As the end of the year draws closer, we find ourselves in a position to reach for some in-between time where routines pause for traditions or gatherings. But if someone hasn’t called you to help in the kitchen just yet, these are the moments you can indulge in curiosity, creativity, or even personal development. What…

The ornament broke this year.  One of the tiny angel wings—from the first ornament my mom ever gave me—fell off as I lifted it from the storage box.  I sat on the floor, ornament in hand, and felt my throat tighten. It’s wild how quickly joy can turn into tears and how memory collapses time…

I finally got to see Jacob Collier live, and I’m still buzzing. Collier is a multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and producer. If you’ve never watched one of his audience choruses, do yourself a favor and click play. He stands onstage—shoeless, beaming—and lifts his hand like he’s pulling sound from the ceiling. Then something wild happens. Thousands…

Sports psychologists call it “self-cueing”—but it’s really just remembering to talk to yourself like someone you trust. Athletes, pilots, even surgeons use it under pressure: short, spoken cues that engage parts of the brain that silent thought can’t reach. When you quietly say, “Slow down,” “First things first,” or “Just listen,” you’re not being weird—you’re…

I count on my friend and colleague Erika to bring something special to every gathering with her passion for art and creative expression. And if I’m being honest, every time I ask her to lead something art-related in one of our sessions, a part of me gets nervous: How are people going to respond to…

click for a screen reader-friendly rendering of the above image When tensions run high on a team, the natural advice is often, “Just get it off your chest.” Many leaders even encourage venting as a way to “clear the air.” But neuroscience tells a different story: Venting doesn’t calm frustration—it fuels it. Here’s why: Each…

From meal plans to mind-expanding book mashups, here’s how I’m using artificial intelligence to make my life easier—and a lot more fun. Lately, I’ve been leaning on ChatGPT so much that it might qualify as a new close friend. It’s fast and clever and makes me feel like I have a personal chef, research assistant,…

Last weekend, I spent a slow, lovely day by the water with family, walking by the ocean, stopping for a bite at a beach café, sun on my face, nowhere to be but there. It should have been joyful. And in some ways, it was. But that evening, something unsettled me. Looking back, I realized…

Every year before Memorial Day, my husband and I spend the week in Yosemite. There is nothing that creates more clarity and inspires more feelings of awe than being surrounded by nature for seven straight days, twenty-four hours a day. I had a strange interaction that I’m still trying to make sense of during the…

Have you ever examined the way you listen? Did you know your inner state while listening directly impacts the other person—what they share, how safe they feel, and whether they open up or shut down? I recently invited a senior leadership team to practice listening to a peer from three different states: Here’s the typical…