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I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream For… [The] Oatmeal?

Posted by on Aug 30, 2010 | 4 Comments

There should be an image here!Matt Inman didn’t come to Gnomedex to discuss baking. He wasn’t explaining how his mom fixed his breakfast. He stood before us on the big stage to tell us his recipe for success. Matt IS The Oatmeal. His cartoons and quizzes are legendary. His is a story of passion and dedication, of laughter and late nights, and of skyrocketing over the top of that “other” type of oatmeal within a Google search. This, my friends, is the stuff dreams are made of. Meeting Matt in person and realizing what a fun and humble person he is just adds the proverbial icing to the cake — or would that be on the cookies?


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27-year-old Matt Inman draws, sketches, and codes his way to a successful business making people laugh. His site, receiving more than four million unique hits per month, was recently named in Time Magazine’s Top Blogs of 2010.

Behind his wit and unassuming presence, Matt has a powerful story about his journey and how social media played a role in his success. His experience includes co-founder of SEOmoz,and founder and creator of an online dating website which he later sold, Mingle2 (the entire site from concept to launch was built in only 66.5 hours). He now focuses his energies full time on The Oatmeal.

  • Jaded James

    This advice is all “ideal world” stuff.

    Yes, in an ideal world, we’d all have bosses that would appreciate hard-working employees and would reward such efforts, and you’d be judged solely by your ability to deliver and nothing else.

    However, in the real corporate world, you’ll probably have many layers of management above you.  They’re probably looking for an easy time and to do as little as possible, so any real hard-work from you makes them look bad.  When this happens, you’re screwed.  They’ll be out to get you, and they will succeed simply because they hold rank over you.

    Always remember that in most organizations, it takes far more “politics” than actual real hard work to get ahead.

    • http://twitter.com/MattRyan Matt Ryan

      I beg to differ. Thinking outside the box (and the example given) won me two promotions within a year at a sizable local government department. I wouldn’t call that bureaucracy an ideal situation. 

      The manager that told me about dressing for the job you want went on to become one of the highest ranked corporate consultants, and people she promoted through the years have almost all achieved a great level of success within or outside of the company.

      Yes, there are some politics involved in getting where you want to go, but that’s where the last tip about taking ownership and conveying an honest approach when dealing with management. Stepping on people’s toes may get you where you want to go in the short-term, but you’re far more likely to gain the respect of your managers and the people under you by being a genuine individual.

      • Wayne Allen

        Everyone is different. I think outside the box. I redesign things to be more efficient, safer, or cost effective. I work extremities hard and will literally push my body to the breaking point. But, there is one thing that holds me back. A promotion requires a huge increase in paperwork. I am not so good with keeping up with paperwork unless I am allowed to structure my own file organization. So, I will never get a promotion at my employer because paperwork must be organized the way they say it should be. I can’t do it. I can go above and beyond everywhere else and literally save the company thousands of dollars… but my one weakness keeps me on the bottom rung.

        Ok, I have two weaknesses. I often am too passionate. I treat the business I work for as if it is my own. I actually care too much if it succeeds or fails. Shame really.

  • http://twitter.com/MattRyan Matt Ryan

    Sometimes, you just can’t change a doomed professional interaction. These tips are meant to serve as tips, rather than guaranteed methods of success. You can’t make all of the people happy all of the time.