or how to enjoy every moment like it’s the peak of your life — It’s summer in California. Beaches and redwood forests are minutes from my home — and I’m in the middle of fixing a broken stove. This is me living my best life :-) The stove an interesting challenge — something I’ve never done before. I could be fretting about missing the…

Think bigger for learning, promotion, and yes ultimately more $$. — Maybe twice I’ve negotiated on comp. And I’ve said “thanks but that’s not a realistic salary” a few times and walked out of interviews. If the salary is in the ballpark — I’m good. Then I go after the upside opportunities. What are “upside opportunities”? They are everything — promotion, executive face time, bonuses…

For everyone — your slides are not your speaker notes. When we can read your presentation on the slides — it makes us bored and frustrated. Your audience reads faster than you can speak. Maybe this is why people are on their phones while you present. Back in the early days of VC pitches, Guy Kawasaki said “your slides should…

… than not writing at all — This may not come off very well — and that’s ok. Putting it out there, scratching my creative itch, practicing being vulnerable — those are the success metrics that matter in the long run. Creativity is a vulnerable endeavor. It requires that we take risks, expose ourselves to criticism, and…

I was on the phone. Sitting in my car, hunched over the steering wheel, feeling the tension in my back, neck, and scalp. These startling words came from my therapist at a time when my career was teetering on the edge of a downward spiral and out of my control. …

The playbook you wish HR gave you Think of it as a side-hustle that’s in-house. This isn’t about playing politics, kissing up to execs, or nepotism. It is about using smart strategies which most people haven’t considered to accelerate your career and to create more options. Here’s the “why” Across decades of research…

Has upgraded my life to phenomenal — I do something uncomfortable every day. Usually it’s something that scares me, makes me feel vulnerable, or involves physical discomfort (late night bike rides in the rain…). It doesn’t have to be a big discomfort — but it does need to be something that I’m aware in the moment is…

Hi Jake, I agree that there's a history of leadership not behaving well - and that's because they haven't been trained well. In a perfect world, the leadership wants to do a better job and finds someone like us to train them and then sees the value in us training…