Productivity tip #13: Own one belt.
A 99-year-old great-grandfather offers 25 pieces of advice. My favorite is this one: Everyone has too many clothes. Wear what you have and quit buying more. I know many people…
Someone at Slate magazine has been reading my blog and stealing my brilliant ideas. Seriously. Sort of.
On October 23, 2012, I came out in favor of skipping after skipping down the deserted streets of Brattleboro, Vermont. “The swinging of the arms, the momentary, almost violent liftoff…
My students chose mustard covered bees.
My students sit in teams. Every month these teams change, and they are given the opportunity to choose new team names. This month one of the teams took the name…
Verbal sparring 101: Comparing apples and oranges makes a whole lot of sense. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
The next time someone attempts to counter your argument by claiming that you are making an “apples to oranges” comparison, say this: Really? Apples and oranges are both similarly sized…
Taylor Swift teaches a valuable lesson to all content creators.
If you haven’t seen Taylor Swift’s Christmas video, you should. It’s a lovely thing, but it’s also an exceptionally valuable lesson for anyone who creates content. Actors. Writers. Artists. Musicians.…
The prize for my latest writing contest is the threat of tears and possible humiliation. No wonder my students are writing up a storm.
It’s that time of year again when I encourage my students to make me cry. Parents and teachers often ask me about how my students so consistently fall in love…
The Professional Best Man: A bride’s best friend, too.
Four years ago, I proposed a new job for myself: The professional best man. I was serious about the proposal but less than hopeful about my prospects, but since publishing…
Stupid people think they’re smart, and smart people think they’re not. Most important: They can’t help it. This explains everything.
The Dunning-Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which incompetent people overestimate their abilities. Unskilled individuals suffer from a false sense of superiority, mistakenly rating their ability much higher than…
Productivity tip #12: Embrace the imperfect.
Start something new. Forget about the perfect launch, the right equipment, or the ideal partner. Just start. If you find yourself a slave to perfection, remember these three things: It’s…
The Play-Doh sex toy was a mistake, but making a big deal out of it is much worse.
Yes, it’s true. Play-Doh blundered big time with the design of their “extruder.” It’s kind of impossible to understand how this was produced without someone in the company noticing the…