1. Ideas are cheap – Most people generate several new ideas a day. (If you are me, make that twenty.) What matters is the idea you choose to pursue and how you choose to pursue it. It’s important to realize that generating new ideas is not bad, the issue is not knowing when to set the ideas on the back burner.
2. Narrow your sights - This is something so obvious is it worth talking about. You cannot give an idea the time it needs to be successful if you are constantly jumping on to something else. Pick one thing and do that well… because the alternative is many things poorly.
3. One bite at a time – How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Break the big idea down into smaller parts that you can work on and build upon. This creates steady progress. If the idea cannot succeed as a minimum viable product, it is not a viable idea.
4. Learn as you iterate – Learning theory dictates that mistakes are good. They are! What makes them good is to have focused learning around what happened. Be sure to reflect upon lessons learned as you move forward. This helps you feel accomplished when progress is hard to gauge and ensures that no valuable learning is overlooked.

Depending on your place, this may all seem like a no-brainer. But it never hurts to have a refresher as you move from one project to the next. These 4 ideas help me focus on and feel good about making ideas happen.

1. We are all camera shy in some way – You know what I mean here. Think of the last picture someone took of you that you made them retake… or rather wished you had them retake. It is a normal feeling. The reality is that you actually look good on camera, you simply aren’t used to seeing yourself the way others do. That is exactly why you should be on camera: so everyone in the Mozilla community can see you like those around you see you.
2. Constructing your story can be hard – When the Capture Mozilla team sat down to look at barriers to making video, we noticed people often had trouble converting their video idea into video reality. Using story craft ideas from Dia Bondi and the mental model of a story board, I put together a “Construct Your Story” document to help people both visually plan their video and their story. This is one way the team helped provide a framework without hindering personality.
3. There are many ways to make a video – Picture your video in your head. Chances are it has you, in front of a camera, talking. Let’s take a step back. Think of all the different types of movies there are in the world. Think of all the different types of commercials you’ve seen. Think of all the different types of YouTube videos you’ve seen. There are countless ways to make a video. Your video can be any way you want to visually tell your story. With the help of the team, I put together a “Capture Method Ideas” document to help spark creativity around what a video can be.
4. Not everyone has to be on camera – Just because you don’t want to share your beautiful face with the world doesn’t mean Capture Mozilla is not for you. There are many roles that can be filled when making a video. You could help with the story board, set design, filming, editing and really anything you can think of. Sometimes just your presence can help those on screen have more fun. Don’t feel like your only option is to be in front of the camera. There are plenty of ways to help out. Plus, you can see your name in the credits!
5. You probably already have some video laying around – Don’t do more work than you need to do. Utilize resources you already have. If you need some help piecing your video together, try the “Construct Your Story” document. Use your webcam to record short video to fill in any gaps. Spark your creativity with the ”Capture Method Ideas” document. The point is to make this easy on yourself and to have fun.

Thank you for reading and thank you to everyone who has been a part of the project so far. Feel free to email us at captureit[at]mozilla[dot]com.

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After

before

This was a quick mockup I made for redesigning the Subway Labs website. Feedback was good. Ultimately, they went with a bootstrap template for ease of integration.

This line stood out to me, “change the way you see it and lean in.”

Here, Pema Chödrön is talking about how her teacher reframed a moment of difficulty as a moment of spiritual bliss. This reframing allowed her to take an interest in what was going on rather than wish it to go away. There is an emphasis on the importance of creativity and play in how we choose to approach things. It gives light to the importance of framing a situation and that it can be framed in different ways. The biggest takeaway is to cultivate an interest in difficult feelings. “Lean in,” “welcome them” to experience them a different way.

Saw this the other day. It needs its own post.

1. Curated Content – Successful projects must launch with curated content to get the ball rolling and set the culture. I’ve pieced this together through various sources, ranging from my work at Mozilla to projects such as Cowbird. Most often the curated content will be self created and last far longer than may have initially been envisioned. While this may not be the ultimate goal, it is necessary to build momentum. This will take a lot work and time.
2. Publicizing is hard – It is very easy to overestimate how many people will get behind the initial push of a new project. Numerically is seems reasonable that a healthy percentage of the people you know will gladly take part. They would but they are busy. 500 seemed like a reasonable number over 500 days. No. Whatever the percentage you think you will get, cut that at least in half. My hunch is that better success here is derived from personally reaching out. Many people may like a project but getting them to take part is another story. Find a way to make it easy to onboard and showcase others who have. Still some more thinking to be done here.
3. Make something people can own – Think of the first thing you do when you sign up for a new site. Often people check their profile and create something reflective of themselves. I would say that the more someone can own what they are doing, the more they are interested in being part of the project. Think of how we name our cars and give them personalities. Humans like to personify. Furthermore, people want to share that with others. With 500 Thank You Letters, I saw that people really liked to make and share something very personal.

500 Thank You Letters remains quietly active, which means I will keep it up but not do much more than post new letters as they are received. Thank you to everyone who has helped out.