There was an episode of Little Happier recently that talked about desire paths. The grass worn shortcuts people create when constructed paths take longer, less convenient routes. The short, 3-minute episode suggested we look for other desire paths in our lives. My...
We are asked questions all the time where the words don’t and can’t are interchangeable. Would you like dessert? Can you volunteer at the school on Thursday? Could you please attend this meeting at 6:30 tomorrow morning? Using can’t in these circumstances puts the...
There is a lot of information about the benefits of setting boundaries. Improved wellbeing. Higher productivity. Deeper engagement. Increased self-esteem. Yet, the benefits don’t help us figure out how to set the boundaries. My Perspective I think we should each...
Joy is an interesting concept. Many intertwine joy with happiness. Yet, they are different. Happiness is a more extended emotional state frequently linked to external factors. We tie happiness to our general well-being and pursue it as a long-term goal. Joy is...
Today, nearly 60% of the workforce is comprised of knowledge workers. By the end of 2023, Gartner predicted 39% would be working hybrid. The pandemic brought on the Great Recession. Followed by Quiet Quitting. And, more recently, Coffee Badging - you swipe into the...
We’ve all heard the saying “you don’t know what you don’t know”. I didn’t realize that this came from psychology. The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias that occurs when people who lack knowledge and skills have an unrealistically optimistic view of their...
We all have had moments of coincidence, serendipity, and synchronicity. The moments where things align, and something occurs as a result. Sometimes the words are used interchangeably. I wanted to dive in, understand the differences, and use the right term at the right...
I’ve been thinking about how we learn. In the process, I came across two quotes from Albert Einstein that feel relevant today. “Commit yourself to lifelong learning. The most valuable asset you’ll ever have is your mind and what you put into it.” - Albert Einstein And...
When we think about who we will be at 85, what do we see? In a financial class I took recently, they mentioned four phases of retirement. Honeymoon. Go Go. Slow Go. No Go. There was something eye opening about this structure. Then, I heard a podcast that we...
I heard someone say that “coming of age” happens at many moments in our lives. Typically, the phrase is associated with the time we move from childhood to adulthood. A transition from one phase to another. Yet, there are many points in life that we make transitions....
Creative work is full of scary things. Really, any kind of work can be scary if you strive to change the status quo. Without roadmaps of “how it’s always been done” there is no certainty. My Perspective The less we know about a situation, the scarier it can be. There...
Resistance and procrastination are linked. Often procrastination is the way resistance manifests. Resistance is the root cause and a force to overcome. We often associate our procrastination with a weakness, yet this may not be the real problem. The Definition There...
Recently there has been talk about a shift to focus on tasks over titles. If companies start hiring for tasks, they will need to find people to fit those tasks. In turn, individuals will need to highlight their skills for various tasks. I started to think about what...
On an episode of The Daily Boost Podcast, there was an interesting shift recommended. He suggested moving from asking the question “Who Am I?” to the statement “Who I Am”. Many of us struggle with the question of “Who Am I?”. We struggle with our career. Our creative...
The first step in understanding success is recognizing that the definition is personal and subjective. What is considered success for one person might not be significant for someone else. Success should be defined on your terms and aligned with your values. We are...
Life is full of tensions. Gathering input and producing output. Completing necessary duties and being creative with time to explore. Spending time alone and enjoying the company of others. All these things happen both at work and at home. There is no perfect balance...
A podcast today mentioned the idea of fiscal fitness. We’ve heard of this. We’ve also heard of physical fitness. In both cases, we are aiming for our personal goals and definitions of “fit”. My Perspective This got me thinking about how fitness might be a term that...
When we think of fluency, we think language. Fluent in English, Spanish, Chinese, etc. While the primary definition of fluency is tied to language, there is another meaning. The ability for something to flow freely. This could apply to many things in our lives. We...
There is often conversation about the need for emotional intelligence (EI) at work. Yet, there is little conversation around what this really means. We often perceive that you “have it” or you don’t. 5 Components of Emotional Intelligence There are five components of...
We all know the concept of IQ (Intelligence Quotient). In the last 15 years, more has been published on the importance of EQ (Emotional Quotient). I was doing a bit of research and came across the work of Howard Gardner. In the early 1980’s, he identified 9 different...
With much of the year still in front of us, there are a lot of possibilities. We aspire to make areas of our lives a little better than they were before. One common aim is to be more present in day-to-day activities. Not letting our lives pass us by in a blur. “The...