Episode 20 · · 1:32:03
Homeschooling, Community Confidence, and Being Human at Work with Abby Covert
About this episode
Abby Covert shares what excites her now, leaving corporate life, reclaiming creativity through recovery work, sobriety, journaling, and disciplined writing, and how community builds confidence beyond capability. They explore being willing to be bad at things, the pressure to “pick a specialty” online, and bringing fun and psychological safety into work by modeling humanity. They also talk about knowledge decay on the web, AI’s mixed effects, and Abby recommends listening to live Grateful Dead recordings.
Links:
◉ How to Make Sense of Any Mess — Abby Covert's first book (mentioned via the "coffee filter" metaphor)
◉ Stuck — Abby Covert's second book, written during her early recovery
◉ Silent Spring — Rachel Carson's landmark book, discussed in the context of posthumous recognition
◉ Grateful Dead — Abby's music recommendation; suggests listening to live recordings
◉ Dick's Picks — Grateful Dead live album series, recommended for newcomers
◉ Live at the Mars Hotel — Brad's Grateful Dead recommendation
◉ Furthur — Post-Dead touring band
◉ Dead & Company — Current continuation of the Grateful Dead legacy
◉ Otis Redding — "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay" — Discussed as an example of posthumous impact
◉ abbycovert.com — Abby's personal site
◉ thesensemakersclub.com — Abby's membership community (weekly discussion meetings)
◉ Be Internet Awesome — Google's internet safety curriculum for grades 2–9
◉ Wayback Machine — Internet Archive, mentioned in discussion of digital decay/link rot
◉ The Pastry Box Project — Defunct web publication both Brad and Abby contributed to
◉ YouTube — Discussed in context of parental controls and kids' online safety
◉ ChatGPT — Referenced in discussion of AI democratization and vibe coding
◉ Wix — Website builder mentioned in the "mouth coding" story
◉ LinkedIn — Discussed critically re: pressure to specialize publicly
◉ Ikigai — Japanese concept of life purpose, referenced via Alfie Lowe's Venn diagram renovation
◉ The Artist's Way (Morning Pages) — Julia Cameron's journaling practice Abby used in recovery
◉ Indie Web movement — Brad references the ethos of personal websites and decentralized publishing
◉ Information Architecture Institute — Abby was president; discussed in context of community and link rot
◉ Etsy — Abby's last corporate employer before going independent
◉ Stax Records — Memphis label, discussed in context of Otis Redding and posthumous work
◉ Epic Universe — New Universal theme park in Florida; Abby's family visited to celebrate her son's reading milestone
Topics Covered:
- (00:00) - Homeschool Wins
- (01:05) - SenseMaker Salon Plans
- (01:51) - Leaving Corporate Comfort
- (04:51) - Learning While Being Bad
- (06:30) - Public Failure Online
- (08:37) - Make It Up
- (11:53) - Information Is Sketchy
- (14:38) - Reclaiming Creativity
- (18:12) - Recovery Journaling Rituals
- (21:32) - Community Builds Confidence
- (24:47) - Mentors And Role Models
- (29:28) - Bringing Fun To Work
- (32:15) - Authenticity In Meetings
- (37:09) - Cracking Tough Nuts
- (43:27) - Teaching Internet Safety
- (45:04) - Kids Online Boundaries
- (46:23) - YouTube Parental Controls Fail
- (47:56) - Internet Safety Curriculum
- (48:43) - Schools Lag Behind Tech
- (51:01) - AI Adoption Timelines
- (54:35) - Digital Decay and Link Rot
- (56:27) - Indie Web and Collective Memory
- (01:00:08) - AI Democratization Limits
- (01:01:45) - Mouth Coding for Nonprofits
- (01:06:08) - When Vibe Coding Breaks
- (01:11:36) - Human Culture and Agency
- (01:15:20) - Privilege Diversity and Consulting
- (01:24:37) - Coffee Filter Discernment
- (01:27:54) - Grateful Dead Community
- (01:30:42) - Where to Find Abby
- (01:31:28) - Closing Thanks
- (01:31:50) - Morning Excitement Check
Chapters
- 0:00 Homeschool Wins
- 1:05 SenseMaker Salon Plans
- 1:51 Leaving Corporate Comfort
- 4:51 Learning While Being Bad
- 6:30 Public Failure Online
- 8:37 Make It Up
- 11:53 Information Is Sketchy
- 14:38 Reclaiming Creativity
- 18:12 Recovery Journaling Rituals
- 21:32 Community Builds Confidence
- 24:47 Mentors And Role Models
- 29:28 Bringing Fun To Work
- 32:15 Authenticity In Meetings
- 37:09 Cracking Tough Nuts
- 43:27 Teaching Internet Safety
- 45:04 Kids Online Boundaries
- 46:23 YouTube Parental Controls Fail
- 47:56 Internet Safety Curriculum
- 48:43 Schools Lag Behind Tech
- 51:01 AI Adoption Timelines
- 54:35 Digital Decay and Link Rot
- 56:27 Indie Web and Collective Memory
- 1:00:08 AI Democratization Limits
- 1:01:45 Mouth Coding for Nonprofits
- 1:06:08 When Vibe Coding Breaks
- 1:11:36 Human Culture and Agency
- 1:15:20 Privilege Diversity and Consulting
- 1:24:37 Coffee Filter Discernment
- 1:27:54 Grateful Dead Community
- 1:30:42 Where to Find Abby
- 1:31:28 Closing Thanks
- 1:31:50 Morning Excitement Check
About Abby Covert
- abbycovert.com (everything she's written) and thesensemakersclub.com (The Sensemakers Club — her membership community running daily weekday meetings). Not very active on social media.
Abby Covert's music pick
The Grateful Dead — especially the live recordings (start with Dick's Picks rather than the studio albums). Abby loves the Dead as much for the longstanding, mutual-aid community around the band as for the music itself.