Welcome to the Saturday Summary. This week, I’m highlighting my 2026 Personal Planning Workshop. The kickoff session is just around the corner on Monday, November 10th. Join others as we reflect on 2025 and set a clear plan for our career and life in 2026.
For those looking to advance their current role, make a career shift, or start an entrepreneurial endeavor, this workshop will get your strategies in order to achieve your goals.
Blog Posts This Week
What Managers Need. This post highlights the pressures managers feel to guide both the team and the work. The current processes are leaving many feeling overwhelmed.
Thoughts and Thinking. We often use these two terms interchangeably, yet they are different. This post talks about selecting the thoughts we choose to think about and act upon.
Getting Cozy. This post highlights a trend toward cozy. With so much unease in the world, people are looking for comfort and stability. The cozy trend gives a sense of protection and comfort.
A Year with My Birb. Building on the Getting Cozy post, today focuses on cozy games and how they are helping us in many areas of our life. I tried a habit game for the last year called “Finch”.
The Four Horsemen. This post feature Suzy Welch’s perspective on what holds us back from work that aligns with our values. There is a link to a video where she describes the original 6 horsemen. I was drawn to the detail that comes from the 6 vs. 4.
Podcasts That Caught My Attention
This week, the list is a bit shorter, but I really enjoyed the first two on the list which work as a pair. The first is a summary of the book Digital Exhaustion and the second is an interview with the author.
How We Spend Our Days. 9 minutes. Optimal Living Daily. This episode features Anthony Ongaro reflecting on how the small, everyday actions we choose ultimately shape our lives.
Inspiration is a Discipline. 6 minutes. Before Breakfast. This episode encourages us to consider the inputs in our life that provide inspiration to make our work better.
Stop Trying to Optimize Your Life. 17 minutes. The Next Big Idea Daily. Not every decision can be reduced to data. In this episode, Berry Schwartz and Richard Schuldenfrei cover highlights from his book Choose Wisely: Rationality, Ethics, and the Art of Decision-Making,
10 Things Minimalists Don’t Do. 9 minutes. Optimal Living Daily. In this podcast, Melissa Camara Wilkins frames how simplifying life leads to more clarity, energy, and meaningful moments.
What Kind of Mood Are You In. 17 minutes. The Next Big Idea Daily. Author Laura Martin covers ideas from The Book of Moods: How I Turned My Worst Emotions.
What I’ve Been Up To
This week has been spent in Florida getting my parents settled in for the winter. I’ve been reminded of why it’s so important to have realistic goals of what can be accomplished in a fixed amount of time. I fly back home today and I’m disappointed there are several projects we just didn’t have time to get through. That said, I realize we need to celebrate all we were able to accomplish. And, more than that, I have a great week of memories from spending quality time with my parents. Nothing is more important than that. We all need more appreciation for the time we spend with the ones we love.
What Do You Think?
Are you starting to turn your attention to your 2026 planning?
Does the fall weather have you sinking into the “cozy season”?
What ideas did the posts & podcasts spark that you could implement in the week ahead?