Growing up, I was a good student, at least on paper. By no means the poster child for good behavior, following the rules, or respecting my elders, I nevertheless managed to eek out A’s on my report cards in high school. When I got into the University of Michigan – an academic powerhouse and ‘public ivy’ school – my friends told me I was lucky for getting in. At the time, I didn’t feel super lucky nor did I feel […]

We live in a world of scarce understanding and abundant information. Let’s look past the benefits of reading. Things like higher IQ, less stress, more empathy, better sleep – the list goes on. If you’re not already dedicating a few hours a day to reading, it’s time to get with the program. But let’s not talk about those wonderful things that reading does for us – let’s look at how we read, and why it matters. Speed vs substance In the age of audiobooks and e-readers, it’s quite […]

Rewind a year. Me: 26 and FOJ (fresh out of a job). Having saved up a fair amount from my 9-5, I was largely living off savings. Nevertheless, I was thoroughly enjoying life: making money online by freelancing SEO services, and seeing the world. After two years of long work hours, I was finally free. I committed to take my time, network, and enjoy life for a few months before diving head first into building a business. The natural next step was to move […]

I find television very educational. Every time someone switches it on I go into another room & read a good book. – Groucho Marx It was pouring in Split, Croatia. My roommate and I had plans to climb a mountain outside of the city, but had to rethink our afternoon as the heavy rain came down. Having seen most of the sights and wonders of the city, and without many options that would keep us dry, we decided to do something we […]

It began about 6 months ago. What started on Twitter quickly spread to Instagram, and now Facebook. It’s the commoditization of inspiration, and it seems like everyone is taking part. First it was celebrities, then fitness gurus and now marketers. All of whom clamber for eyeballs and attention by posting motivation images with overlaid text. Once a sucker for these kinds of accounts, I eventually grew inspirationally jaded and unfollowed them all. But the Insta-wisdom creep found a way back into my feeds, as close friends […]

I’m a big believer in the power of habit. By putting certain parts of my life on autopilot, I have more energy to dedicate to important stuff, like building relationships and doing creative work. A friend recently asked this question on Facebook: “what’s the activity that has the biggest impact on your life?” While certainly there are many simple things like flossing and showering that matter a lot to my health and well-being, without a doubt it’s my routine in the morning (and night) […]