May 17Member-only31 Lessons I’ve Learned About MoneyI remember learning how to play the recorder in elementary school. I remember square dancing. I remember cursive. I built a model of a Spanish mission out of sugar cubes. Some of this was fun. Some of it wasn’t. Some of it probably contributed, in some indirect way, to my…Money10 min readMoney10 min read
May 3Member-onlyThis Is Why You Can’t Wait Until LaterAt 6:45pm on Wednesday, April 23rd, 2014, I got an email from my friend Seth Roberts, the pioneering and peerless scientist. I opened it, saw that it was to be the first of a long awaited column called “Personal Science” for the Observer, where I was then an editor. I…Philosophy4 min readPhilosophy4 min read
Apr 19Member-onlyWhen You’re Too Busy Aiming For It, You Miss The Moments In Front Of YouIt’s one of those lines we throw out casually: “I want to spend more ‘quality time’… ” whether it’s with friends, with family, with your kids, or with yourself. We spend an inordinate amount of money and effort at creating opportunities to get this time too. We plan for it…Philosophy6 min readPhilosophy6 min read
Apr 12Member-only15 Questions That Will Make You A Better Parent (and Person)As parents, we worry about having all the right answers. But I think it’s better to focus on asking the right questions. The right question at the right time can change the course of a life, can still a turbulent situation, can provide a totally different perspective. While every situation…Parenting14 min readParenting14 min read
Mar 27Member-only2 Years Of Lessons From Running My Own BookstoreIt is only from doing hard things, the Stoics said, that we learn what we’re capable of. A little over three years ago, my wife and I had the craziest idea we’ve ever had in our lives: to open a bookstore in Bastrop, Texas. Opening a small business is always…Philosophy9 min readPhilosophy9 min read
Mar 10Member-onlyThis Decision Changed My Life and My BusinessI know someone that spends close to $20,000 a month on a publicist. I know an author who spends something like that out of their own pocket each month on what’s called co-op, or extra prominent placement at airport bookstores. I know many people who spend more than that on…Business6 min readBusiness6 min read
Feb 22Member-only19 Rules For A Better Life (From Marcus Aurelius)Marcus Aurelius never claimed to be a Stoic. Gregory Hays, one of Marcus Aurelius’s best translators, writes in his introduction to Meditations, “If he had to be identified with a particular school, [Stoicism] is surely the one he would have chosen. …Philosophy10 min readPhilosophy10 min read
Feb 10Member-only11 Important Things I’m Thinking About In 2023Marcus Aurelius thought a lot about thinking. “Our life is dyed by the color of our thoughts,” he wrote. So naturally, he tried to be thoughtful about what he thought and how he thought. …Motivation5 min readMotivation5 min read
Jan 25Member-only20 Best Lessons From Interviewing Today’s Top PerformersI’m not saying everyone should start a podcast. In fact, I have said the opposite many times. There are way too many of them out there…and most are not good. I’m just saying that having a podcast is pretty magical because you get (for free) something that no amount of…Stoicism8 min readStoicism8 min read
Jan 12Member-onlyIf You Only Read A Few Books In 2023, Read TheseIt’d be wonderful if a new year magically marked a new beginning. But 2022, like all years, reminded us that the same things keep happening, that world events continue on in their own unpredictable way and that in the end, we control very little but our own actions and opinions. …Philosophy9 min readPhilosophy9 min read
