My post yesterday about my heart rate of 49 beats per minute and how people choose to spend their leisure time got me thinking about living by your values–what leaders do. When they hear I exercise daily, people suggest I have some special discipline, dedication, or other skill. I wish! On the contrary, the average American’s dedication and discipline for their values dwarf mine. I have to craft my life to make exercising[…] Keep reading →

For those who don’t know, I do my kettle bell workout every fourth day, starting with the 2nd of the month, then the 6th, 10th, and so on of each month. Today is the 17th, so tomorrow I do it. (Incidentally, on alternate even-numbered days—the 4th, 8th, 12th, etc—I row indoors or run, depending on the weather). What does lifting have to do with getting on my knees? I don’t[…] Keep reading →

Cold Showers Aren’t Hard Showers. They’re Easy Workouts. Confusion about their purpose scare people from realizing their value as one of the easiest, cheapest, and effective improvement practices. I’ve written here many times on the benefits of cold showers. I’ve blogged more about them. You wouldn’t have clicked on the headline if you weren’t curious about them or already doing them. Inc. is a community of achievers and has covered[…] Keep reading →

I’ve been exercising more than usual for the past few months, amid travel. You might say I haven’t given my body time to recover, and I probably haven’t, but I find it glorious. This episode explains why. It’s about Fitness Travel Lego Eating Burpees Sidchas Discipline Diligence Resilience Lugubriousness Struggle Glory and so on.

I’m sharing thoughts on reading The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World by Andrea Wulf, one of the New York Times’ 10 best books of 2017. Andrea Wulf’s the Invention of Nature Who is Alexander von Humboldt? The New York Times review of the book explains: Alexander von Humboldt was the pre-eminent scientist of his time. Contemporaries spoke of him as second in fame only to Napoleon. All[…] Keep reading →

After some scattered posts dating to 2008, today in 2011 I wrote my first post in an unbroken daily series leading to today, with no future break planned. So today is day 1 of year 8. That’s 2,551 days in a row and 2,852 posts (I posted more than one per day), for those keeping track. It become my first sidcha, followed by burpees, cold showers, picking up garbage, and[…] Keep reading →

Snoopy, Charlie Brown, Who Are Your Peers, and What Are Your Sidchas? Want success? Compare yourself to historical greats and make them your peers, not the average. 18 years ago today, January 4, 2000, the New York Times reported: Today is the first day, after nearly half a century, that the daily comic strip ”Peanuts” will not appear. Just why it would be funny to see a young boy lean his[…] Keep reading →

Start a Sidcha! Resolutions and short-term thinking create short-term results and long-term failure. Start a Sidcha to last a lifetime. I just read yet another thread of people pledging resolutions, suspiciously many being ones they failed last year. This year they really meant it, though. Right. I had to comment on what works and doesn’t. Habits that work The day Nelson Mandela walked free for the first time in 27 years–a day of global importance[…] Keep reading →

Joshua Spodek Joshua Spodek is author of Leadership Step by Step and host of the Leadership and the Environment podcast. An adjunct professor at NYU and leadership coach and workshop leader for Columbia Business School, Joshua currently lives in New York City. What is your morning routine? To the untrained eye my morning routine (and all my other routines) seems to take away what it actually gives me: freedom. But[…] Keep reading →