Instead of an essay I'd like to share three thoughts. Sometimes my thoughts are deep-ish, and other times shallow. Lately my mind is wallowing in the shallows. No problem, shallow can still be interesting!

So here they are:

Falling back in love with real books

I'm falling back in love with reading, particularly real books. The heavy, musty paper kind!

I read (and skim) a lot online. Tons of articles and some news, including lots of long-form stuff through email newsletters and Substacks. But I've drifted away from my book reading habit the past couple years, and I'm enjoying getting back to it.

It started with a trip to the library last month where I wandered the shelves and intuitively grabbed a couple that caught my eye. I found that sitting with a hardcover not only felt good, but I also retain a lot more information and ponder the ideas for long after I set the book down. There is a palpable and positive impact on my memory and recall throughout the day. Another side effect is that my son sees my reading more, which I think is inspiring him to pick up more books too.

None of this is a surprise. I've often noticed how good I think and feel when I read in-depth. But it's still silly to me how easy it is to fall out of a good habit. Let's see how long this trend lasts.

Being a growth explorer

One of the books I picked up at random (another great perk of browsing a bookstore or library) was Chasing Peace by Thomas Rosshirt, a former White House speechwriter.

It is a memoir of the author's struggles with debilitating pain and mental anguish, that persisted in spite of a decades long meditation practice. Having hit rock bottom, he started exploring other forms of coaching, therapy, and physical treatments. Through combining a variety of modalities, he was able to activate profound changes in his day-to-day life and transcend what was once a hopeless condition. When he went back to his meditation practice, it was far more impactful, relevant, and functional.

I came away with the realization that sometimes breadth is just as important as depth. Combining different modalities can unlock new insights and spur growth. Like anything, personal development approaches can lead practitioners and teachers to think that their unique methodology is so amazing that it is all one needs to thrive. At an extreme level it can create cultish and group-think behavior. At a more innocent level it can keep one from discovering sincerely helpful strategies for growth.

But life is vast and there are many ways to help one grow. Why not explore a bit?

The lesson here, especially if you're a personal development seeker, is to keep your mind open to exploration and experimentation. You never know what might create the unlock you're looking for. It doesn't necessarily mean you need to abandon whatever deep practices you've learned. But it might be helpful to explore a bit, then come back to your existing practices and appreciate more deeply what they can offer.

Eleven years and counting

The third thing I want to share is that it struck me recently that that this month I will complete 11 years as a Coach and solopreneur. Unlike corporate jobs where you get a token "prize" or taken out a lunch when you hit big milestones of tenure (Microsoft gave me these nice crystal trophies after 5 and 10 year milestones), as a solopreneur I literally forgot how long I was coaching until quite recently!

The time has really flown by. I vividly remember what it was like to leave my old career behind, not knowing what was next. I wandered in the wilderness (literally!) for over a year. Eventually, I stumbled into coaching as something I wanted to do while I figured out what my real next job would be (presumable at another Big Tech company, or perhaps a growth startup in Seattle). I was not sure if coaching was what I wanted to do, if I would be any good at it or if I could make a living from it. The last part was key, as I said goodbye to a majority of my savings as they were locked up in unvested stock awards.

And now it's been 11 full years. Pretty wild. During those years life has moved along swiftly at times. We've moved several times (across multiple states), said goodbye to several family members who passed away, welcomed two rambunctious children, and an even more rambunctious second dog! Through it all life has led me to this point where I get the chance to do something that is meaningful for a living. Not a day goes by that I take that for granted.

It's all got me feeling immense gratitude to have had the chance to meet and coach with over 250 inspiring professionals across thousands of conversations. Helping people who are aspiring to transform how they show up to work and life has in turn inspired me to grow and evolve as a coach and human being. I'm not the same coach as I was back in 2014/15 and there is a good chance I'll be quite different a decade from now. I'm excited to see what that future me is like.

Thanks for reading. Until next time.