Lessons from the First 2 Months of Create the Map

Two months ago today, I launched Create the Map.  I’ve already learned a lot, and I thought it’d be helpful to take time to reflect on a few of those lessons so far from this experience and from my conversations with people.  Many thanks to those who’ve been part of this journey already (see below).

What have I learned so far?

• It takes more time and work than I ever imagined. Doing interviews, writing my insights, coming up with a post each week.  It all takes a tremendous amount of time.  Going into this, I never expected it to take as much time as it does just to post an article each Tuesday and an interview each Thursday.
• Hitting the publish button is hard. I’m never 100% satisfied with anything I write or publish.  I have a loud, vocal inner critic that can drive me crazy.  I always feel like everything I do can and should be better.
• It’s easy to get focused on the wrong things. For example, it’s very easy to track all the metrics and analytics.  Finding the right balance between producing content and marketing content isn’t easy.
• Focusing in on a specific niche is hard; not focusing on a specific niche is hard. My goal with this website is not to cater to one specific, narrow industry.  My hope is that it connects with a broad cross-section of creative people and people who want to be more creative.  Filmmakers, artists, designers, writers, speakers, bloggers, consultants, solopreneurs, freelancers, linchpins.  That being said, it’s more challenging to take this approach because there isn’t a simple, clear audience.
• It’s about finding a rhythm. What I really need to do is find a rhythm.  Create the Map can easily become all-consuming if I allow it.  I can think all the time about ways to improve it, content to write, people to interview.

What have I learned from the interviews?

• Don’t be shy about reaching out to people you admire if you’re doing something you believe in and want to get them involved.  (Passion can open doors you never imagined opening.)
• If you care about something yourself, then it’s pretty likely other people will too.  You might have to do the hard work necessary to translate the idea into reality so that other people can understand what you’re talking about and what you envision.  But it’s worth doing.
• It’s important to pursue side projects.  You have to do what you love somehow, even if it’s just on the side.  Perhaps in time it can become your full-time work, if that’s what you want.
• It’s okay to change direction.
• It’s okay to fail.
• Don’t compare yourself to other people.  Just be the best you that you can be.
• Make your work easy for people to access and understand.
• Everyone gets stuck sometimes.  Even remarkable people.  Even your heroes.

A Few Thank You’s

First off, I want to thank my fiancee Erin Kitzinger who has been truly indispensable throughout all of this, partly for her help with filming and editing and partly for being so supportive of me taking this journey.

I also want to thank Jeff Finley and the whole team behind the 2011 Weapons of Mass Creation Fest, where I met the first 9 people I interviewed for Create the Map.

And I also want to thank my first 10 interview subjects for being part of this during the launch of it all.  They’re all fine, brave souls, and I really appreciate the wisdom they’ve shared in the interviews.

Click on their names for their interview or their websites to check out more of their work.

• Jeff Finley of Weapons of Mass Creation Fest and GoMedia
• Dan Cassaro of Young Jerks
• Todd Saperstein of the Virginia Marti College of Art & Design
• Mig Reyes of Threadless and HumblePied
• Aaron Draplin of Draplin Design Co.
• Alex Cornell of Firespotter and ISO50
• Nate Utesch of Ferocious Quarterly and One Lucky Guitar
• Coming soon! Dan Christofferson of BeeTeeth and Big Cartel
• Coming soon! John-Paul Walton of Retronyms and Dokobots
• Coming soon! Kent Nichols of AskANinja

*About the photo above: I shot the picture above this past weekend at the Skokie Lagoons during a hike, shortly after kayaking with Erin.

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