useful life.

How do these images make you feel?

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLIV

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Cat Cinema? It's a Thing -- Can you think of anything better than going to a movie with your feline friend?
Memorable Ways People Have Quit Their Jobs -- Thinking of quitting your job? Here are some fun ideas
Conquer Your Daily Tasks -- An app that turns your To-Do list into a game
Self-Esteem Might Be the Wrong Answer -- There might be an even better option
Looking for a Literary Agent for Your Book? -- See also: The Unconventional Guide to Publishing
Did You Double Check that Address? -- Ten stories of packages being delivered to the wrong address

Et Cetera

Make History by Eating Breakfast: Join Us for an All-New World Record

Link: Eat Waffles, Set a World Record (YES!)

When was the last time you broke a world record by eating breakfast?

Never, that's when. But fortunately for you, that's all about to change.

This summer, whether you're attending WDS or not, if you can make it to Portland on Friday, July 10, you can become a world record holder—and this time, the task required couldn't be easier.

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLIII

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Virtual Tour of New SAS Business Class Cabin -- The Scandinavian carrier updates its seats and shows them off in this fun "street view" tour
The Ultimate European Road-Trip -- Using open-source Google Maps data, you can customize this trip to suit your own style
Base Jumping off the World's Second Tallest Tower -- Watch crazy people jump off a building in Dubai
One Bike One Year -- One woman’s solo journey by bike to collect stories about water and climate change
9 Ways to Live Life on Offense -- Including #4: "Say yes to the scariest stuff"
Cost Obsessions Around the World -- Interesting Google searches by country

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Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLII

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

10 Travel Hacks The Tourism Industry Doesn't Want You To Know -- Featuring comments from me and several other experts
Be a More Productive Writer While Also Achieving Balance -- Lots of contrarian advice here. I still like my to-do lists, but I appreciate this perspective
Traveling to Cuba? Book one of the 1,000 listings available on Airbnb -- While you’re waiting for the Park Hyatt Havana to open, here are some alternatives
How to Be Funnier -- A new film from FiveThirtyEight
"Live free, die hoppy" -- One man’s quest to visit every craft brewery in the U.S.
Winston Churchill’s Guide to Life-Work Balance -- Including a morning whiskey in the bath and a daily uniform of pink silk pyjamas

Et Cetera

6 Discoveries from Near and Far: Volume XLI

Things I found on long walks in foreign cities, or perhaps when someone posted them on Twitter.

Momentum -- A new community from longtime friend Jenny Blake
Traveling Is Exhausting -- Alyssa’s notes on adventuring through Europe
27 Sites with Royalty-Free Stock Images -- Tons of photos for your blog posts or social media
My Creative Burnout -- The author of “How to Survive Creative Burnout” navigates a setback
When Is Cheryl’s Birthday? -- A math problem from Singapore (aaaah! so difficult)
The Secret to Never Being Frustrated Again -- “You don’t get frustrated because of events. You get frustrated because of your beliefs.”

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Et Cetera

Big in Japan: The $100 Startup Is Now in Manga!

I haven’t spent nearly enough time in Japan, but we have a great community there and I hope to visit more often in the future. When the local version of The $100 Startup came out two years ago, it was a mega-bestseller, selling 100,000 copies in a short period of time.

I went over for a 36-hour visit that consisted of meeting journalists and talking to business magazines. In the evening we had a small meetup with friends (hosted by M.E. Hori, a popular blogger) and I left thinking: “I should have stayed longer.”

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Et Cetera

Giveaway: Win a “Boarding Tote Bag”

Win a Boarding tote from Airportag, an online business started by "Captain Greg"—a flight lover and designer who got creative with the world of airport codes and made a fun shop.

You can find a ton of airports represented on totes, coffee mugs, and pillows over at Airporttag. Naturally, I have a lot of favorite airports, so it would be hard for me to choose a single one... but on the tote bag page, I especially like the styles of MEX, BKK, LHR, and LAX.

Et Cetera

New! Sign Up to “Make Your Dream Trip a Reality” (A 30-Day Creative Live Course)

Link: Register for Free "Dream Trip" Course

Attention, everyone! My travel hacking colleague Stephanie Zito and I will be teaching an all-new online course starting later this month, and I'd love for you to join us.

We previously taught a one-day workshop that was watched live by more than 12,000 of you. The feedback we got after that one was: “Whoa, this is great—but there’s so much info!”

For this one, we’re teaching everything through 30 short, action-packed lessons (a new one unveiled each weekday once we begin on April 26) and focusing on something more specific. It’s not just “earn a ton of miles and points,” although we'll certainly show you how to do that. More importantly, it’s about taking a dream trip, going somewhere you’ve always wanted to but haven’t planned for or thought was too expensive.

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