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Andreas Riedmüller
Andreas Riedmüller

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Finding good things isn’t easy.

The stuff that’s easy to find is usually monetized. And if it’s monetized, chances are it was made with money in mind. The truly good things hide behind the noise—the loud, obvious, and easy-to-digest.

You have to dig. You have to put in effort to discover good software, music, art, literature, and more. There is quality in the mainstream—because there has to be. But often, even greater quality lives in the niches, where it’s free. Free from the pressure to monetize. Free from the need to meet expectations. Free from compromise.

Of course, there’s also plenty of trash. But if you keep searching, if you keep digging, your taste sharpens, and with it, your world expands.

Just typing “Techno” into Spotify and expecting to find greatness is naïve. The treasures lie deeper.

Instead, try exploring the subgenres of techno. Ask, for example, Perplexity: “Which SoundCloud accounts have good DJ sets for this subgenre?” Suddenly your path becomes less predictable. You might stumble across a DJ with only 500 followers who happens to have uploaded an 800-play mix—his personal collection of strange and wonderful techno.

The same is true for software, programming libraries, tutorials, live advice, and so on.

Always remember: don’t get too comfortable. Stay a little awkward, and keep doing things in your own unique way.

Top comments (2)

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Jamey Harris

Nice posting! Interested in talking to you. Could you share your email address?

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Andreas Riedmüller

Sure! Just convince me you are not a 🤖