Jeff Lanctot

I almost lost everything in 2010. At the time I was contracting as a programmer and was NOT loving my life. Truth is, I was a mediocre programmer- good enough that I could get entry-level freelance gigs and produce code that worked... barely. But...

If optimizing and tuning stuff to get more attention is the game we’re playing, it becomes all to easy to compromise on the genuinely difficult (but MOST rewarding) parts of the creation process to focus on the things that “matter.” open.substack.com/pub/realjaylan…

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You’ve done the work. You’ve created the thing. So… why aren’t they coming back? 👀 The real reason might surprise you: shorturl.at/AKl3Q

Professional Creatives Ship. Amateur Creatives make excuses for why they didn’t ship. Here's how to make sure you ship... @realjaylance/p-164140102" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">substack.com/@realjaylance/…

5 simple* reasons your company is struggling: 1. You create your Marketing materials as though YOU are your target market. 2. You've incorrectly identified who your target market is, so your messaging doesn't convert browsers into buyers. (Hint: your target market is NOT "people who have already bought your product/service.") 3. You don't clearly understand the difference between Marketing and Branding, and aren't covering BOTH of these necessary bases in your promotional efforts. 4. You have no idea where in your funnel you're losing potential customers so you don't know there's a leak to fix. (Depressing Fact: Your funnel has LOTS of leaks.) 5. You approach marketing with an attitude (probably unconsciously) of: "if I build a good enough thing, people will just 'get it,' and marketing becomes nice-to-have, but not necessary." BONUS REASON: You've confused Marketing with Sales and treat them as the same thing, rather than 2 distinct roles with different skills and requirements. ---------- *Simple... But not easy. Every one of us have been marketed to for our entire lives so to some extent we ALL intuitively know what "works on us." The problem is that if you don't push beyond that, you'll always end up defaulting marketing "to yourself." Which DOES NOT WORK for a variety of reasons. Want to know how to create Marketing that WORKS? (e.g. Marketing that brings you MONEY?) I've got more than 15 years of experience diagnosing and correcting underperforming Marketing. Drop me a DM and lets talk!

As one of the folks at Cyan who was lucky enough to get access to an early version of Blue Prince back in 2023 I can say without reservation... This is my favorite game of the last couple years- hands down. There isn't even a close second place. It's a game that I've got more than a hundred hours of play (and replay!) into because it is. Just. THAT. good. The replayability of Blue Prince is OFF the charts and I'm not even the tiniest but shocked at how well it's being received. Congratulations to you all! 🎉🎉🎉

From our first page, to our last, what we have imagined has sprung forth from the dreams and pages of your Art. Dreams are but portals, inscribed, yet now unbound. We touch them, and they are real. And they are real. Chev ah'shem rehlehm. Chev ah'shem bivdil.

Either you learn to be brave enough to take the leaps (even if you don't feel ready), or you will spend your life being reactionary when unexpected change inevitably visits your doorstep.

Your problem isn't creative block. It's that you're unwilling to stay in discomfort as you work through all those bad ideas to start finding the good ones. Seriously, try ACTUALLY MAKING every crappy thing that comes to mind and you'll be amazed how many good ideas show up!

The internet is flooded with countless answers. That's why I ask myself this: "Is this THE answer, or just AN answer?" More often than not, it's merely AN ANSWER. Knowing that makes it 1,000% easier to tackle the crucial question: "Does this answer actually work for me?"

For the full interview I pulled Andrew Huberman's quote from visit the video here: youtube.com/watch?v=zjtE-U…

Why do I constantly advise you start with ACTION (Even if you don't feel ready)? Because smart people want to 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦 that their thoughts and feelings are what leads to action. But in reality ACTION changes thoughts and feelings, which is what leads to 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲!

You're making it more difficult than it needs to be. It's an almost universal truth that Creative Professionals tend to make what they're working on WAY more complicated than it needs to be. Ask the question below (made famous by Tim Ferriss) and then... Do that instead!

Nobody can MAKE you get started. All the tips and tricks and guides and coaching and accountability won't get you there if you don't. Just. Start. Where you're at. With what you have. Right now. Even if you're not ready. ESPECIALLY if you're not ready. Don't wait. Just start.

As a creator, your BEST work will be... A mashup of who you are, plus a handful of things that deeply resonate with YOU. That’s your "secret sauce!" That’s the thing that can’t be copied or imitated. THAT is the “perfect union of contrary things” that makes you a category of 1.

In one way or another all completed projects are "a disaster" behind the scenes- even the really famous ones! It's never going to be perfect, only (as the saying goes) abandoned. The lesson: just go NOW! If you try to "write the great American novel," you'll likely never start.

Trying to make it perfect is a trap! I've worked with some very well-known makers and creators over the years... One thing I've heard over and over from them is: "If I'd known it was going to become THIS well known, I would have done a better job making it." The truth is:

Smart creatives know that you must schedule regular, purposeful rest into your life, or eventually you will experience crippling health problems and burnout. You cannot "hustle culture" past this truth: rest on your terms, or be forced to rest anyway. There is no third option.