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- Don’t worry, be lucky
People try to do all sorts of clever and difficult things to improve life instead of doing the simplest, easiest thing—refusing to participate in activities that make life bad.
— Leo Tolstoy
Ever since I was a kid, people kept telling me how lucky I was. Not in the general sense—being born in a stable, wealthy country, having a caring family, or avoiding major life traumas.
No, I mean Gladstone Gander (Gontran Bonheur) kind of luck. Finding random bills on the street. Falling out of trees, getting crushed by a massive old wardrobe, or even being hit by a car—and walking away without a scratch. Lucky in games, lucky at school, lucky in sports...
I’ll never know how true that all was—luck isn’t something you can really measure or compare. But what I know for sure is that because it was repeated to me so often, I always believed it. I believed I was especially lucky, like no one else.
First of all, it’s a wonderful feeling in itself. I felt like I had a superpower grown-ups called “luck.”
But more importantly, it helped with perspective. It showed me the half-full glass instead of the half-empty one. And how you see things—perspective—is how you truly live your life.
Life is not what happens, but what you tell yourself happens.
I’d love to recommend this to everyone, but since it’s not something you can just decide to believe, I guess it’s more of a recommendation for parents. Tell your kids they’re lucky—they might end up believing it, and it’s a real cheat code to life.
— James
 | This newsletter takes a few hours to craft each week. → $3.99/month = ongoing good karma Either way, thank you for reading 🧡 |
Tools & Websites
Life in Weeks App is a tool that helps you map and visualize your life events, inspired by Tim Urban's famous 2014 blog post. It's an elegant side project from solo maker Cory Zue.
Screen Studio is my go-to app for screen recording. It creates dynamic videos by following your cursor and zooming on clicks, plus offers many editing options for background, cuts, playback speed, etc.
While looking for inspiration for my website's 404 page, I discovered Kudzai Mhlanga website. It's the most creative 404 page I've seen in a while ↓
MAKER OF THE WEEK
Fons Mans is the founder of the design studio Offgrid. His work’s been featured in places like The New York Times, Figma, and The Wall Street Journal. He’s a longtime graphic designer and pretty well-known on social media for his work. Lately, he’s been experimenting with AI tools, and his take on textures and materials is seriously on point.
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James’ Library
Article | Building on the theme of luck, here's another way to increase your chances of being lucky. The theory of the surface area of luck states that Luck = (Passionate) Doing x (Effective) Telling. […] entrepreneur and coder Jason Roberts explained that taking action towards your passion will develop expertise in that area. Further, that “when people become aware of your expertise, some percentage of them will take action to capture that value, but quite often it will be in a way you would never have predicted.” Roberts also pointed to the infectious nature of passion, and that taking action and sharing your passion will tend to attract others towards it, again amplified by the number of people who know about it. |
Article | Why do we assume technology and nature are incompatible? Simon Sarris argues that the real issue isn't technology itself—rather, we confuse technology with gadgets and thoughtlessly welcome these gadgets into our homes without considering their true costs. Even when the tradeoffs are more clear, I think that technology has to feel humane and serve very human purposes to be worthwhile. Most gadgets feel careless and unwholesome and I worry that they, subconsciously, cause us to treat our homes differently. They are not viscerally pleasing, and if you have enough of that sort of thing in your home I think it lends to an air of unreality. If people hate technology and think it clashes with nature, I find it hard to blame technology. We have careless technology because we are careless in evaluating it. We demand too little of it, or we are willing to sacrifice too much for too little in return. |
…Aesthetic Corner…
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As a sucker for outdoor gear, I love the concept behind Haven tents. They make spacious, comfortable hammocks with flat backs that pack down incredibly small. Being off the ground means less moisture to deal with, and they're completely waterproof. They can also convert into regular tents when there aren't any trees around.
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QUBE is an all-in-one measuring device for angles, levels, and distances. This compact magnetic cube from Magpie Tech is easy to carry and can attach to any metal surface using its built-in magnets.
Sustainable Living
Base Cabin creates beautifully designed, transportable tiny houses and cabins that make the most out of a small footprint. Built in collaboration with top Australian architects, each cabin is designed to be moved easily—whether to the coast, countryside, or a backyard laneway—offering flexible spaces that feel both high-end and homey.
Sustainability is at the core of Base Cabin’s approach. The cabins are made in small batches on Bunurong country in Victoria, using eco-conscious materials like low-VOC finishes, sustainably sourced timber, and energy-efficient insulation. Many designs also support off-grid living with solar panel setups, composting toilets, and rainwater collection.
Instead of mass production, Base Cabin focuses on thoughtful, limited manufacturing with lasting materials. Their portable designs reduce the need for permanent land alteration, helping people live more lightly on the earth—without compromising comfort or design quality.
Friends of James
Beehiiv — the powerhouse behind all my newsletters, helping me craft, design, grow my audience, and monetize effortlessly.
Notion — my go-to tool for the last 6+ years, where I store all my notes, manage tasks, and essentially run both my life and businesses.
Webflow — the engine behind all my websites, letting me design, build, and launch seamlessly without code.
Make — the tool that runs my business on autopilot, handling all recurring and time-consuming tasks
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