Finding Meaning

Some time ago, fellow TSSL subscriber, Shawn Twing sent me a book titled, All Things Shining.

The book is hard to encapsulate.

It analyzes a wide swath of literary and historical figures——Homer, Dante, David Foster Wallace, Aristotle, Jesus, etc.——all are examined as the authors explore the question of:

How Do We Create a Life of Meaning in Our Secular Age?

I won't spoil the book for you, however, I will tell you something that made me think about it today…

You see, there are certain things that we already find meaning in.

Your job is not to find some new external meaning out there in the world.

Rather, the things you find meaningful are already present inside of you. In fact, they might be staring you in the face right now!

For instance, two things Shawn told me he finds meaningful are his Blackwing pencils and his Levenger 4x6" cards for writing.

These writing instruments intuitively just "feel right" for him.

Like Shawn, each of us has unique objects that inspire us.

These things aren't easy to explain. And they don't need to be.

I could be a lot wealthier if I didn't care about the "craft" involved in what I do.

That is, I'd probably make more money if all I did were focus on money vs. focusing on seemingly irrelevant details of my craft.

However, I believe in the craft of what I do.

I believe in the art of writing, knowledge development, and marketing——the old way, the hard way——the deliberate way.

I also believe aesthetics matter.

I believe in all these things so much that I frequently get lost in the details of the craft.

For instance, all day today I spent time tweaking the color scheme on the website for The Scott Scheper Letter.

One of the things most people won't notice is the light-yellow background color I use (which you now find in this email).

This light-yellow background color is actually derived from the shade of yellow used by legendary copywriter, Gary Halbert.

I've integrated this into my color scheme as an "ode" to him.

Why?

Because I Find Meaning In Such Things!

That's all. End of story. Exclamation point.

Actually——

I'm not done yet.

Here's another example of Mr. Scott P. Scheper obsessing overly seemingly meaningless things:

On February 1st, Issue No. 2 of The Scott Scheper Letter was sent to the print shop.

Normally, they'd have been printed and mailed by now.

However, they have not been mailed yet because I requested two enhancements to the letter:

First, I requested thicker, higher-quality paper.

Even though such paper is more expensive, it is of the same weight and consistency as the paper Halbert used.

Many subscribers won't notice it, but I will, and I want them to have the truest experience of receiving an old-school publication in the mail.

Second, I'm having the print shop three-hole-punch every issue.

This is something Halbert did, as well (or at least how the ones are in my collection).

I want each issue to be three-hole-punched so that my subscribers can save them in a binder (and pass them down for generations to come).

These two enhancements also mean a little more time is required to assemble the letters before they're mailed.

Which means…

Unfortunately, Issue No. 2 won't be mailed out until Monday——maybe even Tuesday.

However, this delay is worth it.

Why?

Because such details matter. They are meaningful to me and, they're meaningful to the people I care about.

As you go into this weekend, remind yourself to lean into the things——and here's the key——lean into the things that you already find meaning in!

That is all.

I have spoken.

Warm regards,

And stay crispy, my friend.

Scott P. Scheper

"The Man Leading a Movement To Make Intellectuals, Writers, and Creatives Prosperous Again"