Monthly Archives: March 2016

Everybody cares about the environment until they want to fly somewhere

on March 31, 2016 in Awareness, Choosing/Decision-Making, Nature, Perception

Everyone says they care about the environment. Talk is cheap. How they behave tells you what they care about. If they choose themselves over something they say they care about, that tells you their priority. I talk a lot about how I try to avoid flying because the pollution it causes hurts people. When people talk about how much more first-worlders pollute more than others, flying contributes a lot. But[…] Keep reading →

My courses will lead students to leave traditional, lecture-based universities — to greater success and reward

on March 30, 2016 in Choosing/Decision-Making, Education, Entrepreneurship, Leadership

I loved university. Studying physics, universities are about the only places to learn it. I value university for many things. They do a lot of valuable things better than any other institution or alternatives—the hard sciences, for example. It’s not right for everyone and it does some things terribly. Places other than universities do some non-academic activities so much better than school. Experiential learning—how I teach leadership, entrepreneurship, sales, and[…] Keep reading →

I’ve been catching up my whole life

on March 29, 2016 in Choosing/Decision-Making, Education, Entrepreneurship, Fitness, Models, Perception, Relationships

School Doing a gratitude exercise recently, writing my undergraduate advisor who helped me figure out how to major in physics starting my second semester junior year. Physics is intense so most of my classmates were younger, having known their major since high school. So academically, I was catching up with classmates from when I chose my major. I just finished the major in my last semester and got into Penn[…] Keep reading →

A rising tide doesn’t lift all boats

on March 28, 2016 in Models

I write about beliefs and mental models. We humans have a weird pattern that we will often believe something that’s catchy just because it sticks in our heads. “No pain, no gain,” for example, rhymes, so sticks in our heads. We often choose not to do painful things, as if the statement were true. Commercial jingles often work this way. Another examples is “a rising tide lifts all boats.” It’s[…] Keep reading →

Non-judgmental Ethics Sunday: Must a Woman Confront a Bigoted In-Law?

on March 27, 2016 in Ethicist, Nonjudgment

Continuing my series of alternative responses to the New York Times column, The Ethicist, looking at the consequences of one’s actions instead of imposing values on others, here is my take on today’s post, “Must a Woman Confront a Bigoted In-Law?” My father-in-law is quietly racist, sexist and anti-gay. He was kind enough to offer me a job at his firm. I had previously voiced my (respectful) dissent, but this[…] Keep reading →

How to use space travel to make mangoes taste better

on March 26, 2016 in Awareness, Freedom, Models, Nature, Perception

This passage interviewing a guy who walked in space, plus some context, can help you enjoy life more, even—especially—if you can’t get to space but expect you’d love the experience. From the article: In the 1960s, he says, “astronauts were celebrities. They were invited on JFK’s boat. If you wanted to go to space, you had to become Neil Armstrong.” Today, however, space-travel companies like Virgin Galactic and SpaceX are[…] Keep reading →

Why Entrepreneurs Are Today’s Artists (My Inc. article today)

on March 25, 2016 in Art, Awareness, Creativity, Entrepreneurship, Inc.com

Read my article on Inc. today: “Why Entrepreneurs Are Today’s Artists” It begins Why Entrepreneurs Are Today’s Artists What is today’s greatest source of creativity, expression, social change, progress, innovation, introspection, performance, determination, struggle, challenge, and even truth and beauty? Artists change how we see and think about the world. Visiting Paris’s Musee D’Orsayfor the first time in twenty years made me wonder if artists today are changing how we[…] Keep reading →

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