Pro bono publico is a latin phrase meaning ‘for the public good.’  I’ve recently started doing a little pro bono work between projects, it feels good to be using my talents ‘for the good.’  The most recent pro bono video was at the invitation of Larry Ladig, a long time friend, colleague and collaborator.  This piece is a fund raiser for Barnes United Methodist Church.  Special thanks go to Non-Stop Music, who donated the music rights for the public performance of the video.

You’ve read it here before (just scroll down) that I’m a fan of the magazine, The Sun.  Here’s the best damn paragraph in the June issue:

WHAT IF PSYCHIATRISTS came up with different language to describe the suffering of people who troop into their consulting rooms every day? Instead of diagnosing a young woman with “borderline-personality disorder,” how about “lost in the realm of the fluttering leaves”? Instead of “depression,” how about “buried by avalanche, still breathing”? And, just as the Inuit have different words for snow on the ground and snow in the air and snow that drifts, maybe we could have different words for tears: tears we’ll forget by tomorrow, tears we never cried but should have, tears that fall from our children’s eyes, tears that fall too quickly to wipe away.

And yes, it’s from Sy Safransky’s Notebook

I finished another short testimonial for the New Warrior Training Adventure, this one featuring my friend, Arnie Benton.  In this project I came face to face with the Flip camera’s biggest shortfall, the microphone.  The next series of interviews will be shot indoors!

I just finished a project that was shot using the Phantom high-speed camera. It captured some wonderful slow motion water shots that nicely show how the product works.

This is the last of my personal commandments. It’s another ‘anti-resentment’ tool to keep in your back pocket.

10. If you see the problem, you own the problem.

Here’s how it works for me: I notice a problem and immediately look around for someone who SHOULD be fixing it. Then I blame them for the problem as well as judge them for being useless!

On the other hand, if I see a problem and then take ownership, I can avoid the whole cranky phase and jump right into action. Owning the problem eliminates any resentment or blaming by keeping the ball squarely in my court.

Here’s another rule from the book, No More Mr. Nice Guy.  Beating around the bush takes time and a tremendous amount of energy.  Holding an indirect conversation and keeping my hidden agenda in the back of my mind, all while beating myself up for not being good enough to get to the damn point, is tiresome.  Tiresome for me and for the people around me.  Aside from saving time and energy, being clear and direct adds a certain clarity and an edge to my thoughts and to my work as well.  The habit of being clear and direct allows me to cut through the BS of my cluttered thoughts and get to the marrow of the matter.  Get into the habit of being clear and direct with yourself and the people in your life.

You ‘multi-taskers’ out there can delude yourself as long as you like, but after reading this, I know it’s all crap.

“We kept looking for multitaskers’ advantages in this study. But we kept finding only disadvantages. We thought multitaskers were very much in control of information. It turns out, they were just getting it all confused.”
– Eyal Ophir, lead investigator.

What’s interesting to me is that the multi-tasker fans I present the evidence to, choose to stay in denial.  Never underestimate the power of denial!

I’m a huge fan of The Moth’s podcasts.  They release a free story every week.  The stories are told in front of a live audience with no notes.  I enjoy the moth for two reasons.  The stories are great examples of the human condition.  They also teach me about storytelling technique, very important to me as an editor.