The next thing in my reading pile, besides Boxing Digest (don't ask), was “Fast Company,” which I pretty much devour. I can’t really start reading it until I have time to finish.

I was most impressed with the cover story on Mike Rowe, the dude from Dirty Jobs on Discovery Channel. I’m always fascinated by people like this guy—people who can take a concept they’re passionate about and turn it into an empire. There are lots of these people I’m thinking about lately: Rachael Ray, Martha Stewart, Norm Abram. I study up on them because they are inspiring to me. Back to Mike, here’s a quote from the editor, which describes the phenomenon nicely.

“Rowe, until recently, was a screwup. He worked a sequence of low-end acting gigs, more intent on entertaining himself than on having an impact.

“Then he discovered Dirty Jobs--or more precisely, created it. He found a way to use his particular skills effectively, and he found the motivation to act on those skills. And it all worked.

“Rowe is on the cover not just because his compelling personal saga illuminates how entertainment networks operate and the resurgence of cable’s Discovery Communications (which airs Dirty Jobs)—though it certainly does that. But Rowe’s story also allows us to examine and underappreciated aspect of economic success: the genius of expertly executed craftsmanship.”

Also in the issue: Duncan Watts says Gladwell’s Tipping Point is bunk (it's backed up quite nicely with lovely research and numbers and things). My take is that Watts is smarter than Gladwell on this issue because he's an actual researcher--his book is not bad either.