TL;DR - yes, I'm doing a Black Friday thing at 50% off a subscription to this new site, with some new content. I also have a gift option with the same discount. If you're curious about my roadmap, it's below.
The holiday season is a very interesting time, especially when you're not married and your family has grown and moved on into their own lives. In some ways it's kind of nice as you get to "do something different", such as take yourself on a nice trip, or go to a friend's house instead of flying/driving to be with family.
That's what I did every year for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, even when I was married. We would leave Hawaii and fly out to California or Oregon, and it was always a fun change of pace. The cold of winter, the smell of pine trees or, if we were lucky, a bit of snow.
This year is a first for me: I'm doing none of those things. My kids have decided to stay where they are and be with friends, and given that my mom passed in the summer, I figured I would just stay where I am too. Why not?
I won't be alone, which would be fine if it was the case, as I've been invited to share the day with my girlfriend, who's amazing in every way. But I won't lie: it's a new thing for me, and I like new things.
Let The Past Go
I love the line from Kylo Ren in The Last Jedi:
Let the past die. Kill it if you have to. It's the only way to become what you were meant to be...
I remember when I saw the movie in the theater, thinking that it was a bit out of place for a pop sci-fi flick. I mean, let's face it, the entire late Star Wars series was ... not exactly fine cinema. The Last Jedi was so derivative and trite... but I would never walk out. It's Star Wars, after all.
Anyway: Kylo's notion of letting the past die is also balanced by "letting the future happen" in its own time. This aligns perfectly with a Zen quote I love (at least I think it's a Zen quote):
The past is depression. The future anxiety. Now is truth and happiness.
You might be wondering what all of this has to do with Black Friday? Well let me tell you...
Go Ahead, You Deserve It
Given that I'm not traveling anywhere this holiday season, I decided I was going to treat myself to a few things. Not big things, mind you, just things I've had on my Amazon wish list for a while, and also a piece of nice art that I have been wanting for months but thought it was a bit out of reach.
Things that don't fit the budget, in other words. I know that someday I could afford them, but today is right now so ... what happens if I just... do it? Treat myself like I would a loved one during the holidays?
So I did. I also subscribed to a few services to keep my mind sharp. I like the NY Times Crossword, so I subbed to the games app. I'm also going to (finally) subscribe to MasterClass and, I think, give Jeff Delaney my long-deserved business over at Fireship.
Which got me thinking...
An Option For You
I just condensed all of my content (books, videos, AI stuff) into this site (bigmachine.io) and have opened up annual memberships and yes, that link is a 50% off Black Friday deal. Creating content has been a bit of a struggle over the years given my job at Microsoft, but now that I'm independent again, I figure that I might as well do my best to stay that way.
To be specific, the annual membership includes:
- All of my books (Imposter's Handbook, Imposter's Roadmap, A Curious Moon) which, right there, covers the cost.
- All of my courses (8 of them currently), including the latest AI workshop available only at thenext.dev.
- All of the premium videos from thenext.dev, which show you how to create MCP servers, develop your own tutorials, and more.
In short, there is a lot of stuff here. If I was to put a price tag on these materials, it would approach $1K at least. But it's yours for $99 during Black Friday.
You might be wondering what I have planned, as well? Well here you go:
- I'm actively recording my next AI workshop, focused on advanced uses. Things like having Claude create prompts for you, and how to orchestrate things so you end up prompting very little - sometimes not at all - with incredible results.
- I finished recording a series of videos on GitHub, focused on self-taught people who want to flex GitHub as they move up the ladder at work, into a senior role. From solid profiles to management tactics, devops, and more - this will be a fun one.
- A practical guide for productivity and improvement to get through Imposter Syndrome. A lot of people have asked for this, and I'm still framing it, but I think I have a good outline coming together.
- A complete revamp of the Imposter videos, which I'm calling The Missing CS Degree. I figure with AI coming into the picture more and more, learning Computer Science is getting interesting. This will likely be a series of premium videos until I can pull together into a course.
That's the plan, for now. Your input, as always, will be extremely helpful with this roadmap!
An Option As a Gift
I've also spent the last few days wiring up a gift option. If you wanted to give someone the gift of learning (especially if they're a self-taught programmer) they might like this. A lot. Be sure the coupon 99IUHSKL is applied, if not, for the Black Friday discount.
If you click on the link above, you'll see a little video explaining how it all works, which is, in short:
- You add your friend's name and email at checkout.
- A web hook fires that adds their name and email to this site, which is powered by Ghost.
- A complementary subscription is created for them, for one year. None of your payment details are saved and they can renew, if they want, at year end (not free).
- You let them know whenever you like, and I even have fun graphics you can use!
That's it.
As Always: Thank You!
I'm very grateful to be able to share what I learn with all of you. I think it's the best job imaginable, and I would love to make it my full time thing, once again.
I hope your holidays are wonderful, even if you're on your own. Sometimes it's nice to treat yourself as your own best friend, making yourself a nice dinner, and buying something nice, even if it's just a nice potted plant.
Wishing you the best!
Rob
Yes, I wrote every word myself. I never use AI to produce content.
