Short one this week … a reminder to think about and understand your personal currency. What’s that you ask? Well, what motivates you, and what do you want to get “paid” in. For some this is a straight line to money, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that! I was definitely chasing the dollar during parts of my career. But for others, it’s more about other attributes (currencies) … here’s a few:

This one has been in the back of mind for a while now, and it’s something that all of us will face at some point in time. How to manage the inevitable point in time when “working” begins to mean something different. Beyond the very last stop in life, this is perhaps the most signficant moment in the corporate capitalist career timeline. On the assumption that you reach finanical freedom, and for many that is not a foregone conclusion so let’s capture the appropriate acknowledgment, when and how to do this is quite a puzzle to solve.

Getting older is a part of life. At first you want to be older, those earlier years where the upcoming milestones are desired … turning 15 and being able to get a Drivers License, turning 18 and being allowed to buy booze … many moments where those are positive things. And then you start hitting milestones that are … less desired. I clicked over a major one recently, and an incredible feeling of mortality hit me.

No. Ok, so that’s a little bit of a facetious answer. But it’s also true. “I love my company! I’m proud to work at my company! My company is so philanthropic! My company really cares about us!” That’s great, and good for you. But no, the company does none of those things. I have a lot of conversations with people to help them think things through as they make decisions about their professional life.

Tap tap … This thing on? Well, it’s been a minute since we did something here, so let’s do a mini reset. I’m back in the world of security, and one of several reasons why this is exciting for me is that I will be ensuring to carve out more time to help others in this space. Security and tech can be a very demanding industry. There is a lot to do, a lot of opportunity, a lot of pressure.

It’s been a bit of gap between posts here, but I have a goodie for you today! Let’s talk about Affirmative Appreciation, and something I like to call the Neutral Is Negative conundrum. There are many approaches to leadership and feedback, with many books written, many frameworks and many styles to leverage. It’s an art and a science to build the awareness of which specific combination is best applied in any given situation and context.

Well, this post has been a work in progress. Quite literally. For a while now. I’ve dillied on it, I’ve dallied on it. But it’s time to post it. So here goes. I distinctly remember the day I was finally diagnosed in 2013. It felt like the world shifted, I now had an answer. That very day I was prescribed an SSRI and for the next nearly 10 years it’s been my daily habit.

Ah, growing up. As a kid you want nothing but to be “a grownup” so that all the rules stopping you doing what you want don’t apply. Then as an adult you wish for the simplicity and free from responsibility that being a kid offered. I feel like I’ve finally grown up. It’s taken a lot of hard learnings, mistakes and regrets to get here, and I’m sure I’m not done yet.

We all have hopes, dreams, goals, aspirations and intents in our careers. Some of us will achieve them all. Some of us will achieve more. Some of us will fall short. None of these things are “good”, none are “bad”. They are just … there. I have achieved more than I could ever have imagined as a small country town boy from a small nation at the bottom of the South Pacific.

Updated: 12/21/2024 I don’t always drink. I sometimes go long periods between alcoholic beverages, sometimes because I’m training, sometimes I just need a break, and sometimes it’s because I have no self-control and just need to take a break to ensure I still can. My “current normal” state is “sober-ish” which means I’m mostly alcohol free, but I’m also. ok having a few sips here and there, maybe a half glass of bubbles.

I’ve never managed to really establish a “meditation” practice, but I do find value in some simple mindfulness aspects like breathing and taking small breaks during the day to reset. This last week I’ve been using my Apple Watch to prompt me to Breathe and Reflect, the two modes it has. Is it simple? Hell yes it is. Is it effective? Actually, quite. When you open Mindfulness on your watch, you are prompted to choose a mode.

In this post, “Bridgett” shares her story, in her own words as part of the Voices series. As a reminder, sharing with anonymity is still authentic, the act of sharing is what matters. I am sitting on a plane, leaving vacation. My first trip to Europe in over 25+ years, frankly. You want to talk about work stress. I almost cancelled this trip of a lifetime. Why? Oh, well see there is this massive tech event.

In this post, Newsha Taheri shares her story, in her own words as part of the Voices series. I’ve been a worrier all my life! I moved to Los Angeles around 20 years ago, still a teenager. What I imagined about immigration wasn’t aligned with reality, and immigration to the U.S was more complicated than I thought. I felt very lonely; although I had all my immediate family here, I wanted to have my best friends around me, and I was too young and naive to build my support system.

This has come up in 2 conversations in the last week, and so I thought, why not explore this! “Living Your Best Life” … it’s a phrase that gets said in various ways, but essentially boils down to a philosophy of focusing on the positive aspects and leaving behind the negative or less desirable aspects. But how do you actually do that? Here are 3 ways I have used and seen work with others that might help you think about it …

I’ve always been a nervous person, worrying about things, overthinking, finding it difficult to “trust the system” or “trust by default”. It has lead to situations where behaviors kick in that are … suboptimal. In 2012 after a particularly intense series of situations at work, I started to have physical symptoms like sweats, racing heart, thudding heart, feelings of impending doom, low level agoraphobia. I went to my doctor and neither of us understood what was happening.