Post-event update: see a write-up and video of the event here — http://flavorwire.com/477424/history-begins-here-starting-a-legacy-in-nyc. Everybody who attended it seemed to love it. My event had a packed room with enthusiastic participants. I made several great connections at my event and the others I attended. I hope to see you next time. See me next weekend The event is free and there’s lots more than just me presenting on leadership. My part[…] Keep reading →

The New Yorker published this judgmental statement about practicality in an article on a video game. As you know, since the term “practical” creates a value judgment, I try to avoid using it to impose my values on others. There may not be any practical application for [the] game and its findings, but he nevertheless believes that it has significant value aside from science-fiction entertainment. I barely play video games[…] Keep reading →

I read and recommend Steve Martin’s memoir, “Born Standing Up.” He writes honestly and concisely. He persevered through a challenging life. Unlike many people we admire, he didn’t overcome obstacles that befell him. My list of inspirations on my “Resources and Inspirations” page includes three big ones for me who overcame outside challenges that they couldn’t have foreseen and have to handle—Victor Frankl, Jean-Dominique Bauby, and Mark Zupan. Overcoming challenges[…] Keep reading →

Two great posts by others force me to break my pattern of sticking to original work. The first is that if you know me you know I love Calvin and Hobbes. The first new work by Bill Watterson in a long time appears here — “Ever Wished That Calvin and Hobbes Creator Bill Watterson Would Return to the Comics Page? Well, He Just Did.” The second is one of the best[…] Keep reading →

Don’t know who Mr. P. Hewson of Dublin, Ireland is? Read the following rejection letter to him and his band to see one of the great rejection letters of all time. (Hint: his band has sold over 150 million albums, the band won 22 Grammy awards, and Rolling Stone magazine ranked them in the top 25 greatest artists of all time). If you didn’t figure it out, RSO records summarily[…] Keep reading →

On a note of remembrance, many years ago, when I lived in Paris, my friend volunteered at the English Language Library for the Blind there. She told me they valued American accents in the readings there and asked if I would read a book for them. I agreed and decided on Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who died yesterday. The librarian suggested starting with a[…] Keep reading →

The series of posts below covers creativity, mainly exploring counterproductive mainstream myths about it. I used to view “creativity” as vague, but a few sources dramatically and convincingly changed my perspective. One was a class at Columbia Business School called Systematic Creativity in Business, by Jacob Goldenberg. Creativity being systematic was designed to appear in the course name as a contradiction, but isn’t when you understand the material. His book[…] Keep reading →

Pyragraph Magazine just published a piece I wrote, “The Value of Entrepreneurial Skills for Artists,” on how I hustled (a term that for me in entrepreneurship means only positive things) my way into a prestigious teaching gig at NYU while creating a big public art work. I loved and benefited from each. Neither opportunity could stand on its own, but both together worked. And the city, the school, and the[…] Keep reading →

I don’t often find myself at a loss for words, but my mind was racing too fast to pick anything to come out. I looked out the cafe window at the people bundled in their coats, Spring still weeks away. In front of an agent I had recently started working with on the early draft of a few chapters the book I’d hurried to finish in the last few days[…] Keep reading →