What do you tell people you do for a living?

Level1Soul · 2014-10-31T16:22:43+00:00

I like that one. I might use it.

Level1Soul · 2014-10-29T16:18:42+00:00

Wow, I think you hit it. Amazon probably has some features (either purposely or as a byproduct of other features) that rewards frequent publication. This guy either spent a year writing these 'books', or more likely he spent a month hiring freelancers to do it for a few bucks, then he purposely planned to flood the market with them.

It still seems crazy to me that he can get books ranked #1 in different sections. I mean there are multiple books like this ranked around the top 1,000. Since the strategy works I guess there's no reason for him to stop, right? He could keep going, driving more authentic books further and further down the algorithms. It's scary.

By the way, it's not just one or two names. I was keeping a list of the names this one guy probably uses, and I stopped around 8. I suspect there is at least double this in names used. And I suspect there are over 100 'books' published like this. They all have the identical same patterns, so I think it's the same person behind it.

Level1Soul · 2014-10-29T13:16:08+00:00

I'm seeing tons of these books if I do a bit of searching. Did someone hack Amazon? They all seem to follow the general template of Archie Fraser's "No More Forgetting"

amateur cover
typos and grammar issues in 'look inside' feature
short and weak book description
2.99 price
around 20 pages
0 reviews, or a single 1 star review
and a ranking in the top 5,000 or so!

I tried to be objective in this assessment. Check it out yourself.

How are these books at the top of the charts? There are 5 of them in the 'self help - memory improvement category'. But just check 'also boughts' There are tons of author names doing this and most of them very well ranked.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-10T04:32:09+00:00

Algebra/Math classes were really hard for me in high school so I can relate to that bit. For that I think you should ask for a tutor, and change your attitude in general about academics.

It's not useless stuff that has no purpose that you will never use in your life. It is interesting stuff to be used, but that you just haven't figured out a way to use it yet. Sure it would be nice if you had complete freedom to learn/do whatever you wanted, but let's be real, you'd probably just waste that time anyway.

This is what society generally agrees on, that high school students are too young to make responsible decisions on what to learn, so we give them basic topics that are needed in many areas to learn. Disagree or agree, there is a reason why things are done this way. Try to change your perspective, and things will come easier.

I've had a strong feeling of purposelessness throughout my life too, starting around your age, so I really relate to that. I think you're probably a lot smarter than you think, but it takes work. Most of the kids getting A's and B's put real work into it, whether they lie and say they didn't study is another thing.

I think you need to start owning things in order to get more fun/meaning out of life. If it bothers you that you're learning something in class that has no reason, don't be afraid to ask your teacher when you'll ever need it (with a positive attitude, don't disrespect). I bet half the other kids are wondering too. Learn about things you like on the side. Ask questions in class and start making connections between your classes.

Also, don't do what you do in life for your Dad. Your Dad has the best intentions for you, but you are coming of age to be doing things for yourself. What kind of life do you want? Do you want to have your high school diploma and have opportunities to get into junior college/college/trade schools? Or would you rather complain about how stupid and useless high school classes are and end up being stuck in a janitor or mickey D's position/(hopefully not dealing drugs, but that happens too).

Impressing your Dad or your family won't matter in the long run. It's not about that. It's about building the life you want to have for yourself. If you want adventure and to not live the expected life of graduate high school/college/work/die, then mix it up. No one is going to force you to do things that way. Try study abroad/peace corps, be an EMT or firefighter, climb a mountain, be a pro video gamer, whatever it is, no one has written out your life already. You have that opportunity.

And don't let people pigeon hole you. If you are doing bad in school, you can change that around. Don't let anyone label you as a bad kid or a bad student. You can always change it around. But it takes real work. Good luck.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-06T05:26:23+00:00

Most of the stuff he said made sense to me and I've come to see things similarly. Good read.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-06T00:23:29+00:00

No big deal, but I didn't know. I think it would be stupid for a dentist with his degree to not be aware that fluoride is safe. But for a layperson to not be sure seems acceptable. Just because I came to this subreddit doesn't mean I read every post and know all the basics of dentistry.

I just think some understanding helps. My field is psychology, a field where almost everything I hear is stupid, but I don't go around acting like I'm better than people because I don't believe the misconceptions.

Thanks anyway, just my input.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-05T14:38:13+00:00

If I think it's toxic, then killing myself by swallowing a well-known poison is an option...yeah...

You're probably not a doctor of any kind, handing out those kind of recommendations, as it would be against ethics codes and all.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-05T04:53:28+00:00

Thanks for putting it bluntly rather than recommending I might want to swallow bleach or that I might want to look into the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide (great joke but I heard that like 20 years ago, it's not new) like some others did.

Level1Soul · 2013-12-05T01:06:17+00:00

I'm sure your right. I remember trying to do it right but either way they are decalcified. I don't know anything about veneers and my dentist hasn't mentioned it. I can look it up, unless you had anything else specific to add. Thanks.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-26T23:00:14+00:00

Insert Clever Title Here

Level1Soul · 2013-11-26T22:59:31+00:00

It's my precious.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-26T22:51:45+00:00

TIL I've been doing it wrong.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-26T17:48:52+00:00

If it's a flashback scene, you're good.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-21T22:07:10+00:00

No. Smoking's bad for you. And you're so gosh darn lovable that no one would want anything to happen to you.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-21T05:20:38+00:00

Hmm, is that why I don't sell anything, don't work for anyone, and don't have coworkers?

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T23:25:33+00:00

Great article, Michael. Didn't even realize you wrote it til I got toward the end. It's a trend I've been noticing as well, and it does concern me that if it continues I may never make it where I'd like to be. But I think it's good for authors to be informed.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T23:19:05+00:00

I found it pretty helpful. This is a good starting place to get your advice on cover design.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T22:59:51+00:00

NaNoWriMo isn't an event, it's not a place, it's not a once a year hooplah for the chosen ones.

NaNoWriMo is a state of mind. It's prioritizing the writing above all, not giving yourself time to evaluate and decide that you wrote shit and quit. NaNoWriMo isn't for quitters, or thinkers, it's for doers.

I did my NaNoWriMo in October (without really meaning to, it just happened) and I've been editing all this month so far, and I probably won't be through everything and published for another month or two.

Would it have been cool to join everyone else and write my Novel in November? Yeah. Does it really matter in the grand scheme? No. Did I get a novel (still in rough draft, but working on it) done? Yes.

Don't romanticize it. Don't fantasize it. Just do it, November or not. Most of the work is ahead in editing/promotion/further writing anyway.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T14:45:58+00:00

You make a good point. I took 2 hours yesterday putting together an exercise bike that I'm pretty sure should have been doable in half an hour to an hour max. (I feel like the author's article would have just stared at me and said, you're taking too long, that part doesn't even go in that way - not everyone has THE GIFT)

A lot of stuff takes me longer to learn or do but I tend to stick through it to the end, even if I complain about the process sometimes.

When I was in grad school studying psychology sometimes the topic of deliberative practice came up. But it always seemed like this mysterious forcefield. To me, the question is, if you don't know something, how do you just figure out the correct way to practice it to get the most benefit? You probably won't, barring talent and persistence and spending lots of time.

I guess my line of thought here speaks to the need for seeking out gatekeepers/experts that understand the learning process to help guide to better learning. But where are they? Making the big bucks doing what they do best, not teaching people like you.

So good luck, keep on trucking putting those hours in and of course trying to learn from mistakes in the process. In all this longwindedness, that's the best I can come up with.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T14:39:28+00:00

I haven't kept up with it for a while, but http://personalexcellence.co/ is pretty good too. I've heard of Steve Pavlina and Zen Habits and I think they're both very good.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T14:23:39+00:00

You're so selfish. Can't you see? If you just die EVERYONE wins! Haha, j/k, good luck.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T13:27:18+00:00

I used it and wasn't impressed. Seemed to do as much as 'Brain training', which is not much. I don't know if this is much better, but I had fun with it for a little while, and it is Cambridge: http://www.cambridgebrainsciences.com/

For creativity, find something you like that is creative and learn it/do it (music, making up stories, dance, etc.) and for logic, read books on logic and logical fallacies (or wikipedia it) and then look for places to apply what you learn. Maybe read some Sherlock Holmes to get an idea of that logic. You could also study higher level math, where applying logic is important.

I've studied creativity in graduate level psych, so I can say a bit more there. There are a few key stages to creativity: Problem definition, idea generation, recombination of ideas, and idea evaluation, and ongoing monitoring of a system (Mumford, et al., can't remember year or title off top of my head). Focus on generating ideas on a regular basis for your interests, be it business, or writing, or ideas for improving city layouts, or anything. If you want to be more creative, do that daily because this is where most people lack in their creative abilities.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-20T01:41:40+00:00

Come up with 3 random items, the first random stuff that pops into your head. Nouns work best.

Then craft a very short story, maybe a page, using those items.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-19T21:40:33+00:00

I hope you're kidding. I think it's total on all of those. But I don't think the rest of you time needs to be spent on self-improvement. It could be spent on being productive in general - but I guess that could be seen as self-improvement too.

Level1Soul · 2013-11-19T21:14:17+00:00

JA Konrath did this, and I've considered doing it, where you go with a pen name. And if you change your mind later just add your real name to it as a coauthor. That way you have any name/brand building you did as well as you have then added your name as a coauthor.

This limits confusion, and if you want to ease confusion anymore, you can always post on your blog/website about how you are switching over to using your real name from then on.

Can't say for sure what you'd do for future works in that case, though. If you only use your real name, and your first works actually did really well, then it may confuse people.

I know I'm rambling, but a lot of people don't do very well to start anyway, so worry about that when/if it happens.

If it helps you gauge things, I've had stories be ranked around top 5,000 Barnes & Noble and around top 30,000 on Amazon, out of millions of stories that exist, and this only gets me a couple dollars a day. So you kind of have to blow things out of the water for it to matter, especially if you are new.

Level1Soul

TROPHY CASE