Category: Thoughts

  • Triathlons: Persevering in Gradual Change

    Triathlons: Persevering in Gradual Change

    This is a continuation of a post I published a year ago called : Triathlons: A story in gradual change After a restless nights sleep, I woke at 4:30 in the morning, ate a quick PB&J sandwich with a banana, and threw on some ridiculous looking compression shorts and a bike jersey. It was time to…

  • Hidden Influencers

    Hidden Influencers

    Think of a famous person.  Could be the president or a CEO or a well-known actor.  Now think of the people who positively influenced and helped them. A bit harder. Fame comes from a combination of skills and luck.  Not all who have equal ability will become famous. As such, even those that do become…

  • More or Better

    More or Better

    A long time ago, I evaluated a software tool for simulating systems that I quickly realized was built by a small company when I asked a few questions.  The guy had developed the tool for over ten years and seemed to have all the functionality I was looking for, but it was hard to use.…

  • Shedding Shame

    Shedding Shame

    After getting married, my bride and I went to buy our bed frame at the furniture store.  She liked the look of a sleigh bed, but I wasn’t convinced.  As an illustration, I hopped on one of the sleigh beds and pretended I was on an actual sleigh, kneeling near the foot of the bed.…

  • Thirteen Wonderful Years

    Thirteen years ago today, I made the following proclamation to my wife in front of a large crowd: Today, God has answered my prayers.  I recognize that he has blessed me and entrusted to me your life as a free gift that I have not earned.  As we stand here before both God and men,…

  • Vivid Memories From When We Were 6 Months Old

    What do you remember from back when you were 6 months old? Most of us can’t describe a memory that long ago and so we falsely believe that we have none. The reality is that we all have many vivid memories from that stage of our life. Wiggle your fingers. Grab a pen. When exactly…

  • Stuck In A Box

    Some years ago, I took the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test.  This personality test tries to identify your preferences on a few different spectrums: introverted/extroverted, thinking/feeling, sensing/intuitive, perceiving/judging.  It made some observations about my type (Extroverted, Intuitive, Thinking, Perceiving) that were useful in understanding myself.  This was the first test that was actually useful. All of the…

  • The Cost Of Intervention

    Back many years ago, when stock brokers received orders from their customers to buy or sell stocks there was trust that the broker would work in the best interests of his client. He would find the best price in the market and sell it there. Some brokers abused this trust and used markets that had…

  • We’re All Famous

    Sometime ago, my wife and I were on a plane from Bangalore, India to New Delhi.  I opened up the Air India In-Flight magazine to find a picture of a man who I’d seen on a number of billboards and various advertisements. I wondered who this guy was, and now had the opportunity to find out,…

  • There Is No Normal

    You have to know your preferences well, because no matter what you do, someone will tell you you’re wrong. – Derek Sivers Some Will Always Say You’re Wrong Back when I was in Junior High School, my friends and I would play with an invisible ball at lunch. We decided it wasn’t worth being “normal” and so…