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The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.
Coco Chanel
(Attributed)

Newsletters I Like: Well-Tempered

I’m always looking out for good email newsletters, so I thought it might be fun to do a quick series where I share some of the ones that I subscribe to and enjoy.

First up: Well-Tempered!

“Well-Tempered” is a new effort from tech writer and all-around busy person, Jean MacDonald. Jean, who you may know as @macgenie on Twitter or from her work with App Camp For Girls, puts together 4 or 5 of her top links and stories for the week. There are only a couple of issues out at this point but, so far, the subject matter has been representative of all the things Jean knows and loves: technology, culture, gender, marketing, and (naturally) rock ‘n’ roll.

I like it already – and I’m looking forward to seeing how it develops in the weeks ahead!

This is a link post – You can visit the site mentioned by clicking the main link above (or just click here).

Few writers receive the strong emotional reactions to their work that Alain de Botton gets: Many readers enjoy his efforts which connect philosophy with the practices of everyday life; Other readers, well… not so much.

You can put me in the camp that generally likes his work. Just as I have never expected a TED talk to replace deep study, I’ve never mistaken de Botton’s essays for the philosophical works that they reference. Generalists shouldn’t be mistaken for specialists or academics. However, that doesn’t mean that they can’t offer a valuable perspective or provide a good introduction to the ideas that they discuss. Not everything he’s done has resonated with me, but I’ve enjoyed books like ‘The Art of Travel’ and ‘Status Anxiety’ for what they are – One writer’s reflections on aspects of the human experience.

To that end, another de Botton venture called The School of Life just announced a YouTube channel. The London-based school is, like de Botton, devoted to encouraging a ‘philosophy of everyday life’. Though their collection looks a little bare at the moment, I think it’s worth keeping an eye on the page and checking back occasionally to see what gets published there. Given the school’s existing portfolio of courses, I think it may end up being a good resource of stimulating clips on topics like careers, relationships, politics, travels, and families.