Garrett Brown @gareoso - Tumblr Blog

I Started a New Business. Part 2: Blow everything up

Friday marked one of the first client meeting my business has ever had. I walked away elated, not just because the new business is kicking off, but because the past month of hard work determining our creative process WORKED. It didn’t just work, it killed. Knocked it out of the park. Client bouncing-up-and-down-in-their-seat-they’re-so-excited worked.

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I Started a New Business. Part 1: What Are My Priorities?

The past couple of months have been a little bit of a whirlwind.

She said yes. I resigned from my job. I started freelancing again. I started my own business.

Honestly, it’s a bit paralyzing. Sitting here, thinking through the past few weeks, it’s hard to ignore the sheer amount of things I need to do. For our wedding, for my current clients, future clients, the new business. Thoughts and to-dos pour in at all times. It’s hard to know where to begin…

…But I’ve never been more excited.

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Monday morning vibes. Thanks for the recommendation Peter Koslowsky.

Let’s think about quitting your job

In my teenage years, I quit my job as the cart boy at a department store. I couldn’t take the monotony anymore, pushing carts all the time, so I resigned at the end of my shift. I returned a few days later to pick up my last paycheck. My manager hands me the check but pulls it away before I can take it and condescendingly says, “You’ll never get another job in retail. When someone looks at your resume and calls me for a recommendation, I won’t give them one.” It was her last laugh: she was obviously upset I quit on such short notice. But my teenage angst couldn’t handle an authority figure having the last word, so I snatched my check, and as I walked out of the room said, “I will NEVER, in my life, put this job on my resume.” I’ve kept that promise…but I’m into my career as a designer...

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#nowplaying

Monowear Apple Watch Leather Strap: A Review

I’ve had the Apple Watch for six months now and I love it. At times, I’ve struggled to figure out its place in my daily routine, but it’s something I wear and use every day. It's awesome for texting, changing music in the shower, acting as a remote for my iPhone's camera and even does a decent job of tracking my workouts. I've got a few nitpicks with the software and battery life isn't exactly stellar, but my main problem is that the all-black band just isn't cutting it anymore. Not that it doesn't do a great job of securing my watch to my wrist - I've gotten a little bored with the way it looks. Apple Watches include nifty little release buttons which enable you to slide bands out of the case and swap it for another, but in typical Apple fashion, the accessories are pricey. $50 buys another polymer sport band while $150 upgrades you to a 'classic' leather band, which is a little less than half the cost of a new Apple Watch. It's crazy.

Enter Monowear. Originally a Kickstarter campaign, this company ships leather, metal, and nylon bands for the Apple Watch at a cost much more reasonable than Apple's offerings. I recently picked up a brown leather band ($80) and have been really pleased with the results:

The leather band instantly dresses up this watch. Finally, I have something I wouldn't mind wearing in front of clients and to nice dates with the lady. I probably won't wear the leather band in the shower to change my music.

The strap is soft, genuine leather and is very sharp in person. It's definitely a premium strap over other third party offerings you can get on Amazon or eBay. Scratches somewhat easily with a fingernail, but it's nothing to worry about. The Apple Watch is desperate for character and a worn band will fit the bill nicely. Build quality is solid and sturdy - your watch is not flying off your wrist anytime soon.

Would I purchase one again? YES, it's a fantastic band. I'll probably buy another color.

Should you buy it? Yes, if you're looking for an upgrade and you don't have a ton of money laying around.

On top of all this, I ran to Twitter with a question and received an answer within minutes. I don't want to over-hype it for you, but it's definitely in my top five customer service experiences.

9/10

#applewatch #monowear #review

Two photographers shooting at the same time over 12 hours in two different places in the world. They have to select one shot every 30 minutes, hopefully nice...

Awesome photography and really cool web design

This is what one day looks like on Earth from space. The footage condenses 24 hours of imagery from Japan’s Himawari-8 satellite into 12 seconds and shows us how the our beautiful blue marble peels itself from the darkness in unbelievable detail. The reveal of Earth is just beyond words. No planet is as beautiful as Earth and videos like this where we see Van Gogh in the moving clouds mixed with the colors of our land mass projected against the blue, no other planet even comes close.

“How to find work you love”

Really fantastic TED talk.