Yesterday I ran my last half-marathon to train for this year’s marathon. The temperature was in the mid-fifties with a light breeze. Yet another in a long string of perfect days for running. I’ve run a twenty-one mile run this year, an eighteen-and-a-half, and an eighteen-mile run, and a bunch of half-marathons. I’m ready to run the big race. It happens in under three weeks, Sunday, November 2. The New[…] Keep reading →

Continuing my series on responses to the New York Times column, The Ethicist, looking at the consequences of one’s actions instead of imposing values on them, here is a take on an earlier post,”Tourist Retractions.” I recently spent several days at a relatively expensive hotel. The place was deplorable and unsanitary, with an unresponsive front desk. I gave it a poor write-up on TripAdvisor.com, the travel website, titling my review[…] Keep reading →

The other day I felt lazy and bought a can of food for a quick dinner. It ended up creating the most trash of any meal for a while. Since my apartment renovations opened up the kitchen, I’m cooking a lot more. Specifically, I’m cooking a lot more from scratch, buying a lot more vegetables, which I cook in the rice cooker / vegetable steamer / miracle appliance. Also a[…] Keep reading →

I talk about mental models and beliefs and how they determine how you live. Two researchers (“Building a Better America−−One Wealth Quintile at a Time,” Michael I. Norton and Dan Ariely, Perspectives on Psychological Science 2011 6: 9) asked Americans about their views on how wealth is distributed among Americans. The chart below summarizes some results. The top bar, “Actual,” shows the distribution of wealth owned by each fifth of[…] Keep reading →

You’re stuck in traffic, late for an important meeting. There’s nothing you can do. Each tick of the clock reminds you of how bad this will make you look. If the meeting is important enough your palms sweat and your breathing becomes affected. Your mind keeps going around in circles about how to explain your lateness and making up excuses. Have you ever wondered why you react this way? You[…] Keep reading →

Continuing my series on responses to the New York Times column, The Ethicist, looking at the consequences of one’s actions instead of imposing values on them, here is my take on today’s post, “Is It Wrong to Watch Football?” I’ve recently begun to question my support for the N.F.L. I suspect that the recent discoveries about concussions and the prevalence of early-onset dementia among players are just the tip of[…] Keep reading →

Attendees keep giving me great ratings, so General Assembly keeps inviting me back. If you like entrepreneurship and you don’t know General Assembly, you should. They teach great courses and have built a great community around teaching relevant skills. On Sunday, October 19, 10am-5pm, I’ll lead a seminar with General Assembly on leadership in New York City. Register here, you’ll be glad you did. Here is the announcement (they use[…] Keep reading →

If we taught piano like we teach leadership, here are a few options of how we’d do it. Method 1 Put twenty or more people who wanted to learn piano in a room Lecture about music theory for a few lessons Talk about the lives of historical famous piano players Point them to a piano on a stage with an audience full of people who will evaluate them and tell[…] Keep reading →

Continuing my series on responses to the New York Times column, The Ethicist, looking at the consequences of one’s actions instead of imposing values on them, here is my take on today’s post, “Should a Camp Counselor Stop a Student From Trying Coffee?” I work at a summer camp for high-school students. This year, a Mormon camper decided to drink coffee. Some staff members felt that we should try to[…] Keep reading →