Welcome to the Saturday Summary.
Blog Posts
This week, some year end activities start here in my posts. There is also personal branding, a book review, and a new AI prompt that I’m really enjoying.
Seed Season. This time of year, nature is producing seeds for the year ahead. This post takes that concept and applies it to what we might personally be planting for next year.
Think Like an Athlete, Brand Like a Celebrity. This post takes lessons from famous people to help us build our professional brands.
Your AI Board of Directors. A podcast inspired a new AI prompt that is working well for several different projects I’ve been working through. This post provides a summary.
Book Review: Valuable Friction. This is a summary of Robert Rose’s latest book. At 150 pages, it’s shorter than most business books, but packed with great information.
Annual Reset. The final post of the week takes a look at all 8 dimensions of wellbeing and provides ideas on how you might do a reset as the year winds down.
Podcasts That Caught My Attention
This week, the topics are a bit varied. I would recommend the networking one for any professional and for those getting closer to retirement the four percent rule is a great listen. A good day-to-day strategy can be found in the last one on the list.
Fear is Your Co-Pilot. 15 minutes. The Next Big Idea Daily. This episode shares ideas from Michelle Curran’s book The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear into Your Superpower.
Network Your Way to Job Security. 9 minutes. Optimal Work Daily. Brandt Smith highlights how cultivating authentic professional relationships can safeguard your career against uncertainty.
You and We: A Leadership Call for Overcoming Divides in a Polarized World. 18 minutes. The Next Big Idea Daily. Highlights from Jim Ferrell’s new book, You and We: A Relational Rethinking of Work, Life, and Leadership which is written in the style of a business fable.
The Four Backstops to the Four Percent Rule – Part 1. 10 minutes. Part 2. 11 minutes. Optimal Finance Daily. In this two-part series, Sean Mullaney highlights why the Four Percent Rule may not be as rigid as many fear, pointing to natural backstops like flexible spending and Social Security that help safeguard retirement plans.
Out of Your Head and Back to Work. 5 minutes. Before Breakfast. We all get interrupted when doing deep work. This episode suggests what to do when other “to-do’s” pop into your head.
What I’ve Been Up To
On the professional front, ideas are brewing, and I need to stay focused. As someone who seems to have new ideas pop in all the time, one of my biggest challenges is to not put in-progress projects on hold to chase the new idea. I’m getting better, but this is always a tug-of-war during high idea times.
Outside of work, watching sports is in full swing. Football, baseball, races….TV around here seems to be always focused on some type of competition. When those aren’t on, there’s always “Love Island Games”! And, while the weather continues to feel like summer, weekend afternoons have been spent floating in the pool reading fiction.
What Do You Think?
What could your personal board of directors help you work through right now?
As you think about the year ahead, are there seeds you could start planting today?
What ideas did the posts & podcasts spark that you could implement in the week ahead?