Shawn

A Secret to Rise Above Microstress

Robin Dunbar popularized the idea of the Dunbar Number. You’ve probably heard of it. It’s the hypothetical number of people we can manage to maintain at any given stage of life. There are roughly 500 people we might recognize in the grocery store and smile and say hello, 100 we would invite to a wedding, ...

Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda, and What People Actually Regret

Here’s a real story, but let’s anonymize him. We’ll call him Joey. So Joey, a local mild-mannered grown-up went to a high school soccer match in Virginia, and sat with friends and colleagues in the stands, on the home side, the side hosting the game. The game got competitive, the kids got all riled up, ...

It’s Okay. You Can Say No Without Burning Bridges.

As Vanessa Patrick describes in her book, try instead using an empowered refusal. An empowered refusal is when you tell the other person you are not available for their ask because it doesn’t align with your values, goals, and identity.

Put More of You in Your Work

Here’s the obvious reason you shouldn’t use AI language models to write anything you care about: It’s not you. I just asked ChatGPT to read a contract and make sense of it. It did a pretty good job I thought. And sure, you can ask AI to whip up some marketing copy, or a product ...

We Actually Can’t Stand Cruelty

At our core, human beings yearn for connection, understanding, and community with one another. Though cruelty and violence sometimes arise, they are but brief shadows cast against humanity's inherent pursuit of compassion.

Why We Need to Share Our Family Stories

Do you know where your grandparents grew up? Do you know where your parents went to high school? Do you know where your parents met? Do you know an illness or something really terrible that happened in your family? How well do you know your family history? Listening to – and telling – the stories ...
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