The Last Box

Observation is not passive. It is one of the deepest forms of respect. At conferences, airports, coffee shops, and even neighborhood sidewalks, I’ve noticed the

“There is nothing noble about being superior to some other man. The true nobility is in being superior to your previous self.”— Samuel Johnson I

Comparisons are odious. — Sir John Fortescue Short. Severe. Unapologetic. Three words that feel almost impolite in a culture built on comparison. We compare careers.We compare

“Loneliness expresses the pain of being alone, and solitude expresses the glory of being alone.” — Paul Tillich. People sometimes ask me, with genuine concern,“Don’t you

You don’t feel ready before growth — you feel ready because you grew. So many people wait for confidence, clarity, or permission. But most meaningful progress — in writing,

In a world that rewards speed, certainty, and volume, sustained attention may be the most undervalued form of intelligence. There is a kind of intelligence

I’ve been thinking about the word discern for years.It began when I attended a church whose pastor used the word constantly — so much so that I

“It is a harmful illusion that strength can be borrowed from another person or from an organization.” — Vernon Howard Most of us were taught —

In a culture that rewards speed, pausing can appear weak. We’re encouraged to respond quickly, decide faster, speak sooner. Silence is often treated as uncertainty.

December isn’t for acceleration.It’s for recognition. Some growth happens when effort relaxes — and clarity arrives without force. December carries a mood no other month

Why We Overthink, Overwork, and Overload—And How to Return to What Actually Matters Vernon Howard offers a deceptively simple observation:“The topic of simplicity baffles a

Vernon Howard once wrote, “Trying to stop human badness with moral codes is as effective as scolding an eruptive volcano.” It’s a vivid image—the idea

F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of America’s most iconic writers, is remembered for works like The Great Gatsby and Tender Is the Night. But beyond his

Paul Tillich, the German-American theologian and philosopher, once wrote:“A decision is rooted in the courage of being free.” At first glance, this may sound like

Note: Breakfast with a Ghost was awarded Honorable Mention in the Humor category of the 94th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition. — My mother is

A main function of society is to deceive society, like a hungry man invited to a banquet who arrives to find no one there.—Vernon Howard

A flock of dejected sheep led meaningless lives, so they solved the problem by founding a school in which they taught other sheep how to

Most people spend years learning how to do their jobs, raise families, or manage money. We read books on leadership, watch TED Talks about communication,

“Two roads diverged in a yellow wood…”“…I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.”—Robert Frost 1. Forks in the

My hometown is Indianapolis, Indiana, the birthplace of the Indy 500, the city with an astounding number of roundabouts, the largest significant city not on