Effective messaging
“Avatar: The Last Airbender” was a long running cartoon on Nickelodeon in the 2000s, which has become popular again with modern audiences through Netflix. The show was groundbreaking for many reasons. But for me, one of its most impressive techniques was being able to communicate everything you needed to know about the cartoon in its […]
You won’t regret it
No one regrets a workout after it’s done. And yet it can be so hard to begin. Your bed is just so warm right now. You know the session is going to hurt. But you also know that you will feel even better after it. And you will only experience that euphoria once it’s finished. […]
Likeability
During your career, a big factor that contributes to you advancing or keeping a job is how much you’re liked. However, job descriptions typically don’t list likeability as a KPI. Likeability is especially important in the early stages of your career when you have less experience or expertise. And if you don’t foster relationships with […]
Be a leader in every moment
When I was a participant at RYLA (the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards), our first activity was a group challenge where everyone needed to form a circle. Sounds simple I know. But the facilitator provided no structure and intentionally let the group try to manage itself. As time passed, the group created chaos rather than a […]
You make me angry
When you’ve been in a heated exchange, have you found yourself making a statement that starts with “you make me…”? You make me angry. You make me mad. You make me upset. You may say this because you genuinely want the other person to understand your side. But saying “you make me…” places the onus […]
The main thing
A lot of success in life really comes down to sustaining a pursuit for longer than other people. So once you are clear on what you want, the key is to keep moving forward with steady progress. But we can lose sight of this when we’re on the journey. And as soon as our focus […]
Portion control
To lose weight, you need to sustain a caloric deficit (or burn more calories than you consume). One of the most effective strategies I’ve found for doing this with your diet is to not focus on what you’re eating, but focus on how much you’re eating. Remember that a simple system that works is better […]
The final act in business
If you’re thinking about going into business or you’re already in business, have you thought about how the journey ends? You may not have given it a lot of thought, but if you did two outcomes may come to mind. The journey either ends with the business becoming a wild success or it will crash […]
Your pitch deck
There is an expression we used in funds management – “I’ve never seen a negative pitch deck”. A pitch deck is a document that a company uses to pitch itself to investors, and virtually all pitch decks project steadily rising earnings. It is the epitome of optimism, but it’s actually an important bias. Business owners […]
Practising life
Lawyers practice law. Doctors practice medicine. Humans practice life. .