From an early age, I was told that I was in control of my destiny. It wasn’t explicitly said, but it could be easily understood from the subliminal messaging of rugged individualism — to work hard and get what you want. While I finally understood that I couldn’t control everything…

It’s natural to run away from what we’re bad it. Sometimes, that’s a good thing. If you can find someone who can do something better than you, you should probably just ask them to do it. We can’t be good at everything. But some skills — you can’t avoid them…

I’ve found it interesting how quickly I look to grasp a sense of stability and control. Most actions I take are not evaluated in their momentary happening but instead in a week or longer frame of understanding. In my relationships, this manifests in an interesting way. While it appears to…

It’s easy to feel as if you don’t deserve it. It’s easy to underestimate the value you can offer. It’s easy to settle. When Derek Sivers told me to wait for my “hell yes,” I didn’t believe him. I’m a 19-year-old with a blog, minimal programming experience, and big dreams…

Be intentional in how you cultivate your credibility. Your credibility will determine where you end up. If you want to be a programmer, program. If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, start a business. You only build credibility through creating. Badges of competence, conscientiousness, and conformity are not enough. …

What’s your grand project? I stumbled across this idea while reading a summary of Cal Newport’s How to Win At College. A primary piece of advice that Cal gives to students is to have a grand project. Your grand project is something big. It’s something that runs to your core…

There was a time in my life when I would quote Seneca from memory, I would recall my favorite passages from Sapiens, and I could seamlessly make connections to my favorite novels in conversation. Today, I can’t do that. And I bet you can’t either. That part of my life…

Deep in my productivity phase, I became really uncomfortable if I wasn’t always doing something “productive.” Any down time I had before I declared it was the end of my day was time to be filled. I had to find a task — anything. My happiness and self-worth was inextricably…