Lea Verou
Lea is a front-end web developer located in Greece. She is passionate about JavaScript and CSS3 and shares her love for Web Standards at various events around the world (including the prestigious SXSW, Web Directions @media, Fronteers, JSConfEU, and Frontend) and through her blog, lea.verou.me. Lea is a contributor to publications such as .net Magazine, Smashing Magazine, and 24ways, and the creator of famous web applications that demonstrate the possibilities of CSS3.
Lea also tweets @LeaVerou.
More thoughts by Lea Verou:
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Often people ask me how I come up with the new ideas I publish. I think my main “differentiator” is that I try not to be restricted by my knowledge about what’s possible and what is not. I first think about what I want to make (for example “I want to do a rating widget with pure CSS”) and then I investigate how it could be done. And I don’t give up easily. Sometimes it even takes months having the question in the back of my head before I come up with a solution.
People push the boundaries of what's achievable with web technologies every day. Do you want to be one of them, or do you want to be stuck repeating what's been done over and over again until you get sick of it? Don't be afraid to try new things. If a voice inside you screams “That isn’t possible!”, ignore it. In most cases, this voice is wrong.
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You may catch more flies with honey than with vinegar, but you catch even more with a little audacity. Being polite is a good rule of thumb, but like everything, it also needs moderation. Don't say "share my content pleeeeeeaaaase". It makes people think your content isn't worthy of sharing if you have to grovel. In a long email, don't write a paragraph apologizing for its length (true story!). Being overly polite when meeting someone, categorizes yourself as inferior in the other person's subconscious. Treat yourself with the respect and admiration you expect from other people. If you don't think highly of yourself, nobody will. When meeting someone you admire, treat them as an equal and they're more likely to do the same.
However, be careful not to cross the fine distinction between treating yourself with respect and being a cocky jackass. Treat others as equals, not as inferiors, otherwise your attitude will get you nowhere — and will piss everyone off along the way.
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You can get quite far by putting cool stuff out there and expecting everything to come to you. Yes, you will eventually get job offers, conference invitations and various distinctions. However, sometimes, just asking will get you what you want much faster.
I used to avoid asking like the plague, and thought that if my work is good enough, what I want will naturally come to me. Which makes sense, to a certain extent: When someone keeps asking for stuff all the time, you can't help but think that they merely see you as means to an end.
However, when you really want something, it never hurts to approach it yourself. Lately, I've been experiencing how much easier this makes things, and I'd strongly recommend you try it too. Turns out that quite often you don't have what you want not because you aren't good enough, but because the parties involved have no idea you're interested.
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The best argument against conventional wisdom is the fate of everyone following it. If you aspire beyond mediocrity, conventional wisdom is recipe for failure. Think out of the box. What can you do to achieve your goals, that others are not already doing? The least popular paths are the most successful. The trick isn't doing better than the others, it's minimizing the number of "others". Find unexplored territory and make it yours. It's much easier than trying to claim your stake on someone else's land.
Here are the dates of Lea Verou's future thoughts:
- Tuesday, 22 May
- Friday, 29 June
- Sunday, 22 July
- Wednesday, 29 August
- Monday, 24 September
- Tuesday, 30 October
- Tuesday, 27 November
- Saturday, 29 December