From analog to digital notebooks — Find the best note-taking tool for you. — If you were to see my office, you’d be greeted by a pile of notebooks on my desk. And that would only represent what’s visible — I have another stash of virtual notebooks on my computer. But my notebook collection isn’t random. Each notebook has a very singular purpose. And…

Stop celebrating a steady paycheck as a career win. — In 2021, I joined The Great Resignation and quit my job. I’d been with the same fintech for 15 years and decided I’d had enough. Not only did I leave my job, but I also embarked on a new career, pivoting into content marketing and journalism. The huge shift has…

I need a reliable pulse on how things are going. — Only a fraction of a manager’s job is managing work. The larger (perhaps most important) aspect is managing people. And by “manage” I don’t mean “micromanage” — I mean caring for the wellbeing of one’s team so that they can do their best work. I was the product manager and…

Don’t overlook opportunities to promote yourself. — As a creator, your “product” is what you produce. Whether you write or make videos or host a podcast, you’re putting something into the world that your intended audience will (hopefully) find entertaining or useful. In addition to your product, you are also your own small business. In most cases…

The concept is outdated and needs a reboot. — A few weeks ago, a fellow parent in my elementary school Facebook group posted the following: Seeing all these posts about father-daughter dances. Why don’t we do this anymore?! It’s so sad. Of course, the obvious answer is that most school activities were put on hold due to the pandemic…

How I structure time around bursts of energy and breaks. — The internet is overflowing with productivity advice. “How I Squeeze Every Ounce of Productivity From My Day!” “How I Hustle from Sunrise to Sunset to Achieve My Goals!” “How I Effectively Multitask Ten Things At Once!” I’ll assume that the authors of these pieces are trying to be helpful. Heck…

Enjoy the boost to your productivity and brain break. — I used to be jealous of napping people. I’ve watched family members fall asleep in the middle of movies. Seen people taking a snooze on a train. Heck, my kids have even fallen asleep on the floor in the middle of playing. Yet effective napping always seemed elusive for me…

Checking the boxes isn’t enough. — Lots of people are obsessive with their to-do lists, myself included. There’s something immensely satisfying about crossing off an item when it’s finished or marking it “complete!” in an app. To-do lists are amazing… but they can also be misleading. You might feel accomplished when really you’ve done nothing more…

The administrative side of freelancing isn’t glamorous, but it’s necessary. — I know, I know. Keeping track of your work is not the fun part of freelancing. You may be awesome at your craft and client communications, but your files are… a mess. But then when it comes time to share your work, you’re scrambling to gather the published links. Or…