3 Key Takeaways For Makers From "Every Tool's A Hammer" By Adam Savage
In 2022, I read Adam Savage's book, "Every Tool's A Hammer," the first time and it had a profound impact on how I operate as a Maker and creator.
In the mid-2000's, I discovered MythBusters starting Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman and was immediately hooked. I loved seeing how people could create ways to scientifically test whether common myths were real or not. Later in 2015, I discovered that Adam had joined the Tested team and was putting out videos about Making things—which was around when I was first getting intrigued about Making things.
As I have progressed and developed as a Maker myself, Adam's advice and stories from "Every Tool's A Hammer" keep coming back to me, but 3 key takeaways stand above the rest.
Key Takeaway 1: Embrace Your Weird Passions
"...when you follow that secret thrill, ideas pool out from the woodwork and shake out the trees as the gravity of your interest pulls you farther down the rabbit hole." (p. 12)
Adam previously worked at Industrial Light & Magic, including model work on The Phantom Menace, and has learned first-hand how successful once can become by diving deeper into what you're passionate about. On Tested, he's backed up his words by building things he's passionate about from Star Wars, Blade Runner, and a variety of space suits inspired by both sci-fi and reality. The Tested team has even been able to interview the creators behind recent shows and movies to highlight how much work goes into props and costumes.
Adam's advice to dig through the bottom of the rabbit hole is directly why I embraced my love of Star Wars and decided to build a full-themed workshop and home office.
Key Takeaway 2: Your Workshop Is A Reflection Of You
"Every shop, in this sense, is an individual philosophical discours about how we work, one held up by personal beliefs that, like anything, evolve with time and experience and wisdom, but are always a reflection of you." (p. 215)
Adam is well-known for his obsession with knolling: arranging items parallel or at right angles to each other in a highly organized manner. However, he also admits that he likes seeing people's workshops that are little much to take in all at once. Whether you're OCD and want everything to be in a perfect place or more scattered working on many projects at a time, your workshop tells more about your Maker mindset than your words ever will.
Realizing my workshop is a reflection of me made me realize that my workshop was boring, meaning I was a boring Maker and I am endeavoring to fix both my mindset and workshop to reflect the Maker I want to be.
Key Takeaway 3: Sweep Up At The End Of Every Day
"My entire organizational strategy, every second of sweeping and straightening I do at the end of each day, is about keeping up the momentum of my making." (p. 285)
Admittedly, this has been easier said than done for me the last couple of months and my workshop is a wreck. But Adam makes a solid point about clutter killing momentum. My best days in the workshop are when I've come in, everything is already put away, my project parts are readily and easily available, and I can start Making immediately when I get there.
While more aspirational for me right now, keeping my shop clean and tidy helps me to have more time and mental bandwidth to make things and not be concerned about doing things just to be able to start for the day.
