Ask yourself: “what’s the hard part?”Describe the hard part in detail. The more, the merrier.There, now you’ve gotten it out of your head.Work through it. You’ll be ok.

I got over a cold yesterday. Sure, there’s a lingering headache, but the bad stuff past. I dislike getting sick. But this time, things were different. I was curious.I thought, “David, what if you fought a cold with cold?” It occurred to me that what tends to make us feel miserable during a cold is our body’s inflammatory response. I hypothesized (in a very not-scientific) way that cold showers may help reduce inflammation (along with fasting). It’s been hot here in Wisconsin. I don’t have air conditioning, and cold showers have been that relief I look forward to every day. But while battling a cold, a cold shower never felt so good. Perhaps it was a placebo - I’m not a scientist or a doctor (and you shouldn’t take what I wrote as medical advice). Perhaps, it was the rush of testing out something to see how it worked. Or perhaps the virus ran its course. Or perhaps my will to explore and be myself. Maybe there’s no better medicine than a open and positive spirit.

When you have done one thing your whole life and then want to do another, how do you transition to the new thing?I get asked that question a lot. I don’t know if I have a “right” answer, but I have a framework that might be helpful. Learn a new language. You know the language of your current experience. Your new industry may likely different words and concepts. Learn to translate your work into the new language. That way people will understand you. Become a customer. If a business maintains its existence through funding/revenue, learn how to inhabit the mind of the person they hope to get revenue from. Discover the hopes and worries of those your intended industry seeks to serve. Learn how to talk and see the world like your customer Know what you do. Who I think you are is largely determined by how I perceive your actions. Who you think you are may be determined by how you perceive my reactions to your actions. If all of that is true, then job satisfaction and business success will result from your actions. Inventory the actions (behaviors, verbs) that you want to get to do at work every day. What actions don’t you do enough? What actions make you feel most alive?When you can confidently do items one through three, the next step is to network and put yourself out there. You’ll find plenty of advice for how to job search on the Internet. I don’t think I can add any value to that discussion.Career transitioning is never easy. It’s hard work. But if you remember “people like us do things like this” and try to inhabit the mind and worldview of the industry you’re trying to hop to, you’ll be in stronger position than those that don’t.

My working belief on customer value: customers get value when they believe that (1) the thing they purchased does the thing it’s supposed to do 100% of the time, (2) when things go wrong there’s a proactive and quick solution and a recognition of harm, (3) they believe they make great decisions about how and where to spend money.What if more services we pay for believed what I think many customers believe?

Imagine yourself trekking through the forest. No phone, no GPS, and no guide. How would you know you’re going the right away?Perhaps you’d look for the nearest hill to climb. Hopefully you’ll get up high enough to get your bearings. Then you would descend to the forest floor and continue the journey.When you’re in the thick of learning new things, remember to stop and climb the proverbial hill to get your bearings.

I only have this moment with you. A few seconds of your time to share an insight I had. I hope the insights help you as they help me. Because I have only these seconds, I strive to be clear, direct, and simple.

I know that I may not have this opportunity tomorrow. You might be gone. Perhaps me. I know that this may be the last email that we both read or write. I know that I want my best work to be this work I am doing now. I am at peace knowing that I gave you my best.

I wrote this post for you back in 2020. I re-read it today and thought: what have I been spending 100 hours on?Not enough. Here’s how I’ve dedicated a majority of my time though:My professional practice - account management/customer marketing.Reading books about human nature.Learning how to forage. Thinking about how to simplify my life more. I’m still a work in progress. Where have you been spending your time?

“I’m smart enough to be dumb.” - John Brady

If you know my dad, you might snicker because it sounds like my dad. But if you know me, you know that I find that idea profound.

There’s a Japanese concept called sho shin - the beginner’s mind. It means to adopt the posture of a beginner, novice, or child. Put yourself into a state of intense curiosity - play dumb and ask fundamental questions. Steve Jobs, along with other tech execs, got real into it during the dot com boom. I am into it.

I made some edits to Seneca’s 78th letter to Lucilius for you.“Even if death is on its way for you, though it may come early, you have already experienced every gift that a very long life can offer. You gained extensive knowledge of the world we live. You learned that time adds nothing to the finer things in life. You’ve learned that life measured in pleasure and through the accumulation of desires must seem short and empty.You are already everything you need to be complete.“The person you are now is the result of everything you have done up to this moment. You are exactly the person you are meant to be. You are complete.If you want to know who you will become, start with thinking about the next thing you’ll do after reading this sentence.

A friend and fellow reader asked “what is normal” in a call today. Do you know the answer?You might think that a “steady state” is normal – what’s we’ve always done. Perhaps “normal” is what feels “safe”. Maybe it’s what everybody else does.I regard “normal” as when what is expected matches reality. I try to expect nothing of people, nature, fortune, or fate. All consistently demonstrate themselves to be consistently inconsistent. I find it abnormal when what I expect to happen actually happens.I think it’s fair to say that any attempt to define or establish normalcy is like trying to get your cat to come when it’s called.