Last month, I published the first edition of The Awesome File, a list of 10 awesome things that you should make time for each month.[1. And that I hope will inspire you to do great work.] It’s August, and that means The Awesome File is back, with 10 new awesome things for your month ahead.
Inside this month’s installment of The Awesome File: Stories of Olympic awesomeness! Feats of tremendous hustle! And sexual decadence!
Read on — and be awesome this month:
1. READ: Joe Posnanski on Rulon Gardner
Like everyone else, I’ve been watching a lot of the Olympics lately. To keep you in the spirit of the Games, here’s the craziest Olympics story you’ll ever read. (If you’ve never seen the event that inspired that story, you can watch it here.)
2. PAUSE: Nike’s Find Your Greatness Ads
My personal favorite part of the Olympics? The ads. Per usual, Nike’s produced a whopper. This one’s about all the Londons and all the greatness in the world:
3. HUSTLE: Here’s How Hard You Have To Work To Make Things Happen
And now that you’re inspired, here are three amazing tales of hustle. The first is a basement-to-breakthrough kind of story. The second is a tale of full on hustle. And the third is about an awesome portfolio site that got big — and rightfully so. Inspiring stories, all.
4. APPLY: The New York Public Library’s Wikipedian-in-Chief opening
And while you’re thinking about work, here’s something you don’t see every day: A job opening involving Wikipedia. It’s unpaid, yes, but doesn’t the thought of putting the words “Wikipedian-In-Chief” on your resume make you want to apply just a little?
5. WATCH: Charlie LeDuff Golf Across Detroit
Great things start with baby steps, not big leaps. And here’s Charlie LeDuff proving that by golfing across Detroit. One man, 18 miles, 2,575 strokes — and one great story.
6. CONSIDER: Robin Sloan’s Javascript-Based Book Review
Here’s something I’ve been asking a lot lately: Why do we do things the way we’ve always done them? Mostly, this has involved me digging into a more specific question: Why do we tell stories the way we’ve always told stories?
And then I see something new and awesome, and I get all excited. Per evidence, I would like to submit this book review by Robin Sloan. You have never seen a book review quite like this before.
7. READ: “Dear American Airlines,” by Jonathan Miles
On that note: You also probably haven’t seen a novel quite like this before. It’s called “Dear American Airlines: A Novel.”
8. LOOK: National Geographic’s Traveler Photo Contest 2012
Of course, once you get outside of the airport, you might find some amazing things, too. Like these fantastic, reader-submitted photos from trips abroad.
9. LAUGH: “One Bed, Two Girls, Three Bottles of Wine,” by Hayes Carll
Apropos of nothing: One day, I want to write a story as good as this. The song title alone is worth the price of admission.
10. LOVE: “How to Manage Your Time”
Simple things can be powerful things. A simple story, a finite focus — that’s often what’s at the root of great work.
Here’s proof, from the awesome Amber Rae:
If that’s not the kick in the pants you need to start focusing on great work, I’m not sure what’ll do the job.
That’s it for this month’s The Awesome File. Got something you’d like to share for next month’s edition. Tweet at me with your suggestions.