The Evergreens

Finding your way in life is like unlocking the combination of a safe. You have to go forwards and backwards. Life is not a direct march from A to B. The twists and turns are progress, not regression. What feels like a setback in the moment is later revealed to have been part of the path all along. Each move was necessary to get to your end goal.

"A simple recipe for finding opportunities:

1. Be pleasant


2. Ask questions


3. Engage daily

It's hard for a warm and pleasant person who is asking a lot of questions and engaging in their industry daily to not come across interesting opportunities."

Beware: learning more is a smart person’s favorite form of procrastination.

Near the end of December, I open my email or pick up a pen, and I begin composing thank-you notes. The messages are usually just a few sentences long: I recap my interactions with the recipient that year, put my finger on what I appreciated, and say I’m grateful. But when I consider whom to thank, I realize the list could go on and on. I try to... See more

But every once in a while someone puts themselves out there. Makes the leap. Faces rejection or failure or worse. And comes out the other side. Better. Changed. Bolder.

Most people won’t. Which means those that do change everything.

The best way to be highly influential is to be human to everyone you meet.