The Blog

I was kind of a lone wolf as a kid. I didn't belong to or run with one pack.

I'd like to tell you it was because I was strong, self-determined, and self-sufficient.

But the truth is I was often teased, bullied, and excluded.

Later in life, as a professional musician, I spent most of my career as...

I'm not enamored with calling the departure of so many from traditional occupational situations "The Great Resignation." Still, the conversation around it is interesting.

There's absolutely much to be done about improving conditions at work. We need to create occupational situations that are more...

How do you negotiate with imposter syndrome, Resistance, your inner critic, or your itty bitty sh*tty committee?

Whatever you call any of its many manifestations, fear is always at the root of what holds us back. 

Although we rarely face life or death choices, our primordial brain reacts to...

If you're satisfied with the status quo (internal and external), finding, defining, and leveraging your purpose is probably not of much interest or use.

The roadmap provided by our educational and occupational systems is seductive—do what you're told (and what everyone else is...

"The pursuit of happiness" is a tricky phrase and a bit of an empty promise.

Happiness is less a sustainable destination and more a temporary side effect.

While we may get a momentary happiness injection from an accomplishment, victory, or moment of good fortune, feelings of happiness quickly...

What can you really be confident in or about? 

I mean, really, about what can you be absolutely certain?

I'd assert, not much.

Maybe death.

But who really knows if even that is an ultimate end?

And yet...

We are creatures that find comfort in and cling to the status quo.

Does purpose matter?

Every ancient spiritual and philosophical tradition discusses and defines the meaning of life and encourages followers to find and leverage purpose.

Maybe that's because almost everyone could expect to experience some combination of natural disaster, famine,...

I used to be a bit of an affirmation junkie.

You know, those positive self-statements espoused by self-help gurus like Louise Hay, Napoleon Hill, Anthony Robbins, and countless others.

Things like, “I am smart, funny, and attractive.”

But these affirmations never worked.

Turns out...

Human beings are sense-making machines. Our unique capacity for consciousness is the catalyst for this, and our social nature means that it is most often done in community.

When we find ourselves or our situation feeling irrelevant, this can cause a profound feeling of existential angst,...

Fear is a many splendored thing. It comes in a dizzying variety of forms and flavors.

When we boil what holds any difference-maker back to its essence, that obstacle is some form of fear.

For a long time, I found the many facets of fear an impediment to my progress. It is, after all, difficult to...

What does the world you wish to live in and are working toward look like? What is your vision?

Imagine a world that is undeniably better, waaaayyy better, than the one we live in now.

Can you describe it succinctly so we remember it? Can you articulate it in three sentences? Two? One?

Your vision...

Do you ever catch yourself making the same mistakes over and over or reacting poorly in certain situations?

I sure do. And even the most well-intended and properly motivated difference-makers I know do too.

Why?

The fact is, most of the thoughts and actions that we experience are subconscious or...