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1/ Unless it’s for pure enjoyment, I try my hardest to not learn anything until I can align it with a business project. This is how I’m able to lead a life that’s both financially profitable and rich in learning, by making them one and the same
2/ For many reasons: first, because I can go MUCH deeper and longer when I have a business rationale. I have built in accountability and a timeline that pushes me much further than I would go for curiosity sake alone
3/ Second, I have to learn the thing well enough to deliver at a standard for a client, which means I’ve really learned it. I end the learning process with a tangible deliverable that builds my credibility, rather than just a vague (and probably self-deceptive) notion
4/ Third, because there are so many things to research and learn at any give time, it helps me filter and focus them so I’m learning practical, useful things. I still explore random topics but don’t kid myself that I’m building real expertise there
5/ Fourth, because a tangible project helps me know what to learn and in what order. Instead of learning things “just in case” according to some arbitrary order, I learn it “just in time” as specific problems surface. I get rapid feedback on each step of learning
6/ Fifth, because once I’ve produced a piece of work on a topic, I become like a magnet for ppl sending me articles, surfacing new trends, and sharing their related projects with me. I never have to research that topic again, because of this incoming flow
7/ So how do you do this? Start passively collecting notes on a topic that interests you, but don’t do a deep dive until it’s needed for a project. Constantly look for intersections between passive research and active projects. Sometimes even two projects will overlap w/ a topic
8/ For ex, I wanted to really learn how large scale software dev’t tracking software works, but knew perusing it randomly would yield shallow learning. I took on a client project that required implementing JIRA, which gave me the excuse to spend several full days dissecting it
9/ When you have an array of opportunistic topics you’d like to learn, even a marginal or relatively undesirable client project can suddenly become desirable. Instead of paying to learn (with your time and attention), you’re getting paid to learn!
10/ This also means you have to be willing to pivot what you offer and how you present your services and expertise, but clients often prefer to work with someone they trust than the greatest expert in a field
11/ Of course, this also means you need a healthy flow of diverse project leads, which means content. Every blog post I write is like a little sales pitch for my knowledge on that topic. Even if each post leads to one lead, these are highly qualified leads because they’re inbound
12/ By the way, I’ve been collecting notes and research for YEARS on science fiction, and would love to do a project on sci-fi prototyping – envisioning the future using sci-fi storytelling methods (hint hint). Here’s my qualifications: praxis.fortelabs.co/what-i-learned…
13/ Randomly just read Stephen Wolfram’s productivity infrastructure post where he basically does the same thing 
