As we enter a new year, many of us feel the pull to set resolutions. The pattern is familiar. We make a list. We write down goals like eating better, exercising more, organizing our homes, or spending less time on our phones. These are fine intentions, but often they become just another layer of pressure. Another set of expectations stacked on top of the ones we already carry. The word “resolution” ends up feeling like a January version of a task list. But that is not what the word means. Not really.
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I’ve struggled with some form of ADD throughout different phases of my life. It hasn’t always been diagnosed, and it hasn’t always looked the same, but it’s been there. Some days it’s just a low-level fog. Other days, corralling my thoughts is like chasing 37 cats around the room.
Over time, I’ve tried a number of approaches to get things done. Some worked for a while. Others just added to the noise. But recently I’ve been trying something that’s surprisingly effective: pick three tasks. Only three.
Write them down. Do them. Then pick three more.
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I’d love to know the story why a high value url like Email.com sits unused. Surely some company has the capital to buy the url and redirect it to their own email platform. Gmail? Heck, it seems like just the thing Microsoft would do to boost traffic to Bing. Anyone know the story?
What would Dave Niehaus said about this season? We can only imagine it might have sounded something like this.
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While the changing leaves of October might dazzle tourists, for many Seattle residents, the tail end of the month marks the beginning of a mental health dip. A recent survey of 100 clinical psychologists and mental health researchers sheds light on why late October, in particular, tends to be a mood sinkhole in the Emerald City.
1. The Light Switch Effect
Dr. Maria Klein, a seasonal affective disorder (SAD) specialist, notes that around October 25, Seattle sees a sharp decline in sunlight, often losing 2–3 minutes of daylight per day. “It’s not just gradual darkness,” she explains. “It’s the suddenness that jolts the brain’s serotonin production.”
You know the future is strange when your best shot at a stable career is majoring in “Robot Psychology” or “Data Plumber.” Thanks to the AI revolution which, for those keeping track, promised to free us from work but instead retrained us to make ChatGPT write emails, we now face a curious inversion of the job market.
Here, then, are the top 10 college degrees predicted for the Class of 2035:
1. Prompt Engineering
Because writing good AI prompts is harder than writing haikus. Future students will spend four years studying the subtle difference between “generate an image” and “create a vibey aesthetic.”
We stress about things we cannot truly control,
But miss the synchronicities that brought us here.
Countless decisions beyond us led to this moment,
We are mere characters in this unfolding story.
The forces that brought us here know something,
The universe moves us where energy flows naturally.
Trust our instincts, don’t fight the current direction,
Forces guide us for reasons we cannot fathom.
David Bayer, author and creator of “A Changed Mind,” has this simple formula I like:
Desire plus barrier removal equals desired outcome.
In plain English, most of us know what we want: more customers, more sales, more traction. But we forget the “barrier removal” part. And honestly, that’s where most marketing strategies get stuck.
Don’t Chase Shiny Objects Yet
It’s easy to think the next big thing will save the day. A TikTok campaign, a hot new CRM, some influencer deal. These things are cool to talk about at cocktail parties and networking events. (Plus, ad agencies will make you feel really special.) But truthfully, you don’t need another shiny object. You need to fix the stuff that’s already slowing people down.
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I use Leonardo.ai as my go-to image generator, and recently their Senior Creative Technologist published a 27-page paper on “vibe marketing.” As a technology partner for creatives, when Leonardo publishes something that in-depth, it is worth paying attention. Seeing it explored at that level of detail piqued my interest and pushed me to dive deeper into the idea.
Continue readingDisruptive weather is noticed because it’s not everyday,
We cannot control chaos swirling all around us.
But we can trust that chaos will pass,
Chaos is fleeting while our patience truly endures.
Real strength can be found in quiet confidence,
Don’t trust the fearful reports from other people.
Look deep within, we know that staying strong
Gets us through better than yelling into wind.