Influence & Inspiration: Ideas from people on the internet
You can learn a lot about a person when you notice who they choose to spend their time with.
This is an ongoing and occasionally updated list of people I pay attention to. Humans whose thoughts and ideas I value, admire, respect and appreciate enough to invite into my inbox on a regular basis.
Some are simply subscribe-able blogs, i.e. posts that are also sent by email, others are curated newsletters in which the author may or may not include their own blog posts.
Like me, I imagine this list will change and grow with time.
Recommended Reading for Intentional Living (and fun)
David Cain
Colin Wright
I discovered Colin through The Minimalists (who I no longer follow regularly, but who were definitely influential in my journey), heard him speak on tour with them in Edmonton in 2015 and was once an alpha reader for one of his books!
I love reading about Colin’s adventures and I am always so impressed with how much living he does.
I’ve been following Colin since 2014.
Cait Flanders
Fellow Canadian and author of the lovely little book The Year of Less. I feel a kinship with this woman I’ve never met and I often finds that she says/writes what I’m thinking better than I can.
I’ve been following Cait since the summer of 2017.
The Zero-Waste Chef
website (subscribe to newsletter on the site)
This one is fairly new to me. I find so much inspiration for waste reduction, and I love her inclusive, non-judgemental and joyful approach to this issue. I’m pretty sure I stumbled across this site while looking for recipes for sourdough “discard.” I make these crackers all the time.
I’ve been following since the fall of 2018.
Scott Sharplin
Scott is a fellow Canadian I’ve actually known “in real life.” I can’t remember if we met through UAlberta or Walterdale Theatre, but I’ve known him for many years, and Bee and I even visited his family in Cape Breton a few years ago. I’ve been really impressed and inspired by his latest mission to lead the charge against climate change.
I’ve followed his blog since 2016, but we’ve been acquainted since at least 2005.
Austin Kleon
Author of a triad of awesome books, Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work and Keep Going, I love his work and the brief weekly newsletter where he shares bits from his own blog as well as links to those who have inspired him.
I’ve been a newsletter subscriber since 2013.
Robin Sloan
I loved Sloan’s delightful novel Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore. I also enjoyed his latest, Sourdough, but didn’t follow him online until this winter when I discovered that he produces a super interesting newsletter and optional print offerings (for the price of postage)!
I’ve followed since 2018.
Mark Manson
Author of the book The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and his latest, Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope. Sure, he curses a lot, but he’s intelligent and funny and his articles are on point.
I started following in 2014 after encountering the great article Fuck Yes or No, which may or may not have been instrumental in the success of my current relationship.