
Brian Ball
@brianball
Brian is an award winning cookie baker. He writes to think and share ideas. When not writing, coding, or baking, you can find him on Twitter @brianball
52
day writing streak
Salesperson Caught on Video as reply to Do you want fries with that?
A mobile-phone salesman got me to pull the trigger on one of those mobile hotspots by making a simple promise:
"Hey, if it doesn't work out, you can bring it back within 30 days for a full refund, no questions asked."
I was experienced enough with 'closing tactics' to get him saying...
"Hey, if it doesn't work out, you can bring it back within 30 days for a full refund, no questions asked."
I was experienced enough with 'closing tactics' to get him saying...
Starting
The $5 Unicycle
"You're up!" I said, as I got up off my hands and knees from a well-practiced fall.
"That was awesome" - my friend said as he quickly grabbed the unicycle off the ground and marked the new distance with the toe of his sneaker.
In a few days, it might have been...
"That was awesome" - my friend said as he quickly grabbed the unicycle off the ground and marked the new distance with the toe of his sneaker.
In a few days, it might have been...
Back on the Bike
After a joyous 30-minute descent, we were treated to the tailgate of a truck in a dirt parking lot.
... the thing you might not be thinking, unless I point it out, is that to get a 30-minute descent on a bike, you have to have climbed a really long way....
... the thing you might not be thinking, unless I point it out, is that to get a 30-minute descent on a bike, you have to have climbed a really long way....
What is our experience? as reply to I am not the audience for pineapple
If forced to eat green bananas that made you vomit as a child, you'd probably consider yourself the wrong audience for banana bread. "I hate bananas!" -- might be a flag you wave.
If you grew up in a place where pineapple is sold ripe from the field, you'd have a...
If you grew up in a place where pineapple is sold ripe from the field, you'd have a...
Trust & Agreement
Trust & Agreement: Life Experience Required
The title carries two strong terms: Trust & Agreement. I'm not sure I actually know what they even mean. However, I am going to try and write through my understanding.
As I observed my life and the events happening to myself, my friends, and the political process. I realized a distinct...
As I observed my life and the events happening to myself, my friends, and the political process. I realized a distinct...
Things can't be different.
You know what's hard? Being a beginner. I don't mean starting is hard or the beginning steps of a project. I mean, being an adult and feeling like a child as you work on something you're not skilled at.
Impostor Syndrome - you never seem to be able to know it...
Impostor Syndrome - you never seem to be able to know it...
What's in a job?
Paperboy - my first job.
It was a daily slog that started early in the morning. The paper was expected to be on a subscriber's porch before they awoke. If I could get it there by 7am, I felt pretty good. Then, I could head off to school by 7:40 and...
It was a daily slog that started early in the morning. The paper was expected to be on a subscriber's porch before they awoke. If I could get it there by 7am, I felt pretty good. Then, I could head off to school by 7:40 and...
Persistence & Reality
If you've ever wanted to engage in an activity that enforces the idea of persistence, two come to mind. Rock climbing and programming. You only reach the top of a rock if you persist. Likewise, the computer will only succumb to the will of the programmer if he persists long...
He sat tapping his pencil.
As he watched the rain slide down the gray window, he noticed how warm and cozy it was in his little office. His desk was clean except for some concept sketches on single sheets of letter-sized, graph paper. He sat tapping his pencil hoping she'd call or text. It wasn't...
API and DevRel
There's a job in tech called Developer Relations.
They're the first line of defense between the angry software user and the engineering team responsible for the unusable applications we all make today.
Of course, those applications work fine internally, and we didn't do extensive enough research to understand crazy edge cases. So,...
They're the first line of defense between the angry software user and the engineering team responsible for the unusable applications we all make today.
Of course, those applications work fine internally, and we didn't do extensive enough research to understand crazy edge cases. So,...