I have had a lot of conversations lately with people lamenting the long winter — and the monotony of being confined for the last year. While acknowledging that it will indeed be nice when the days are warm and sunny here in the North East, and that it will be even nicer when the world opens back up in a “normal” way, we can’t postpone enjoying life. So what to do?

1. Make sure you are moving. I found that since winter started, my days have been much more sedentary. Worse than the additional softness around my middle, it contributes to…

When we think about leisure we often think about loafing on the couch watching Netflix, or some other equally passive activity. There are, however, other meanings of “leisure” which are worth considering and are important for the pursuit of a fulfilled life.

The first concept of leisures is to do all that you can towards a goal, and then let the results be what they will be. So often in life there is a tendency to fret- about the outcome of a project, or the response of a person who we want to influence. In reality it is important to…

Someone said to me last week, “you never retire from purpose”. I loved that because it encapsulated what I feel about work. I get asked a lot — as I get closer to “traditional” retirement age- when I plan to retire. My answer is always that I don’t. My work looks very different than it did 5 years ago, and I expect it will continue to evolve. While the number of hours I work is at least as great as it ever has been, the places where I spend my time- on a portfolio of companies and clients- is diverse…

A good friend of mine used to tell her kids “if everyone you encounter is wrong, you might want to look in the mirror to find the problem”. In other words, when you come home complaining about how awful all the kids are at school, maybe you are the one who is being awful. I do think that there is some truth to that. I also, however, think that there are times when recognizing that you are charting a course alone- and being at peace with that- is also important. …

It is an uphill battle for any kid to finish college. It is a lot of work, and it is a marathon of a project. I am not a believer that everyone should go to college- I know plenty of trades people, for instance, who make an excellent living in jobs that are challenging and interesting- and that is a great avenue. …

It is so cliche to say that the best things in life are free, but there is value in being thankful for things that we sometimes can take for granted:

1. Air — I was speaking with a friend who lives in the Bay Area and when I asked how she was doing, we spent a fair amount of time on how grateful she is that the air is clearing up. We so take for granted breathable air, but when its gone, we quickly realize that it is pretty much the most important thing. It reminded me of what the air…

There is a lot of anxiety in the world today, coming from lots of different places, from COVID, to social unrest, to crime and economic strain. Watching the news can often make it worse, and reading social media- particularly given that the news is “curated” for us, which means most of us live in echo chambers — magnifies our greatest concerns and shouts them back at us with a bullhorn.

I have discovered a remedy for the concerns about the divisions in the country, and much of what feels like the wheels falling off because of deeply divided beliefs. It…

I recently met a friend for a cup of coffee- she had just lost her job, was dealing with some serious challenges with aging parents, and like much of the world was wrestling with the loneliness that comes from COVID life. I was deeply impressed by her resolve to try to step back from a very raw situation and examine it as if she were not hurt by these very hurtful events, but rather to see what could be learned. …