Ed CatmulCreativity, Inc.
Craft is what we are expected to know; art is the unexpected use of our craft.
No. 03 of 09
Read everything. Build what matters. Share what works.
I build software, I’ve reviewed 184 of the 588 books I’ve read, and I’ve run Nobo House, a camp at Burning Man, for over eight years. Written for what you can use this week.
Working on
- Writing four essays from the playa.
- Reading The Extended Mind.
- Building agentic workflows.
Updated October 2026
On the desk · four essays from the playa
One drafted, three to go. Nothing published yet.
- 1Building the camp management platformPlanned · Nobo
- 2Building a Google Photos alternative with ImmichPlanned · Playa Lens
- 3Building the marketing side with DDEV on WordPressPlanned · Nobo Blog
- 4
What Burning Man Taught Me About Agentic Engineering
Lessons from deploying agentic systems under extreme environmental and operational constraints at Burning Man: tool design for ambiguity, graceful degradation, observability under stress, and human override.
In draft. Not published.
On the nightstand · 5 books
The newest start on top.
- The Extended MindDec 27
- Games People PlayDec 22
- Team IntelligenceOct 25
- Goddesses in EverywomanJun 6
- The King WithinJun 6
Started between June and December 2025.The bookshelf
Writing
Last published April 2020.
Five to start with
- 20167 min
The Edge of Tomorrow's Habits
We are what we repeatedly do.
- 201410 min
Discovering how to love reading, to read more and smarter
I hated reading when I was younger because it seemed like I was being sentenced to read as a punishment or forced to read something of little importance to my interests.
- 20189 min
The 5 Most Important Mindsets for Growth
The most important mindsets to cultivate to aid in the journey in becoming a better version of yourself.
- 20164 min
Reflections on Mortality and the Drive for Success
A discussion came up around the observation that for some people the fear of death cripples them and prevents them from truly living and for other's it gives them a spark to live.
- 20163 min
The Emotional Journal
Emotional Intelligence contains multiple areas that include knowing one's emotions: Self-awareness, Managing emotions, and Motivating oneself.
Latest
- The Best Books I've Read in 20191 min
- My 3 Words for 20203 min
- The Writing Toolkit2 min
- 2018 Annual Review31 min
- My 3 Words for 20193 min
- The Best Books I've Read in 20181 min
- How I use Evernote2 min
- So how was Burning Man?10 min
75 posts, 2013 to 2020Evergreen notes
2026 in three words.
I choose them from the problems of the years before, so I know what to do when I don’t.
Transmute
A pledge to lean more into my inner alchemist to transfer and create. To meet change with change.
Harvest
Planting seeds can be a comfort zone. It’s time to harvest and receive even a fraction of the goodwill I’ve put out into communities and the world.
Honor
A quest to become a better leader and increase the weight and consistency of my word and actions.
Library
Recently added
Added to the site in Mar 2026. Most were read years earlier.
Seven Brief Lessons on PhysicsA narrative based tour of the essential physics discoveries that have changed the world and…
Stumbling on HappinessIn Stumbling on Happiness, Daniel Gilbert focuses on errors in our thinking that prevent us…
The Doodle RevolutionThe Doodle Revolution is sparking change in the perception for doodling being a valid and…
The Principles of Object-Oriented JavaScript'Almost' everything in Javascript is an Object; JavaScript-Object to be exact. Similar but…
The Internet of MoneyBasic over of bitcoin and blockchain technology. Andreas focuses more on the vision of…
Visual FinanceAn alternative teaching of an involved topic, aimed at beginners to learn financial…
Highlights
Select quotes
Anti-library
Help me pick my next book.
AI Engineering
An Elegant Puzzle
Range
The Art of Doing Science and Engineering
The Culture Code
Every vote counts toward this season’s pick.
Tools I use
All 112 tools
Claude CodeAnthropic's terminal-based agentic coding tool that reads, edits, and runs code…
Peak StrengthAthlete oriented training app that has well programed workouts across sport &…
WarpModern GPU-accelerated terminal with AI command suggestions, blocks, and…
ObsidianLocal-first markdown knowledge base with bidirectional linking and a plugin…
Open ClawOpen-source agentic CLI tool for autonomous coding workflows and automation
Lazy GitTerminal UI for Git that makes staging, committing, branching, and rebasing fast…
The ideas I keep coming back to.
Four threads that run through everything I read, build, and lead.
01Servant Leadership
Helping people become their best selves is also how I become mine.
I lead from the front and care more about people than status. I realized I was a leader when others kept trusting me with responsibility.
02Systems Thinking
Building systems feels like a game to me, and I love compounding improvements over time.
I see patterns across people, institutions, and technology. I turn those patterns into clearer systems and better decisions.
03Generalized Specialist
I do my best work at the intersection of disciplines.
I studied design, switched to business, and taught myself to code. Along the way, I've organized communities, run events, and advised startups.
04Continuous Learner
Curiosity keeps me moving.
I run experiments, study what works, and apply the lesson to the next attempt. I want to keep learning about myself, other people, and the world for life.
Who I learn from
Lately I keep learning from 
Eckhart Tolle, 
Naval Ravikant and 
Charlie Munger.
Discipline, curiosity, and the long game.
I grew up in the Bronx, raised by a single mother who taught me to value resourcefulness over resources. In high school I ran an underground candy business to pay tuition. In college I studied design and business, then taught myself to code. Each leap taught the same lesson: learn fast, build with what you have, iterate.
Today I'm a senior engineer at Truffle Security. I lead Nobo House, a 100-person Burning Man camp now in its 8th year, and I run a 2,000-person personal development community in NYC. About 50 books a year, 450+ and counting. The about page has the full story, including the turning points I almost missed.
- “Discipline is compassion for your future self”
- “Read everything, apply what survives the second look”
- “Build rooms where people become who they're trying to be”