Marc Andreessen’s blog has been making waves all over the internet. Which marks the second time in 6 months that tech bloggers have been played and manipulated into a frenzy (Tim Ferriss being the first) Don’t get me wrong, the blog is astoundingly good and Andreessen is an all-start–he literally invented the world-wide-web. It is the way he went about launching his blog that is so indicative of his creative and innovative way of addressing situations.
Today, Valleywag wrote that Marc was “late to the blogging game and caught in the throes of newbie enthusiasm..” That is a profound misread of the situation. Clearly, Marc decided to start a blog 6-12 months ago and then spent that intermediate time coming up with a plethora of stellar posts. He stocked up on digg worth and potentially viral posts, so when he launched he’d have a quiver of good content. While the rest of us try to come up with a few solid posts a week, Marc is sitting back and uploading what he already wrote. But to the unthinking reader: “This guy is a fucking genius.” Day after day, he is knocking them out of the park. And now he’s one of the most respected bloggers on the net…after a month of being online.
The point is that, yes it really is that easy. Yes, the rest of the world really is stuck in a box. I remember a year or so ago I had an idea for a business venture and I pitched it to a friend. His response was “If your idea is as good as it sounds, someone would have done it already.” Which of course is absurd, and I did it without him, made a good deal of money and solidified a relationship with someone that continues to benefit me enormously. This is what I mean when I say just email the authors or writers you’d like to meet–everyone thinks it but no one does it. We’re inclined to discount the obvious, which means that the obvious is going unexploited.
Back in the early 90’s, the internet was absurdly elitist and tech nerds were trying to keep it that way. Andreessen came in and tore that all down by making Mosiac and Netscape, the first two GUI web-browsers. Hundreds of people had that idea first–BUT NO ONE DID ANYTHING ABOUT IT. Here with his blog, all he did was a slight perception play that scored enormously. In some ways, thinking intuitively requires an almost counter-intuitive way of looking at the world. Being unabsurd is absurd in its own right. I’ll give you an example, every screenplay you’ll read in Hollywood is in the same font and the same format. Why? Because that’s how it used to be on typewriters and almost a century later no one has bothered to update. Thinking ten steps ahead instead of five puts you on a different plane than almost everyone else. Having some foresight makes success a guarantee instead of a pipedream. What he did, what Tim Ferriss did is ridiculously transparent but no one is bothering to look.
What can you learn from Andreeseen? Thinking outside the box is not only easier than following the status-quo, it’s where the money is. The world seems like it is ruled by the uncreative because they cling to the system, but in reality their power is an illusion. With the slightest exposure to the light of innovation it all comes crumbling down. Trust those instinct, use that uncommon, common sense. Most gatekeepers are full of shit. Trust me.
