Hey Reader! I just returned from Houston, where I saw Brené Brown speak to an audience of event professionals. Best known for her book Dare to Lead, Brown is a researcher, storyteller, and (in her words: currently enraged) Texan who’s spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy. Although she spoke for only 45 minutes, days later, I'm still considering potential applications. So, here's a few thoughts to chew on. I'll share others in the following weeks. To...
8 days ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader! Did they ever make you read William Golding’s Lord of the Flies in high school? In case you got to skip it, I’ll summarize: A group of schoolboys stranded on a desert island quickly devolve from well-behaved kids into murderous barbarians. That book has been translated into more than 30 languages, made into a film and helped win its author a Nobel Prize for literature. But it also reinforces a stereotype about human behavior that isn’t true. You see, Golding’s story is based on...
15 days ago • 3 min read
Hey Reader! I invite you to pause and reflect before we head into the new year. Consider these questions: What do you want to leave behind? What do you want to bring forward? What do you want to achieve? There’s a twelve-night ritual that stretches from the end of December through early January that my friend Frauke introduced me to. It helps me identify what I want to focus on and what I can let go of. It’s called Rauhnächte (rough or smoky night). Its origins come from the 11 days/12 nights...
29 days ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader! Yesterday, I met with childhood friends. The conversation turned, as it does, to politics. “Clients on both sides were worried,” said my friend, the advisor. “If Kamala won, one client said he would move to New Zealand. Another said he would leave if Trump won.” She laughed. “I told them, ‘Don’t go anywhere. America’s been here a long time. No matter what happens, it’ll still be here.” That was sage advice. We have much more in common than the media, political pundits, or some...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader! My grandfather was fond of telling me, “Knowledge is power.” He’d ask, “What’s the strongest muscle in the body?” And to his delight, I’d shout out, “The brain!” But one day I learned that the brain isn’t a muscle, it’s an organ. The next time Grandpa asked me about the strongest muscle, I told him it was probably the jaw. When pressed, I added that the thigh and buttocks were also very strong muscles. “It’s the brain!” he said angrily. I patiently explained that the brain is an...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader! Warning: If you’re under the age of 10, you shouldn’t read this. I’m about to make a big-person confession here. I’ve always been curious, eager to learn and quick to assess situations. I have great instincts, which give me the confidence to act impulsively. And being autistic, I’m blunt and assertive about what is and isn’t true. These qualities have served me well as an entrepreneur, team leader and artist. But they worked to calamitous effect during the Christmas season of...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
Hey Reader! I’ve got a story for you: About ten years out of high school I went home for the holidays. I went to a bar with my brother, expecting a low-key night out with people I’d known forever. I ended up running into a pack of cheerleaders from my grade who’d been super-popular. Immediately I devolved from a confident, self-assured New York City professional into a chip-on-my-shoulder, wildly-insecure teenager. They greeted me with genuine enthusiasm, but I was suspicious of their intent....
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
Hey Reader! It’s been a particularly brutal and polarizing eighteen months in America. We’ve survived one of the nastiest presidential elections since Andrew Jackson’s in 1828 — and they didn’t have incessant TV ads assaulting them. There are 258 million adults in America. About 29 percent voted for Donald Trump. Roughly 28 percent voted for Kamala Harris. And 43 percent of the adult population didn’t choose a side. That means you’re probably only going to see eye-to-eye with one out of every...
2 months ago • 1 min read
Hey Reader! Last week, a friend pointed out that all religions have one thing in common: angels. Angels appear as helpers and messengers. They signal that we're not alone. And the best part is they don't all wear wings. We're all surrounded by flesh and blood angels. How do you know your angels? They appear when you need them. They help when you ask. They make everything better, just by being there. Call in your angels. Especially if these uncertain times have you feeling vulnerable and...
2 months ago • 1 min read
