Learn how to discover the lost art of convalescence.
The lost art of convalescence: 6 things I did while I had pneumonia
Blame the amygdala, but then lean into uncertainty
"Uncertainty is an uncomfortable position. But certainty is an absurd one." - Voltaire I'm a big fan of 99u, Behance's website and rich content offerings that help empower creatives to make our ideas happen. I just finished the second book, Maximize Your Potential, in their three-part series on making ideas happen. I was again impressed... Continue Reading →
Unlocking the mysteries of motivation
Many of us are counting down the hours to winter break, and I'm sure many of us will use the downtime to think about our goals for the new year and the vision for our life in 2016. I'm excited to share with you a guest post I wrote for UT's Human Dimensions of Organizations... Continue Reading →
The rhythm(s) of Spanish life
The return of the school year has me thinking again about the beauty of routine. I recently wrote about routine here and here, and I can tell you that sticking to my routine and taming distractions is much easier when my daughter is in school. I love summer, but the steadiness and predictability of the school year is... Continue Reading →
How to create a manifesto for your solution
Do you remember the 1996 film in which Tom Cruise's character Jerry Maguire has an epiphany about his job and industry and decides to express a new, contrarian view in a mission statement? Blogs didn't exist yet, so he proceeds to Kinko's to have the mission statement printed and bound with a "Catcher in the Rye"-like cover.... Continue Reading →
Great work must happen before everything else
In my last post, I described what I learned in an offsite with myself on Memorial Day weekend after reading the wonderful book “Manage Your Day-to-Day: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus and Sharpen Your Creative Mind,” a compilation of essays designed to help us find a centered space for creativity by getting out of... Continue Reading →
Four things I learned in an offsite with myself
I'm so glad that May is over. It was a month in which I lost control of my schedule and time to an unprecedented extent. I felt stuck in a "create-on-demand" twilight zone, reacting and responding to almost hourly urgent-but-not-important requests and attending last-minute meetings that hijacked my thinking and real work time. I had to work late... Continue Reading →
Strengths, flow, effective thinking, and the pursuit of happiness
I recently attended my second professional seminar in the University of Texas at Austin's new program Human Dimensions of Organizations. The seminar, titled Flourishing in the Workplace, took place on April 25 and was the second seminar in the Smarter Thinking certification series. I blogged about the first seminar late last year and am excited... Continue Reading →
How I became a better presenter, thinker, and problem solver
In my last post, I described how I learned about UT Austin's new program Human Dimensions of Organizations and why I was investing my personal time and money in the professional seminar series. I attended the first seminar, Maximizing Mental Agility, on November 13 and have been applying the insights ever since. Lewis Miller, HDO's... Continue Reading →
Human dimensions of organizations
I recently decided to make a financial and time investment in my education in a topic that I'm very interested in, one my alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin, so brilliantly calls Human Dimensions of Organizations. For the last five years, I've seen some negative changes in business culture that worry me. Knowledge... Continue Reading →
Where's my paintbrush? 