Betterment

For trivial matters, it’s efficient and perhaps useful to simply follow a crowd or whatever leader we’ve chosen. But when it matters, we need to make (and own) our own decisions. To do …

A lot of people really dislike conflict and have a low opinion of it. They’re uncomfortable with disagreements at the office, think there’s no room for contention at church, worry that fighting with their partner means their relationship is destined to dissolve, and generally feel that heated arguments tear communities apart. My guest today, Ian […]

Today is my birthday. I turn 70. I've learned a few things so far that might be helpful to others. For the past few years, I've jotted down bits of unsolicited advice each year and much to my surprise I

The first kind, the common kind, is when someone helps you with advice or labor to accomplish what you’ve already set out to do. The second kind, more rare and more useful, is when someone he…

Practice makes perfect. But what's the best way to train? I review research showing the three ingredients to do it right.

Incremental changes do not provide emergency exits for a failing system. It’s to recognize when a tool is not useful

Every neighborhood has one.  He’s the old, eighty-something guy you see running every day. He’s always out at the same time. He’s frequently shirtless. Chances are, this guy didn’t start running last year. Or a decade ago. Or even forty years back. Chances are, he started running in college. Or high school. And he hasn’t […]

In the quiet moments of our lives, we can all sense that our hearts long for something, though we often don’t know what that something is. We seek an answer in our phones, and while they can provide some sense of extension and fulfillment — a feeling of magic — the use of technology also […]

When someone shares a new idea, or makes a pitch, or describes a dream, what would happen if you were enthusiastic? Perhaps positive thinking is contagious. Perhaps egging on the other person will …

Some people wake us up. They bring us a new idea or a new way to do things. They challenge us to think differently, they challenge the status quo.

Catalina Islands. Made with iPhone. (c) Om Malik “When people become engrossed in what they are doing, they enter a state that is called ‘flow. Flow can be achieved by engaging in mental or p…

If you’re someone who’s a decade or two out from your high school graduation, do you ever find yourself thinking that you’re just not as happy as you were back then? Of course all the positive-thinking self-talk then kicks in and you think, “Well, maybe I actually wasn’t that happy before. I do like my […]

Professionals put things away slowly so that they’ll be ready quickly when needed. Investing time now for time later.

I'm having one of these days today that are a little too productive. I have Fridays off for the rest of the month to use up last year's vacation days - and today was just a week of a day. And to think that it all started off so decidedly unproductive, with me waking up an hour late, then staying

Do you ever feel restless? You figure you need a new job or relationship or morning routine. You wonder if a vacation or a move will remedy your discontent. Yet no matter what app you download, goal you make, or trip you take, you never feel entirely satisfied, never entirely happy, never entirely free from […]

When your watch stops, it’s unlikely that you believe that time is now standing still. It’s obviously the watch that’s broken, not time. But when a metric on our culture or a comp…

The last fifty years have seen a worldwide effort to maximize one and eliminate the other. Marketers and technologists work overtime to create convenience. We’ve gone from hunting and growing…

The worst golfer in town came in last in the club tournament. Actually, that’s not true. The worst golfer didn’t even enter. Well, that’s not true either. The worst golfer doesn&#…

You might have a list of them. In fact, many of us do, and consult it quite often. The list is defective for a number of reasons: It’s not accurate. There are things that aren’t right i…

What’s better, a phone call or a zoom call? Which creates more intimacy, a meeting in person or a hand-written letter? The only answer is: it depends. It’s tempting to believe that bein…

It's the stuff you leave out that matters.

To feel sufficient, to be satisfied with what we have: Chisoku in Japanese. Of course, by some measures, there’s never enough. We can always come up with a reason why more is better, or bette…

In most modern high schools, P.E. is a complete blow-off class — something to take when you don’t play a sport, and have to fulfill a health/fitness-related elective. Participants often sit on the bleachers and talk, or half-heartedly play some basketball.  There was a time in this country when P.E. was taken more seriously, however, […]

If you work with your hands and your back, avoiding a heavy lift is totally understandable. For many of us, though, we work with time or with trust. If someone asks you to endorse their new project…

On the joys of writing scripts that do scut work

What are ostensibly the most meaningful arenas of life — work, school, church, long-term relationships — are often boring. There are those who defend the element of boredom in such things as not only tolerable, but necessary and even laudable. Boredom builds character, the thinking goes. It’s a sign of seriousness and commitment, something integral […]

For many ailments, physical therapy shows some of the best results. We can learn a lot from this for our own projects, organizations and narratives. Physical therapy often works better than pills o…