Hi friends,
Welcome to the very first edition of Bi-Weekly Bits!
I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting so many of you to sign up so fast. I've always struggled to believe that my ideas are worth sharing. After all, there are so many other experts out there that are saying the same things, but better! I'm humbled that you are willing to join me in this experiment, and see what the world looks like through my filter.
Let me emphasize again that I see this as an experiment. I've only planned ahead in broad strokes, and I foresee the content of both my essays and this newsletter shifting as we find our stride.
That's right, we.
I see this as a conversation between you and me. I'm sharing the things I'm interested in, but I want them to be relevant to you, too. So if it's not too much to ask, I would like to ask you to do me a favor. Let me know once in a while which stuff is the most interesting, the most valuable to you. I'll do my best to keep finding the points where my interests and yours overlap.
Here's what I want to share with you today:
Annual Review 2020: Today I published my first full annual review. It's a 2000+ word reflection on the past year, where I did well and what I'm still struggling with. It's an exercise that helps tremendously in clarifying my values, and in defining the goals that will help me live those values. You can read it all here.
My Favorite Things of 2020: As part of my annual review, I've taken stock of the things that brought me the most joy, and meant the most to me. I distilled those down to my five favorite books, games, movies/shows and songs of the past year. Check out the full list here.
The Ultimate Annual Review: If you want to get started on your own annual review, this is an excellent starting point. Steve Schlafman has put together a list of topics and questions that will help you get "a holistic perspective on where you've been and where you want to go".
International Support Index: This website lists all the possible ways to get financial and non-financial support as a Dutch creative looking to realize their international ambitions. Incredibly useful resource that was shared during last Friday's ESNS21 Creative Holland Live session.
Video games are the most important aspect of youth culture: In this piece, trend forecaster Sean Monahan suggests that videogames are now a more important cultural signifier for young people than music. I thought his concept of gamerbait was especially interesting: "cultural products inspired by the aesthetic ecosystem of the gaming world". There's a whole world of possibilities here that I feel is still underexamined.
How will you measure your life?: Clayton Christensen, author of The Innovator's Dilemma, discusses the three key questions he asks his students to get them to think about their life's purpose. Interestingly, he uses some of the same wisdom gleaned from his research into innovation to explore these questions. His personal advice? "Don’t worry about the level of individual prominence you have achieved; worry about the individuals you have helped become better people."
Shigeru Miyamoto Wants to Create a Kinder World: Rare and insightful interview with a legendary creative. I love Miyamoto's take on game design here: "The interesting thing about interactive media is that it allows the players to engage with a problem, conjure a solution, try out that solution, and then experience the results. Then they can go back to the thinking stage and start to plan out their next move. This process of trial and error builds the interactive world in their minds. This is the true canvas on which we design—not the screen. That’s something I always keep in mind when designing games."
See you in two weeks!
Martijn
Best practices, models and frameworks that will help you run and grow a business in the videogames industry. https://www.martijnvanzwieten.com
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