Benjamin Franklin was the original American "PDF Hustler." Of course, they didn't have PDFs back in Franklin's time, but they did have Almanacs. The first Almanac in North America was published in 1639. And Almanacs are a sort of compilation book published annually with a calendar and all sorts of wisdom. Almanacs were common when Franklin published "Poor Richard's Almanac" on December 19, 1732. Even Franklin's brother, James Franklin, had published an Almanac.
I got halfway through this article before I checked who the author is and was surprised to see your name on it, and really glad, because it ventures outside of your usual engineering focus, and it has always felt to me that there is so much more to your skills, insight, and competency that I look forward to seeing more of. And it didn't know this about Benjamin Franklin. That he funded all that he contributed with one great writing project is totally inspiring.
Thanks for the kind words and for reading it Rick!
Was hoping to point out the silliness of an idea that’s holding some people back from trying.
People making money off of what they know and through writing is of course even older than Benjamin Franklin. But when I recently learned this is how he got wealthy I knew right away he’s damn good role model for those of us writing and sharing what we know.
Judging by those quotes, Benjamin Franklin would have loved twitter! 😂
I think so, it’s very likely he would’ve well on there.
Ben Franklin is such an interesting case study, for several reasons. In addition to being a PDF hustler, the "Junto" he founded (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junto_(club) is an early model for curing intellectual loneliness and perhaps, writing from conversation. Then there's the way he taught himself to improve his writing (https://observer.com/2016/12/the-benjamin-franklin-method-how-to-actually-be-a-better-writer/). Sorry for the long links, but hope they prove interesting!
Happy to be part of this digital Junto. Man reading about this makes me want to organize a modern version of it !
I got halfway through this article before I checked who the author is and was surprised to see your name on it, and really glad, because it ventures outside of your usual engineering focus, and it has always felt to me that there is so much more to your skills, insight, and competency that I look forward to seeing more of. And it didn't know this about Benjamin Franklin. That he funded all that he contributed with one great writing project is totally inspiring.
Thanks for the kind words and for reading it Rick!
Was hoping to point out the silliness of an idea that’s holding some people back from trying.
People making money off of what they know and through writing is of course even older than Benjamin Franklin. But when I recently learned this is how he got wealthy I knew right away he’s damn good role model for those of us writing and sharing what we know.
Beautifully written! Quite engaging
Love it! 🙏 I didn't anything about this. How cool
Great read Louie. Never heard the term 'PDF Hustler' until about 20 mins ago 😅
> The Original "PDF Hustler"
This is a great title. Well freakin' done, Louie 👍
This couldn't have been written at a better time for me. I was close to giving up on finishing my workbook/guide. I SHALL BECOME A PDF HUSTLER