On identity crises, the mind, and human potential Photo by Philipp Berndt on Unsplash The topic of personal identity is a big deal. People can spend their whole lives just trying to find out who they are. And people’s conceptions of who they are can radically change after certain life events, or certain experiences they go… Read More »Who Are You, Anyway?
Rethinking the narrative about career and life goals Photo by Caleb Jones on Unsplash When I was a kid, it was clear to me that my father really disliked his job. Aside from the many nights he didn’t see me before I went to bed — and the early mornings when I woke up and he was already gone — he… Read More »Doing What You Love vs. Loving What You Do
A study in reframing and appreciation Photo by Gabriella Clare Marino on Unsplash I worked with this guy, call him Josh (not his real name), for a few years. He was a bit younger than me, and after he had been t at the company for about 2 years, I became his manager. In an effort… Read More »The Profundity of Everyday Things
What an encounter with some scared crustaceans taught me about how we pursue the important things in our lives Image by Clickphoto Switzerland from Pixabay I had the pleasure this past week of visiting Tampa on a business trip. My home base in Illinois has remained relatively cold as of late, so it was nice to spend… Read More »Of Crab-Catching, Chasing Happiness, and Strategic Sitting and Waiting
A story of how we’ve muddied the waters and how a heartfelt letter of resignation reminded me of an important little idea I’ve been overlooking Photo by Duangphorn Wiriya on Unsplash Whatever your thing is, whatever passion you have, it has an origin. It’s that place where for you at least, it all started. For me,… Read More »What If I’ve Got This Productivity Thing All Wrong?
The different reasons why we create things, and the possibility of an idyllic place where they all converge Photo by Tyler Franta on Unsplash Over my time creating things, I’ve heard three conflicting messages about the reasons why a person should create. Let’s call them the 3 modes. And the longer I continued to create things, the… Read More »The Fourth Mode of Creative Work
An essay on the motivational forces that pull us from and push us toward doing our best work, and how I deal with them Photo by Dollar Gill on Unsplash I have struggled with procrastination for as long as I can remember. As a kid, being asked to clean my minimally messy room turned into a day… Read More »Pleasure, Pride, and Procrastination
No matter our job or circumstances, we all have customers, and serving them is our most important and beneficial work Photo by fauxels from Pexels My first job was as a bagger at a grocery store about a mile from my house. Every day, after clocking in, I had to check in at the front desk… Read More »Customer Service as a Way of Life
A run-down of the most impactful books I’ve read so far this year, and what I took away from them Photo by Tom Hermans on Unsplash At the beginning of the year, I hopped on the 12-week year wagon. That is, I began setting goals and measuring my activity based on 12-week intervals that I treat like… Read More »The 7 Books That Gave Me a Productive Start to the Year
When life as we knew it turned upside-down, I was fortunate enough to pick up a few helpful pieces of insight along the way Photo by Ronaldo Santos on Unsplash As for most people in the U.S., my life was turned upside-down around March 15th, 2020. We had been hearing about COVID-19 for a few months, and… Read More »5 Valuable Life Lessons From a Year of Quarantine
