Learn to be an expert and a beginner at the same time — For my 40th birthday, I decided to get a tattoo. I chose a Zen Buddhist phrase that has resonated for years with me: In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s mind there are few. I’ve long taught in creativity classes to college students that thinking…

Learning to accept where you are to get where you want to go — It can be hard for runners to let go of a bad race. We beat ourselves up, question where in our training or on the course it went wrong, and sulk as we either avoid returning to running or jump back way too quickly. A few years ago, my response…

It’s not by confirming what you already know — Wendy’s is testing a new plant-based bean burger. They’re rolling it out in three cities that may not be the first to come to mind when you think of vegetarian options: Jacksonville, Pittsburgh and Columbus, Ohio. “Wrong cities to test!” responded one internet commentator. “I think those cities especially Jacksonville…

He left his agency job of two decades to pursue a dream of being a full-time freelance photographer — In 2021 I’m featuring people on a Creative Journey. This is №8 in the series, featuring CJ Foeckler, photographer. What is your creative venture? I quit my agency job of almost 19 years to pursue my dream of being a full-time freelance photographer. I was an art director at a marketing company where my role…

His Facebook group for dads went viral — and powered a non-profit to connect fathers — In 2021 I’m featuring people on a Creative Journey during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is №7 in the series, featuring Brian Anderson, co-founder of Fathering Together and the Dads with Daughters Facebook group. What is your creative venture? My current creative venture is called Fathering Together, a 501c3 non-profit building virtual communities of support for…

It’s not too early to learn the lessons of COVID — This is the first book I could finish since COVID. It’s not the first book I thought I wanted to read, especially after our family got COVID. It’s a painful topic I’d rather quickly forget and move on from, like the rest of us. But veteran science writer Debora Mackenzie’s…

Combining his engineering background with podcasting — and beer — In 2021 I’m featuring people on a Creative Journey during the COVID-19 pandemic. This is №6 in the series, featuring Chris Luecke, founder of Manufacturing Happy Hour. What is your creative venture? I’ll start by saying this: If you stick with a creative venture long enough and that venture addresses a gap in the market…

Remembering when everything changed overnight — Inspired by Will Leitch’s How Long Is a Year, Anyway? Emails from one year ago are a time capsule, like the March 2020 calendar that still hangs in my office. Here are 10 quotes from emails I sent a year ago, when we hoped this would be over by the…