April 2010
2 posts
5 tags
Bootstrap CEO: Thailand Edition
When I came up with the idea and started building SHERPA, I was already in Thailand as a backpacker / freelance designer for a friend who lives here for similar reason to why I’m still here… Like minds, fairly solid internet infrastructure, and cost of living. SHERPA is not funded, at least in the traditional sense of the word. We are building a very complicated web app on a 2...
February 2010
1 post
http://hellosherpa.com →
I’ll write alot more about the process, building the app, and all the fun stuff I’ve been doing here in Thailand, but for now, you can get a sneak peak and sign up for the beta version if you are interested in using actionable analytics to help your website or blog convert better!
January 2010
2 posts
6 tags
SourceControl: The Truth About Outsourcing
I’m not usually one to toss around affiliate links anywhere but in my sidebar. I’m also not usually one to buy ebook type products without the recommendation of a trusted friend. But SourceControl caught my eye, offered a solution to a question I was debating with myself about, and is damn beautiful and clean, being a UX designer, that’s a good selling point. And after spending...
2 tags
Thailand, Lifestyle Design HQ
I originally came to Thailand to work with a friend to design and help build his internet marketing / software / money making course, and I didn’t have plans beyond that. I fell in love with this place, and I fell in love will what could be accomplished in such a place.
The real killer thing about being a ‘lifestyle design’ type in a place like Thailand, is that it offers the...
October 2009
2 posts
“Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.”
– The Buddha
August 2009
1 post
And I'm Back...
Ahhhh. It’s been so long. I’ve been on a whirlwind of a ride for the last year that had me in Costa Rica, Panama, and now Thailand. Talking about keeping it super simple - I’ve been living out of a backpack. Now I’ll settle down for a bit here in Pai, Thailand while I work on some really cool projects.
My first of these projects, I began work on while in Costa Rica, and is...
October 2008
6 posts
5 tags
Neuro-Interpretation, Twitter, and Tumblr.
Neuro-Interpretation (is that even a real word?) of blocks of information are a huge factor in the success of sites like Twitter & Tumblr and a perfect model of how ‘simple’ works better.
Huh? It’s not as complicated as it sounds. What it really comes down to, is our brains ability to be engaged easier through small chunks of information. If you visit another blog that uses...
5 tags
Learning to Manage a Short Attention Span
I have always had a super short attention span, in life and in business. I have always looked at it as my major downfall. My mind is constantly turning, coming up with new idea’s, always seemingly better than the previous. I have been known to spend weeks and even months of tireless nights hacking away at building, designing, and eventually destroying or giving up to move on to the...
Mint.com - Investment Tools →
I know I talk about thee guys alot, LOL. I promise I don’t work for them, though I wouldn’t mind it. Today, Mint has launched ‘investment tracking’ - I effing love these guys. The coolest financial management tool ever. period. and free!
It's Been a While...
Productivity put to the test. I’ve had alot of really cool things I have been working on lately and have been focused very heavily on my finance management, hence the lack of regular posts. Like I metioned before, I only task about 3-5 major projects a day and sadly 29things hasn’t fell in those tasks. I’m on track to wrap up 3 major side projects this week, and have a whole slew...
“GOOD things come to those who wait; GREAT things come to those who get off their...”
September 2008
13 posts
4 tags
Mint.com FTW! Simple Money Management.
I’ve been on the lookout for the simplest, best money management web app I could find. I have tried them all, I promise you, and Mint takes the cake. I actually tried Mint for a bit after TC50 last year, and while I admired the beautiful design and simplicity, it still had a little work to go. Like most people and our to-do lists, we need to find something that works for us, makes it...
Books Be Gone. Shed the Dust Collectors.
While based on a set of loose rules, I may have [around] 29 things, but in reality it is much more due to the fact that I consider my rather huge collection of books 1 thing. If I have ever had an interest in a particular subject, I have book or 10 of which I used to educate myself with. I love learn, and have probably bought well over 1000 [non-fiction] books in my short 27 years. I have...
“One shall make his decisions within the space of 7 breaths, It is a matter of...”
– The Hagakuri [code of the samurai]
4 tags
Gadgets: Fitbit Debuted at TC50.
This has to be one of the coolest devices I’ve ever seen and judging by the talk from TC50, I’m not the only on who sees the value in it. Fitbit is a small wearable device that tracks your fitness and sleep habits. Using an acceloremeter similar to the one in the Nintendo Wii, it can accurately give you data on steps, miles walked, calories burned, the intensity of your exercise, how...
“The mantra of your domestic landscape should be: Peace, Tranquility, Fluidity,...”
– Karim Rashid [world famous designer]
Simple Finance Management for Kids: Shryk.com
I’m a huge fan of simple finance management web apps like Mint and Wesabe, but being a huge supporter of teaching children and teens about finance, those apps are totally geared to adults. Yesterday, Shryk.com debuted at TC50 as a platform focused on the age 5-24 crowd. Shryk describes itself as being focused on building financial literacy for the younger demographic to inspire a...
Really 'Get Stuff Done'.
No matter how much we all want to love it, I’m sure most of us know how flawed ‘GTD’ is. It’s essentially busy work to keep us from doing busy work, and all it has ever done for me is make my life harder and more complicated. That is not to say many of the concepts in the system are great, cause they are and if you’ve been following the productivity blog circuit for a...
4 tags
3 Quick Questions: AJ Vaynerchuk
3 Quick Questions is a new interview section we’re starting here at 29things.com. Our first interview is with AJ Vaynerchuk, co-founder of PleaseDressMe.
1. From what I gather, your the idea man behind pleasedressme, could you fill us in on how the idea came about and what got the ball rolling?
The idea really came out of nowhere. Joe (another co-founder along with me and Gary) and I...
5 tags
PleaseDressMe.com
Cool and creative t-shirts are one of the hottest trends on the web these days. I personally spend countless hours jumping between Threadless, Busted Tees, and about a half dozon other sites looking for awesome shirts. Internet business superstar & WineLibary TV host Gary Vaynerchuk, his little brother AJ, and Digg.com’s Joe Stump launched a great new site this week called...
1 tag
“Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple,...”
– Charles Mingus, jazz musician
4 tags
29things: Why Tumblr?
Simplicity. Design. Productivity. Tumblr is the 29things tagline in a blog platform. It fits my personality perfectly. It comes with minimal features, but is highly customizable. Sure, there are no ‘categories’ but I can easily tag posts and create a space in the sidebar and link the tags, and poof! Instant categories. I don’t feel obligated to create long-winded articles,...
NowDoThis.com: A Minimalists To-Do List
I’m a huge fan of GTD, but usually find that most of the web apps, and software available just makes life more complicated. NowDoThis.com takes the complication out - and is by far the most simple, yet most useful to-do app I have found. Started by William Cotton and Vimeo founder Jakob Lodwick, NowDoThis makes to-do easier by displaying a single task at a time and you cannot move to the...
August 2008
4 posts
Ten Reasons Small Spaces Are Better Than Big Ones
1. Everything is at your fingertips. 2. Theyre cozier. 3. They clean up faster. 4. They allow you to live with less of everything - simplicity & economy. 5. A small space allows you to experiment more with different design ideas. 6. They get you outside more. 7. They put you more in touch with your neighbors/community. 8. They are cheaper. They put more money back into your life. ...
“Constraints drive innovation and force focus. Instead of trying to remove them,...”
– 37signals [Getting Real]
3 tags
3 tags
About 29things & The Author
About 29things 29things (as you’ll notice in some of the older posts) originally started out as a blog about simplicity, productivity, and design, stemming from an article Leo from zenhabits posted called ‘Minimalist Fun: The 100 Things Challenge’, but since has morphed more of my focus on to business and lifestyle design. Productivity and simplicity still play a central roll in...