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Wage Slave Rebel Dispatch
Author Archives: J. D. Bentley
Preparation Kills Movement
If, as a high school student, you ever complained about having to be at school within the earshot of a teacher, you might have already encountered the most amusing and idiotic justification ever invented. “We’re preparing you for the real world!” I was always the sort of person who learned best by doing, so this answer was hardly satisfactory. If I wasn’t being ‘prepared’ for the real world, I’d be in the real world. I’d have figured things out on my own. High school, at best, was an unnecessary step.
At worst, though, it contributes to a very detrimental attitude about life, one that keeps you constantly preparing and researching your interests without ever taking significant action. Most things, as it turns out, require little or no preparation.
Do you hate your job or are you just misusing your downtime?
I’ve only had two “real” jobs in my entire life. The first was as a hospital janitor, hauling around body parts and garbage in big gray carts whenever I wasn’t mopping or buffing floors. The second was as a barista at Starbucks. I passionately hated both jobs.
Why? Because I’m an inherently creative person. I feel most at home when I’m writing blog posts, playing music, creating designs or brainstorming novels. I don’t think it’s possible to get any further from creativity than taking a job as a janitor or a barista. You’re just taking orders and selling sweat.
But did I really hate those jobs? Or did I hate that I was smothering my creative side?
An Extraordinary Nothing Special
An entire lifetime spent rebelling against the ordinary–thrashing violently against the current, nearly drowning at every crest and gasping hopelessly at every valley–and for what? I desperately seeked out any bit of proof that I was somebody, somebody worth something. But I needed evidence that transcended words as words were hardly accurate indications of value. Platitudes were…
Lessons We Can Learn from Failed Products
A few days ago over at Signal vs. Noise, Matt put together an excellent collection of quotes from creators of failed products explaining what they thought went wrong. It’s really interesting to get some insights into the downfall of web apps like Twitapps and Storytlr, but it’s even more interesting to see what they had…
On Networking
Having an introverted disposition, I’ve never really been one for networking. Until earlier this year I couldn’t have even told you what networking on the internet looked like or why I needed to do it, but everyone said I needed to do it, so I gave it a try. Now, in a very general sense,…
