Archives for June 2015

- - - | written by Jason on 6/28/2015 | - - -

Do You Need to Be a Workaholic to Be Great?

Is it possible to be great and well-balanced at the same time? By great, I mean championship quality. Among the best in the world. And by well-balanced, I don’t mean that you’re never stressed, or are able to fit everything in, and be all things to all people. What I mean is that you don’t have to be singularly focused on being great. People like Steve Jobs (co-founder of Apple) and James Cameron (director of Titanic and Avatar) are undeniably great. But if you dig into their stories, they certainly weren’t balanced. Neither would ever be considered for a “Father of the Year” award. Cameron has been quoted as saying, "Anybody can be a father or husband. There are only five people in the world who can do what I do, and I’m going for that." I want to be a great artist, author, and speaker. But I don’t want to sacrifice everything else to achieve it. Kim and I decided a few years ago that if we ended up impacted millions of people in a positive way, but our kids turned out to …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/27/2015 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Millennium Falcon Bed Edition

• How about this epic Millennium Falcon bed a creative dad made for his son? • Speaking of Star Wars, my aunt told me about this new Star Wars themed Disney Cruise. I may or may not have peed my pants a little. Featuring "Night clubs decked out as the Mos Eisley cantina with music, characters, cocktails and more" ...are you kidding me!?! • Yes, please and thank you: A New Preschool in Japan Designed to Accumulate Large Puddles When it Rains (hat tip to Jenna) • This video message from my friend Geoff is the best book birthday gift ever! Finally, some posts from around here you may have missed: • A public declaration • #notarule: winning at business and life by breaking rules that don’t exist …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/25/2015 | - - -

This Week in Rule Breaking

Rules that don't exist are all around us, and they can keep us from living a life of awesome. In honor of the release of Penguins Can't Fly, we are posting different rules all over social media, using the hashtag #notarule. Some are rules we've uncovered, others have been shared with us from people like you. Follow along on Instagram, Tumblr, or Facebook or share your own rule here! This is one of a series of hilarious photos sent to me by a mom in Ohio who quoted her daughter as saying, “Because anyone can have typical senior photos but only a few can have awesomesauce ones!” I recently had a speaking engagement in central Wisconsin and everything in the hotel room they booked me in (lamps, wallpaper, shower curtain, ice bucket, EVERYTHING) was Bucky Badger themed. Which went perfect with the t-shirt I decided to bring that day! One of my favorite ones to break! Take that, fashion police. Photo by Slavica Skracic. And here are some of the great rules …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/23/2015 | - - -

What This Author Is Doing on Launch Day

Well, today is the day! My book, Penguins Can’t Fly, officially launches into the world! Perhaps you’re wondering, “What does an author do on launch day?" More on that in a sec, but first, a little housekeeping. Thank you for putting up with all the onslaught about this book. Many people have praised us for our effort, but I am sure there are others who have been driven away. So...if you’re still here, I am grateful! Sometimes, when you really believe in something, it’s worth putting everything you have into it. I’d rather have a few unsubscribes than a sackful of regret that I didn’t do enough. So, if you have not already bought the book, today is the BEST day to do it. Get it here. Or here. Or here. It’s also a great day to tell the world about it on your favorite social media platform. Or, you know, in real life. Amazon reviews matter, so I appreciate if you could share a few honest thoughts about the book here. So...what DOES an author do on launch day? It’s a …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/22/2015 | - - -

#Notarule Tour Kicks Off in Ottawa

The #Notarule Tour officially kicked off this past Saturday in Kim's hometown of Ottawa, Illinois. A steady stream of people stopped by the Book Mouse, the adorable little independent bookstore that hosted us. It was great to see so many friendly faces and meet some new people, too! One highlight was that there were representatives from each of the first three Escape Adulthood Summits on hand, including these three (and a few others who didn't make this photo): Besides the opportunity to buy Penguins Can't Fly before its official release date, attendees were also encouraged to engage in a variety of rule-breaking activities, including decorating ugly cookies (notice the penguin shape!): We think the caterers did a great job of mixing up some of the ugliest frosting we've ever seen. And the sprinkles reminded us of kitty litter - perfect! We added Cheese Balls and Bugles to help take the ugliness to new levels. The first "Find Marty Art Drop" also happened on …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/17/2015 | - - -

Talking Cheese Curds, Entrepreneurship and Giving Back

I recently had a chance to be on my friend Thom Singer's cool podcast, appropriately named "Cool Things Entrepreneurs Do." Thom is a fellow professional speaker, and we actually roomed together at a speaking conference in Miami we both attended earlier this year. He's a super good guy and we had a fun chat about curiosity, Adultitis, entrepreneurship (which is a topic I LOVE talking about!), and how cheese curds are like crack. My favorite part about the interview was near the end when we talked about giving back, and how we both built it into our businesses from the beginning, even while we were still hustling to make ends meet. Take a listen online or in iTunes! …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/14/2015 | - - -

A Public Declaration

The picture above is from 2002, eight months after 9/11. I was focused on my comic strip back then and was three years away from the start of my speaking career. We were in New York City for the first time to walk the National Stationery Show. While there, we met a licensing agent who agreed to represent my Kim & Jason artwork. It was so exciting, and it felt like such a big break. It amounted to a handful of small deals, mostly overseas (I think they made some sort of photo album in Japan), but it didn’t really make the dent we’d hoped for. That was thirteen years ago. Since then, there have been many little breaks that felt like they might have been bigger. For several years, we flirted with bankruptcy as we scraped and clawed our way to a business model that could sustain itself. There were many tear-filled nights when we wondered if we were crazy. And there was that two-day craft show in which we sold a grand total of four greeting cards for a whopping sum of $7.92 (after …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/13/2015 | - - -

Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Grandma Does Graffiti Edition

• Love this! From Booooooom.com: LATA 65 is introducing older citizens of Lisbon to graffiti. With the help of established street artists, attendees of the workshop learn the history of street art, create their own stencils/tags, and are taken out into the city to make their mark. The project aims to create a sense of solidarity and dispel the assumptions that tend to surround street art and graffiti culture. More images of the participants and their work below. • Only on the internet: Food Hats. • Finally! Edible and Stackable DIY LEGO Gummy Candy! • Love this fun Cubs/Sox rivalry commercial with Nick Offerman and Craig Robinson. My favorite line: "Cubs are the strong foundation from which grows a mighty beast." (And here's round 2) Finally, some posts from around here you may have missed: • Answering the what-ifs • Our unconventional book tour …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/10/2015 | - - -

#notarule: winning at business and life by breaking rules that don’t exist

“Blessed are the rule breakers. They shalt inherit the Future. We have always admired the great renegades of business, brave souls who dared to deny the status quo, defy the odds, and pioneer a new normal. Nicolas Tesla. Richard Branson. Tony Stark. One thing all great titans of industry have in common is this: they were able to identify rules that don’t exist and had the courage to break them. Of course, there are plenty of rules that DO exist. If you commit fraud or neglect to pay taxes, I hope you look good in an orange jumpsuit. But the rules that DON’T exist greatly outnumber the ones that do. History is filled with examples of those who profited greatly by dispensing with so-called ‘rules.’” This is an excerpt of my new ChangeThis manifesto that talks about the rules that don't exist and specifically delves into how to get good at noticing these so-called rules and how to muster up the courage to actually break them. It's a quick read and free to download, please feel free to …

- - - | written by Jason on 6/8/2015 | - - -

Our Unconventional Book Tour

The 2015 #Notarule Tour is a curious cavalcade of unusual events united in the purpose of helping you break rules that don’t exist. Fueled by the message Penguins Can’t Fly, this is one unconventional book tour. There will be stops at zoos, ice cream parlors, national landmarks, a few bookstores, and even an art fair! Rather than repeating the tried-and-true (but insanely boring) model most “book tours” subscribe to, our goal was to tell a better story by creating fun, memorable, and engaging events and experiences. Most stops will feature opportunities for you and your companions to break one or many rules. Some stops won’t even provide any opportunities to buy books (although if you bring one for me to sign, I’ll give you a free signed print!) A few will offer the opportunity to decorate ugly cookies! Find Marty Art Drop Every stop will feature a “Find Marty Art Drop,” in which a small cache of goodies (including an adorable tiny toy penguin, a signed and numbered limited …