LATEST BLOG POSTS

This week I finished: Heirs of the Founders: The Epic Rivalry of Henry Clay, John Calhoun and Daniel Webster, the Second Generation of American Giants, by H. W. Brands: The following words go through my mind a lot these days: We learn about Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Douglass, Lincoln, Gandhi, Mandela, and MLK because we want to be like them. Learning about role models helps us learn to live like them.[…] Keep reading →

Understanding the plots in my post Why I work on sustainability leadership here and now despite other things I could do instead clarifies how to see our culture. We live in a culture that causes more death and suffering than any other, including the greatest historical atrocities. People today often suggest that people today who don’t descend from or look like people who suffered and died can’t understand or empathize[…] Keep reading →

I gave a keynote and led a leadership workshop near Harrisburg, PA—a place halfway between where I grew up in Philadelphia and where my dad grew up, in Pittsburgh, so we passed through there many times growing up. I learned that the city hosts a Civil War Museum, so arranged to spend half a day there. I recommend it. A few items affected me beyond what I would have expected.[…] Keep reading →

I don’t like buying things that pollute and deplete. Other than food and building maintenance, I try to keep track of things I buy that are material or cause polluting and depleting. I haven’t kept track of subway and bus fares, but I ride them a couple times a month. April 16: Yesterday I bought an envelope to send a tax form. It cost fifty cents plus four cents tax.[…] Keep reading →

If you don’t get that discipline creates freedom, this post will make no sense to you. If so, probably best not to read it. Regular readers know I found value in taking cold showers. Maybe five years ago, after watching podcast guest Joel Runyon‘s TEDx talk on cold showers then reading his conversation with his readers on his Cold Shower Therapy Guide, which I recommend, I experimented taking a cold[…] Keep reading →

People consistently refer to life without polluting and depleting as returning to the Stone Age. The lack of historical awareness and imagination staggers the mind, or it would mine if I didn’t realize that humans fill our minds with lies, or legitimizing myths, when we are induced to act against our values, to mollify our feelings. I was listening to William MacAskill (bio below) on Sam Harris’s podcast. I’m not[…] Keep reading →

I met Peter in person at a local (Manhattan) event that EarthX hosted for media people. I was invited for hosting this podcast. We spoke about leadership and sustainability. We focused on crossing political boundaries. We shared about our successes in these efforts, how important we consider such tactics and strategies, and how much that success is missing in the US. He invited me to participate in this year’s conference,[…] Keep reading →

This week I finished: How to Get What You Want: Mastering the Art and Science of Persuasion, by podcast guest Josh Bandoch: This book compiles many essential building blocks of persuasion and influence into one place. Josh B. and I talk about it at length in a podcast episode (to be posted soon). I wish I’d had this book decades ago. It handles myths many people hold about persuasion that[…] Keep reading →

Longtime readers know I switched from running to plogging, which led to a bunch of media doing stories on me. I can’t help sharing the stories. The earliest I found was 2018: Then no posts on plogging for almost five years. I didn’t run for a while because somewhere around there I tore the meniscus in my left knee and the insurance company made me do a year of physical[…] Keep reading →