Apr 10, 2015
Rene Descartes, the French philosopher, slept 10 hours a night. He would wake mid-morning, linger in bed thinking and writing. By 11:00 a.m., he was usually done with work for the day. Unlike many other creatives, he believed idleness was important for good mental work. It’s a position I endorse. Apparently he made sure never...
Feb 16, 2015
Carl Djerassi (1923-2015) did not like being reduced to one label. He is best known for synthesizing a hormone that became the main ingredient in the contraceptive known as “the pill.” In fact, he was just one of several scientists who worked on creating the chemical roots of the pill. But Djerassi, a self-proclaimed intellectual...
Feb 14, 2015
Never assume anything. I used to think anyone who did something well had to spend all his or her time doing it. Someone like Emily Dickinson comes to mind. All she did was sit around in a room and write. But not everyone has that luxury. Now I’ve begun to think that if I assume...
Nov 18, 2014
On a recent episode of “Real Biz with Rebecca Jarvis,” I heard Tim Ferriss, author of The 4-hour Work Week, spell out five things to consider if you’re wondering whether to quit your job. Create a dreamline. This is basically a timeline of your goals and dreams. What do you want to have, do, and...
Nov 7, 2014
Tom Magliozzi, 77, was a co-host of one of my favorite public radio shows, “Car Talk.” He died this week. He was known for his infectious laugh and his ability to suss out the real issues—sometimes related to relationships or moral quandaries—that brought callers to his show. I think parts of his life story may...
Aug 30, 2014
I recently heard something that gave me pause. At a panel on freelancing at the Asian American Journalists Association meeting in Washington, DC, a writer who has a nonprofit job by day, but does travel writing on the side implied that she wasn’t a full-time travel writer, although she loved doing it, because it wouldn’t...
Jul 30, 2014
This summer, time has been on my mind. Or rather, the lack of it nipped at my heels. At my day job, I never seemed to have enough of it. Days quickly melted into nights. My reasoning desperately sought to squeeze more work time out of the day, despite diminishing marginal returns. If I left work 15...
Jun 30, 2014
If you’ve ever had one of those days or weeks when you feel blah or a shadow of your more energetic, productive self, consider the power of music to speak to your inner core. Not only can it wake you up and change your outlook, it might even get your inspiration flowing again. If you’re...
May 3, 2014
Andrea Kay has always been a visual artist. But it was never her main work. By day, she is a career consultant, writer of a syndicated career column, and author of 6 career-related books, including Life’s a Bitch and Then You Change Careers. She is also a radio host and appears on TV. About 10...
May 3, 2014
Two years ago, Smiley Poswolsky was wrestling with a brutal quarter-life crisis. When he went home and told his roommate that he hated his job and wanted to move across the country, write, and support social entrepreneurs who were going after their dreams, his roommate would say something like, “Dude, everyone hates their job. That’s...
May 3, 2014
Avoiding risk in your work life could be harmful to your health. We’re so focused externally on what’s going to sell, what’s hot, what will move, and what somebody else wants that we don’t listen to ourselves. We lose touch with who we really are and what we can give, said career coach Tama Kieves....
Mar 30, 2014
It may sound strange to say, but charisma can be learned. At least that’s what Olivia Fox Cabane says. She’s the author of the book, The Charisma Myth: How Anyone Can Master the Art and Science of Personal Magnetism. Charisma, she notes, can determine whether: 1) your projects get implemented, 2) your ideas get adopted,...
