In today's episode, I talk about the importance of synthesis to the process of creating novel things. I also discuss our obsession with originality and "creating from nothing." Today's episode is sponsored by DigitalOcean. Go to https://digitalocean.com to get started, and use the promo code "DeveloperTea" on the billing page after you create your account to get a $10 credit!

Today, I interview Daniel Rapp, creator of the Doppler.js library. Daniel is a computer science student in Sweden who is constantly investigating the intersection of math and creativity using code. Doppler became popular on GitHub, despite the fact that it isn't practically useful for most developers; this interested me, so I decided to reach out to Daniel. Show notes can be found at http://developertea.com/episodes/11297 Thanks to today's sponsor, Codeschool! http://codeschool.com/?ref=devtea

In today's episode, listener Summit asks about how to search for a new job while being employed, and how to keep from getting to exhausted. This episode is sponsored by Intuit. Check out the developer sandbox and API explorer at http://intuit.me/DevTea to get started building apps for millions of small business *today!*

In today's episode, I discuss the importance of relying on obviousness when designing software and user interfaces, and when you should be utilizing surprise. Today's episode is sponsored by DigitalOcean. Go to https://digitalocean.com to get started, and use the promo code "DeveloperTea" on the billing page after you create your account to get a $10 credit!

Matt is a beginner developer who is making a shift to support his new life situation, in which he is unable to work a normal 9-to-5 job in an office. Matt sent me an email asking a few questions about this shift, and how he should begin to learn. This episode is sponsored by OneMonth.com. Head over to OneMonth.com/developertea to get started learning Ruby on Rails in just one month, and receive a limited-time 25% discount!

In this week's inspiration episode starts with a quote from Brian Eno, a highly influential musician and audio engineer, about limiting options in order to better take advantage of our efforts.

Scott Belsky (http://twitter.com/@ScottBelsky) is the VP Products & Community at Adobe and cofounder of Behance. Scott is also a successful investor in major tech companies such as Periscope and Uber. Scott and I talk about the fundamental nature of creativity, why he created Behance, staying focused, the value of formal education, and what he wishes more people would ask him. Finally, at the end of the second part of the interview, Scott shares specific advice for developers who are wanting to work better with visionaries. Enjoy the interview! This episode is sponsored by Intuit. Check out the developer sandbox and API explorer at http://intuit.me/DevTea to get started building apps for millions of small business *today!*

Scott Belsky is the VP Products & Community at Adobe and cofounder of Behance. Scott is also a successful investor in major tech companies such as Periscope and Uber. Scott and I talk about the fundamental nature of creativity, why he created Behance, staying focused, the value of formal education, and what he wishes more people would ask him. Finally, at the end of the second part of the interview, Scott shares specific advice for developers who are wanting to work better with visionaries. Enjoy the interview!

In today's episode, we discuss the importance of standards and standards bodies for web technologies, specifically for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript specs. Today's episode is sponsored by DigitalOcean. Go to https://digitalocean.com to get started, and use the promo code "DeveloperTea" on the billing page after you create your account to get a $10 credit!

In this episode, long-time listener Devin asks about how to grasp things that go over his head. You're not alone, Devin! In this episode, I give you (and others just like you) encouragement in the midst of your confusion, as well as some more practical advice for learning something new. Today's sponsor is OneMonth.com - go to OneMonth.com/developertea and enroll today to get 25% off your first month!

In today's episode, I talk with Hampton Catlin about fast Sass compilation with libsass, and then we discuss his latest project, Wordset, and why we need a truly open source dictionary. Further show notes can be found at http://developertea.com! This episode is sponsored by Intuit. Check out the developer sandbox and API explorer at http://intuit.me/DevTea

In this episode, I sat down with Hampton Catlin to talk about his Ruby survey, the implications of the data, and about the evolution (and naming) of Sass. Show notes can be found at http://developertea.com

In today's inspiration episode, I discuss the importance of removing barriers between you and your most important work, and why that is such an important thing to do. I then discuss 3 practical steps you can try that have helped me get to my focus state, and get more meaningful work done every day. Today's episode is sponsored by DigitalOcean. Go to https://digitalocean.com to get started, and use the promo code "DeveloperTea" on the billing page after you create your account to get a $10 credit!

Pamela Vickers and I sat down at Ancient City Ruby to talk about culture, conferences, and ping pong. And it was awesome. - [RailsGirls Atlanta](http://railsgirls.com/atl) - [PERMA](http://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Citation/2012/11000/PERMA___A_Model_for_Institutional_Leadership_and.25.aspx) - [MINSWAN](http://blog.emmacodes.com/post/55841830917/minswan) - [Ruby Dramas](https://twitter.com/rubydramas) - [(Avoiding) Ruby Drama](http://rubydrama.com/) - [Hampton's Ruby Survey](http://www.askr.me/)

Pamela Vickers and I sat down at Ancient City Ruby to talk about culture, conferences, and ping pong. And it was awesome. - [@pwnela](http://twitter.com/pwnela) - [RailsGirls Atlanta](http://railsgirls.com/atl) - [PERMA](http://journals.lww.com/academicmedicine/Citation/2012/11000/PERMA___A_Model_for_Institutional_Leadership_and.25.aspx) - [MINSWAN](http://blog.emmacodes.com/post/55841830917/minswan) - [Ruby Dramas](https://twitter.com/rubydramas) - [(Avoiding) Ruby Drama](http://rubydrama.com/) - [Hampton's Ruby Survey](http://www.askr.me/)

In today's episode, Clyde asks about learning to code while on the road. If you've ever tried to focus in a new environment, or if you are learning to code while changing locations, this episode is for you!

Ben Lesh is a senior UI engineer at Netflix, where he works on projects that use reactive programming in JavaScript to manage massive amounts of data. Ben talks with me about a variety of topics, focusing on reactive programming and data stream processing. Ben also gives his advice to you, whether you are a young developer or well into your career. Make sure you Tweet at Ben at https://twitter.com/benlesh and thank him for coming on the show! Today's episode is sponsored by DigitalOcean. Go to https://digitalocean.com to get started, and use the promo code "DeveloperTea" on the billing page after you create your account to get a $10 credit!

Ben Lesh is a senior UI engineer at Netflix, where he works on projects that use reactive programming in JavaScript to manage massive amounts of data. Ben talks with me about a variety of topics, focusing on reactive programming and data stream processing. Ben also gives his advice to you, whether you are a young developer or well into your career. Make sure you Tweet at Ben at https://twitter.com/benlesh and thank him for coming on the show!

How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives. But how can we get a better grasp on time? In this episode, I share a simple tip that exploits our brain's natural tendency to take shortcuts to help you better experience time and avoid the feeling of "time flying by" faster than you'd like. Today's episode is sponsored by OneMonth.com - go to http://onemonth.com/developertea to get 25% off your first month!

In this episode, we talk about "best practices" and advice, and what you should do with those things in your day to day life. Today's episode sponsored by Intuit! Head over to http://intuit.me/DevTea to get started!