They will make you memorable and charming in the eyes of the recipients — and they even work for extreme introverts! — I could never connect with people until I tweaked the way I lead conversations. I am an extreme introvert who would tremble like a leaf in the presence of a new person… Addressing a group or an audience seemed unthinkable to me. When on dates, I would struggle to move…

Evening procrastination has some particular qualities that I’ve learned to overcome — The thought of chocolate lava cake and enchiladas accelerated my hunger rush. It was 7 pm after a hard and long workday. Yet I had somehow made myself turn on my laptop, click on “Write a story”, and stare at the blank screen hoping to stimulate my creativity. Just at…

Pain rewires your brain to keep you steady in trying times so you can experience what comes after — Gym bros often talk about sweet pain. Even just getting out of bed the morning after a hard workout feels like the hardest task of the day, but these crazy folks love their sweet pain anyway. And a few short hours later, they’re back at the gym, moving barbels with…

Don’t fall for the popular rants — Isabell drove up to the Vietnamese restaurant where we were scheduled to meet in her cute VW Polo. As she stepped out, I was pleasantly surprised. Her beautiful smile, long blonde hair, and pretty eyes far surpassed her pictures. She got out of her car and said, “Shashaaank?” shaank as…

4 simple changes for less tension and more efficiency in life — There are some simple precautions to make life easier. It may seem obvious, but most people don’t do them. Swap them in for a life free of tension and full of efficiency. People will appreciate you more, and consequently, you might find yourself with a large and non-flakey network of…

It starts with accepting your shyness. Don’t feign confidence — If there’s one skill I am proud of having learned, it's demonstrating confidence. Most of us — shy people — have experienced this. Your palms start sweating when you walk into a party where you don’t know anyone. Your heart races when you try to make small talk with strangers…

I wish I had this list 5 years earlier — Had someone poured into my life earlier, hardships could have been avoided. If I could speak to my younger self, here are some things I would encourage NOT doing: 1. Not Building New Life-Long Connections This requires going the extra mile. You know you have created a few when those folks go out of their way…

Actively working on removing dishonesty from your conversations will make you feel better — I sat shotgun as we headed to a s-club in San Francisco. There were 5 of us — 4 friends and one friend of a friend. My buddy was talking about his first week of getting back to tennis. “It’s been hard. …

Nothing good comes from waiting, so you may as well go first — If there’s one thing that changed my life for the better, it is going first. It wasn’t always the case for me, though. Going first felt and still feels uncomfortable. Who would want that? At work, when my manager would say, “I know everyone’s working hard. This sprint includes some…