My Yearly Reading Entreaty
Happy New Year, friends! I am coming back from almost three weeks off where I did nothing notable. I didn’t write this newsletter, I didn’t go on any epic adventures, [...]
Surviving and Staying Warm
Happy Advent, friends! In the Christian liturgy, Advent is the season leading up to Christmas Day. It’s a season of preparation and waiting. Advent is from the Latin “to come.” [...]
Bad Luck. Good Luck. Who Knows?
I heard Susan Piver talk recently about the “three poisons” in Buddhist teaching—what we reach for when things fall apart. One of them is “aggression.” This doesn’t mean resisting things [...]
Being With It
I’m writing less than 24 hours after the election was called. If I didn’t owe my wonderful assistant Robin this newsletter by tonight, I’d be tempted to hide out. I [...]
Making Room for Grief this Election Season
It’s a big week for all of us. I haven’t used this platform to talk about the election, but it’s too much on my mind this week to pretend I’m [...]
Last Prayer of Summer
I’m reading Luther Allen’s book of poems, The View from Lummi Island, a poem a day from the San Juan Islands. As fall begins, he says, the days shorten [...]
I Have Edges
Several years ago, a colleague gave me some unforgettable feedback. We had been vetting a potential client together over coffee, listening to this leader’s challenges and building a rapport. Walking [...]
Intermittent Recovery
I’m fascinated by this tidbit from an HBR article on energy management: “Without intermittent recovery, we’re not physiologically capable of sustaining highly positive emotions for long periods.” If you’re working [...]
Don’t Clear the Decks
One of the most impactful books I’ve read in the last 5 years is Oliver Burkeman’s Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals. You can download some tidbits from it [...]
Lessons from my 50th Birthday
I turned 50 a few days ago, and the event felt like a joyful project. I’ve struggled with my birthday in my adult life—not planning anything, and then regretting it. [...]