It rarely lingers until the finish line. — Motivation is scary We all have big goals surrounded by items in our to do lists waiting to be checked off. Sometimes they remain unfinished because we run out of time; but more frequently, it’s because we’re just not motivated to get them done. We’re waiting for a spark of inspiration to move…

Things to avoid when trying to make one a success — Miserable Meetings We dread meetings. They’re seen as time-consuming, energy-draining congregations that serve no purpose. They’re so distressing that studies have shown there‘s a positive relationship between number of meetings attended and daily fatigue (Luong & Rogelberg, 2005). Bad meetings are unpleasant to attend, but they’re even more demoralizing to be responsible…

Our Most Loved Grammar Mistakes — Grammar is not rigid I want to preface this by saying that talking about grammar is hard — because when you do, you can present as petty and pretentious. …

My Barry’s journey of high expectations and shattered dreams — Motivation Around the time I was introduced to this gym, I was also reading about goal-setting (which I write about here). “So long as a person is committed to the goal, has the requisite ability to attain it, and does not have conflicting goals, there is a positive, linear relationship between…

It’s lousy advice. — Try your best is lousy advice. It’s supposed to inspire you without applying too much pressure –which ultimately makes it a terrible motivator for actually achieving goals. Instead, more than 1000 studies have shown that specific, difficult goals lead to the strongest goal performance — and also lead to higher…

I pushed my shopping cart through the meat and fish aisle. I should pick up some salmon. I looked down at the neatly sliced pieces of pink. I noticed him out of the corner of my eye – this towering man wearing a tailor-made suit. …

My absolute favourite playlist — There’s some music that you feel is constructed so faultlessly that listening to it just makes you feel so wholly happy. Here is some of that music for me. The best songs. Is it a crime (Sade) (When I quit my first real job, I quickly started to doubt that I had made…

A ridiculous but necessary mnemonic — If you like crosswords or complex algebra, it could be fun to learn the Greek alphabet. I learned a variation of this mnemonic from a video clip of a man teaching it to a class of kindergarteners. …

I’m 28 now. Somehow, I seem to miss him more every year. Every life event I wish he could be a part of. Every decision I wish I could consult him on. Every small success I wish I could share with him. And then take in his pride. And his…