Social Media Loneliness, Quitting the Internet, & Other Creative Links

This has been a another busy week (I feel like I say that every week, but I guess that's just life these days). The weather in Tennessee is beautiful, and I hope you're having the chance to go outside and enjoy some of it. I love this time of year. This m

This has been a another busy week (I feel like I say that every week, but I guess that's just life these days).

The weather in Tennessee is beautiful, and I hope you're having the chance to go outside and enjoy some of it.

My wife and I were able to sit outside with another couple last night for three hours, drinking coffee and talking about life.

I love this time of year.

This morning, I woke up early to get some reading done.

Here's what I'm reading this week:

What Are You Afraid Of? [Motivation] This was a guest post I did for work. Our organization has started encouraging people to step out in their dreams, and I wrote this to inspire and kick some people's butts. I hope you read it.

Why You Should Quit the Internet [Inspiration] Blogger and social media genius Julien Smith places a strong challenge to our technology-addicted culture. The basic message is this: There's more to life. I was convicted.

How Social Media Can Induce Feelings of 'Missing Out' [Social Media] This NYTimes article was a short, fascinating piece about how much technology may be ruling our lives -- not just professionally, but also psychologically. Again, I was convicted.

How to Steal Like An Artist (And 9 Other Things Nobody Told Me) [Creativity] This was a fascinating article to read -- partly for the compelling content and partly for how aesthetic it was. Lots of art and creative visual aids in this piece on originality (or lack thereof) and true creativity. (Hat tip to Lifehacker for pointing it out.)

I'm also spending this Sunday reading a great little book by my friend Mark Almand. The books is called Claude's Canvas, and it's fantastic. It's concise like Hemingway and powerfully emotive like a great memoir.

Currently, this title isn't available (it's self-published and there are only 50 copies out right now), but once he prints more copies, I'll let you know. (I already recommend reading it.)

Lastly, the most-read post on the blog this week (and the most fun one for me to write) was this:

What Mumford and Sons Taught Me About Writing

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What're you reading lately?