Posts by: Death

Why a boot camp? 

Our boot camp is one manifestation of a much grander desire. That is, we want and always have wanted for PD to be a place that’s children-friendly, a place where PDTers feel confident and grateful to work and bring their kids to work.  From the early days, once Philo was born, he pretty much lived at the office…

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The Descent of a Soul: A Journey Through Temptation and Reflection

In many ways, bad ways, I have devolved. Weaknesses have run amok. Coasting. Eating away the good fortune created yesterday.Stealing goodwill from tomorrow.  Where is my soul? Like being trapped by a black hole. Being pulled. I see the disasters, and rather than change trajectory, rather than fly back the opposite way, I flow like the river into…

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Expectations for leaders

Want more money?Want to think and perform like a leader?What is your current thinking like?What is your current behaviour like? How fragile are you?How much of your thoughts and actions are unchecked? Are you easily disturbed?Do you easily break? Would you follow someone like you? What are the qualities you believe a leader should exhibit? How…

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Doing well.

We have a responsibility to build a business that not only supports but goes above the basics. Mother birds “In measuring out rewards, wise rulers act like mother birds. While seeing into every corner; they are unobtrusive. While protecting the people, they do not control them.“ excerpt from Chapter 10, Tao Te Ching

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LOL. Your Looping.

Lol. You’re looping.  Same shit, every week.  You need to be yourself. Your level of intensity. But different from before.  Yes, you can live with your people. But more important, you must lead them.  First, you must lead yourself.  What a joke. You’re cycling. Looping. Week after week.  What are your expectations?  You love _______….

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Wildly

How wildly errored to allow a child woman to manipulate and create functions within my lifeblood organism with little to no oversight. What a muck she has made, and I have allowed over the years.  She will be spoken to and set straight.  I expect loyalty. 

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I need writers! Do I?

Sat, Dec 31, 2022, 12:11 AM – HCMC, Vietnam I need more writers. More. Not less. More! I need loyal, loving, dedicated writers.  If: the universe wants me and my children to live long, our stories will be written. Documented. Articled.  From grandfathers’ to future generations.  How much $$$? Pay it.  Thu, Apr 20, 2023, 12:18…

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Random Equations

Culture > Growth Success = Keeping in our ways t > $ Purpose> Passion Truth > Deception Strength > Weakness Soft > Hard Gentle > Forced Open > Closed Debate > Gossip  Curious > Biased  Support > Attack Seek > Conclude Health = Wisdom = Health Simple > Complicated Anger < Disappointed < Forgiveness <…

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Happy by the street in Saigon

Woke up in a grumpy mood. I know why. Simply, I exhausted my dopamine yesterday up until the late night, knocking out around 1:30 am. So, I chose not to be Zen with her during her anxiousness. Nah. I’ve been pretty Zen throughout the trip, but sometimes it’s okay to open the valve and let…

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Dullness through Age

Dullness of the senses can be leveraged for greatness, rather than gluttony.  What do I mean?Whether sex, drugs, or rock and roll… our senses become dull to things. We need more and more of the same old to experience the same. Chasing the dragon, is what it’s referred to when you try to catch that…

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Reality and Weaknesses

6:16 am, HCMC, VN Reality.  Some of you see it more clearly than others in certain domains but not others. Do you know which domains you see clearly?Do you know in what ways your perception of reality is flawed, even dangerous? I have more faith and trust in a person who can articulate more weaknesses than…

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Big Learnings – Reality & Weeds

6:19 AM, HCMC Reality is relative everywhere.Some believe VN youth are lazy. Others build empires on hardworking VN youth.  A leader is only in the thick of the weeds when he has not adequately built a team.There is no denying this. Getting out of the weeds, is the first order of business.  How, how, how, is…

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100%? What if? Why not?

1,000 pushups in one day. What would happen? I don’t know. Let’s go. Extremes. What can be accomplished with 100 percent total extreme dedication to one and only one initiative?   98% means you’re spread thin. 100% is the target. What can you accomplish? Doesn’t matter if you can’t even hit 25% or 50%. And…

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What do we value at PD?

What do we value at PD? Is PD right for you? At the end of the day, I founded this company, and so much of the culture is based on my needs, wants, wishes, and aspirations. This is undeniable. To pretend that PD is just another company is missing the point. It’s grossly underestimating the…

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The Stillpoint

“When there is no more separation between ‘this’ and ‘that’ it is called the still-point of Tao, at the still point in the center of the circle, one sees the infinite in all things.” Chuang Tzu

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Having Tomorrow

If we want tomorrow what we’ve never had,we must be willing to do today what we’ve never done before. The universe doesn’t bend to your wishes or desires. It bends to your ability to bend it. To do this, you need the following:

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The Game

I am obsessed with the Game.  I love the Game.  I prefer playing the Game more than any other activity.  I love obsessing over the Game, more than thinking about anything else.  What is the Game? People call it different things. People keep track of the score in their own, infinitely unique way. Success is…

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Living with intent

Having a break from the battlefield. What does it mean to live with intent? It means to me, that as much as possible, your actions, words, feelings and thoughts have purpose and intention. Everything. As much as possible.  I say I’m going to prepare every night, the next day. But I haven’t, and I don’t…

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Closeness [at work]

Yes, yes. I should not be friends with my staff. Says who?What is the reason for this? What is the wisdom? Some: require first-hand distance, yes. Some: deserve closeness.All: will benefit from closeness. How shall I decide?It depends on the individual’s ability to separate work from life; hierarchy from love; when and where. Can the…

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What ruins a community

Having qualms about a member of your community, sharing your qualms with others, but not having the guts to talk to the person directly. This plants seeds of resentment in your own heart, and seeds of doubt and dislike in the hearts of the listener. Some of those doubts and disenchantment are of the person…

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Business as usual

You’re all good. We’re all good. From your core to the gross warm yellow liquid that gets flushed out. We’re absolutely perfect through and through. Business, however, requires not perfection, but specificity. It’s in these specificities that we sometimes are trapped in, and sometimes need releasing.

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Hollowing Out?

A poem. Mae! Young, and naive? How did you find yourself amongst thugs and degenerates? Ageing rapidly from the inside. Soul, hollowing out? How did I find myself amongst your thugs and degenerates?

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Getting out of a funk in 2021 Q4

Notes taken whilst listening to a Queen. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:21 PM I want to feel understood and understood. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:23 PM I don’t need other people to understand me, of I’m willing to understand myself. Fri, Oct 29, 2021, 10:25 PM To ___: 1. I’m so glad I talked with…

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Happenings

9:31 am // A few questions participants should ask. How do you define attack? How do you define defence? What is the relationship between claiming what is and asking what is? How do you stop the spread of suffering? What behaviours amplify and spread suffering? What is Truth if two or more parties witnessing an…

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Stop

Essentialism Stop trying to help everyone. Help only ten that will help ten. Too many projects on the go. We can only close so many projects at the same time. Initiatives: Beachhead Firing too many cannons in too many directions. I don’t want to be like N____l S_____y. Spread too thin. Behaving erratically. I must…

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Intense few weeks

Below are my unfiltered thoughts to myself. Thought I’d share. I’m either a commander, a captain, a ruler, or a commando. When I am a commando, everything seems to be too slow, an obstacle to overcome, an enemy to slice. Nothing is good enough. Things are not good enough. People are not good enough. I…

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Being your best

Get the best out of you. Would you like to: strive to be your best? The majority of people will never once feel the euphoria of being at one’s best. This is not because of any lack of desire. It is that to be at your best, you require an ideal environment and strong systems….

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Buffet Wisdom

A series of quotes from Warren Buffett…   How many legs does a dog have if you call his tail a leg? Four. Because calling a tail a leg does not make it a leg. The chains of habit are too light to be felt, until they are too heavy to be broken. What should…

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Don’t be an “HNR”

Q: What is an HNR? A: Human Network Router Q: What does that mean? A: It means you’re literally moving information from one place to another. You cease to be creative. You are reactionary. Your time is mostly spent in emails, instant messaging apps, and social media. Don’t. Be a person. Live life.

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Opinions

Let’s have less of them. Fewer, but better in quality. Q: What is a quality opinion? A: One that has been thought through, and as close as possible to fact and far as possible from bias.

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Time to get classy

I detest those moments I lose myself and act crass. Be classy. Stay classy. Classy mother-fuckers don’t engage in useless public debate. They watch da-fuck dey say. Dem classic homies don’t fuck with dem soft-nuggets. Ayiite.

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Human Capital, wasted

There’s an incredible waste of resources in the world. One of the biggest, is human intellectual capital. Leaders must learn to tap into the explosive power of team. So many people are bored at work. So many people are unengaged. Which leaders are willing to do what it takes to reap the rewards?

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Fast, reckless, slow, careful

Move fast, move recklessly. Move careful, move slow. Can you move fast and careful (with precision)? Many cannot. Yes, you can. Also know, how you move will communicate. Sometimes the truth, sometimes fiction. Move fast and with precision. Let it be magical, and fiction.

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I don’t need permission

To be the best leader I can be. Neither do you. I used to think I needed permission to be my best. I’m reminded of the following: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness That most…

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Leaders. Vacancy. pt 2

The reason why there’s a leadership vacuum emptiness is that people DON’T want to be leaders. They don’t want to do what it takes. And they don’t want to fall in love with people. Leadership requires you to fall in love with people. And making the mission (for people) in scope and top of mind….

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Everybody has a story

Everybody has a magical fantastic story. Everybody. No exception. For some, it’s a sad story. For others, a story of triumph. Regardless of theme, everyone has an unbelievable interesting story worth hearing. Organizations are no different. They have a beginning, a middle, an end. And even a resurrection. We fall in love with these stories….

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Imitation

Imitate Why do what someone else is doing or being, when we are all One, anyway. You are him and he is you. Now be you, uniquely You. Open yourself to the UniVerse. Let it move you freely, ungrudgingly. MESSAGE TO J_____: A message to myself. Perhaps relevant in your life when you admire others…

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Only one

There is one mission. No other missions. Raise I+C high enough to reach Escape Velocity. There is one war. Fight against those that intentionally or unintentionally decrease I+C. There is one war. All other conflicts are battles. Some matter. Most do not. Winning can be measured. Individuals. Families. Communities. The world. Strategies not accounting for…

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The power of saying no

People respect those who can stand their ground, say no, not beat around the bush. People respect those that can plainly, simply, and directly, say NO. [ I’m an oddball leader who likes to test by trial by fire ] I had a young intern. I encouraged him to shoplift something to test his resolve…

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Leadership, thoughts on what it takes

What is it to be a leader at PD? You study hard. Hard like your life depends on it. Because it does. You are decisive. Not wish-washy, uncommitted. You continuously raise your own standards and those around you. You win. And when you lose, you lose magnificently, pushing hard to the very end. You know…

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MTP – Solving Problems

Solving major problems. Hypothesis: When more people are empowered through knowledge, they should be able to solve the major challenges. Why it won’t work: Because people may have the right knowledge, but they may not have the discipline, courage, or economic freedom to apply the information. Improved hypothesis: When the right people Right people =…

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Stories

2014-06-26 Don’t underestimate the power of stories. This whole world runs on stories. We sell based on stories. We buy based on the stories we believe. Your value, tell a story. Your ‘differentiation’ tells a story. It’s simple. You must craft your story as well as the company’s. Not having a story is profoundly underrated….

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Buy time

Buying Time The number one reason you need to get better at leadership. It’s not about the company. It’s about every area of your life. When you get good at leadership, you can multiple your time. When you understand business and money, you’ll have more money to trade for time. Time = freedom. You can…

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Seek problems

Be a problem seeker. Most people avoid problems. Solving problems require us to see and understand the problems. Solving problems is all about delivering value. The value returned to us manifests in a change in numbers in your bank account. More value delivered and problems solve = more money. More money = greater available options….

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Leaders. Vacancy

The reason why there’s a leadership vacuum emptiness is that people DON’T want to be leaders. They don’t want to do what it takes. And they don’t want to fall in love with people. Leadership requires you to fall in love with people. And making the mission (for people) in scope and top of mind….

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Many stories to tell

How wild is it that we live one life but many stories. Depending on how we view our past, we can become heroes, villains, victims, and even just useless bistandards. Different ways to tell my story include: A love story Fatherhood The immigrant experience Shitty jobs to CEO A dreamer An artist A builder A…

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Who’s number one?

I’m a warm person, not a cold person. I take pride in the niceties of civil behaviour. The simple things like warm smiles, warm hellos, kind gestures. I want our kids to be raised to be warm, not cold. How we react/respond to their questions, requests, and needs will impact how they grow up. We’re…

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The 15 second workout

Ridiculous, but effective! Let’s create an infomercial-style call-to-arms for those who don’t work out. What are we selling? The 15-second Workout! Super easy to do! Only takes 15 seconds! We dare you to NOT do more!

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Asserting Reality

Like many other posts, and email to myself. This one dated 8:21am, Feb 6, 2020. — Written and posted on April 28th, 2020, at 8:40am What’s more to say? A lot perhaps. Reality is fluid. Reality is much more grand than we perceive. Reality is impossible to experience fully by any one creature or organism….

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Interacting with people comes with a risk, another song maybe?

Every time you speak to another person, you are at risk. Risk of what? Oh so many things. Risk of talking too much talking too little interpreting incorrectly interpreting correctly, and wishing you didn’t acting like a fool saying things you regret miscommunicating creating a new frienemy creating a new enemy sowing doubt, anger, hostility…

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The case for organizational health

Homo Dues page 132 …lacks flexibility. Bees cooperate in very sophisticated ways, but they cannot reinvent their social system overnight. If a hive faces a new threat or a new opportunity, the bees cannot, for example, guillotine the queen and establish a republic. Social mammals such as elephants and chimpanzees cooperate far more flexible than…

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What’s the state of your washrooms?

I don’t care how beautiful your consumer facing facade is, it’s what’s on the inside that [often] counts. Most brands care a little too much about what their external audience thinks and not enough what their internal teams think. A big stickler for me is washrooms. Way too often they are deliver a horrible experience….

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The Courage To Be Disliked, a song

I’d like to create a song. Sorta like a children’s sing-along song. One on the importance of not giving a fuck, and being okay to be disliked. Something fun, cheeky, but also critical. Cast of people the song can refer to include Jesus, Galileo, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. Perhaps even a few non-people like…

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Kindness

Popping balloons in Saigon, 2020 the year of Kindness. I got it. But now I really get it. It takes unbelievable strength, courage, and power to be kind, especially to those who are not, but need it the most. Kindness is one of the answers. Love. – Vietnam, 4:28am

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Underworld

We go into the depths of the underworld to seek answers to complicated questions, not just recreation. Kindness. Love. We only have one life. We must seek kindness. And acceptance. 3:44 am Our annual summer getaway was originally inspired by a mushroom trip. Let’s not pretend it was anything other than a trip creating new…

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Men, and the West

The West is pushing hard for men to be more feminine. Cool. But other countries (our enemies) that look to devour us, are not feminine. They are not fair, equitable, beautiful, and complicated. They are masculine. Fierce. Dominating. Looking to devour its prey. Let’s not forget. For centuries, men were the protectors of women and…

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Brain readings, pt 2

Look into: [ ] Receptor Modulation [ ] Receptor up and down Regulation [ ] Trigger -> Behavior -> Reward [ ] Dependent Origination, the Bhudha [ ] Ruminate vs perseverate – activating Default node network Part 1 – Vietnam

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Master reality

Mastering reality. Mastering reality. Mastering reality. Mastering reality. Bending reality. Bending reality. Bending reality. Bending reality. Making reality. Making reality. Making reality. Making reality. The Grand Ho Tram Strip Ven Biển, Phước Thuận, Xuyên Mộc, Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu, Vietnam Dec 25, 2019, 11:58 PM,

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Trading, for what?

We’re always trading. Trading time, friends, experience, and so on. But for what? How often are our trades making us richer? Not often. North American culture of consumerism, individualism, and atheism is what is being sold. Sold to us in trade for what? In trade for minimalism, essentialism, and wealth? Individualism at the exchange of…

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Looking for peace

Just working through life like the rest of us, looking for answers, admittingly with biases. We need to lay down some basic assumptions and rules. We’re good people looking for truth. There’s never a need to insult or resort the ad hominems. When one does, we will forgive. Why? Because we know that only lack…

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Corporate Leadership is the last stronghold

In an ever morally decaying and intellectual downsizing of humanity. Who else is there left to lead? With the exception of the few, the noble, the anomalies: Governments and their politicians are concerned with elections, unable to think or exercise initiatives further out then 3-4 years ahead when our troubling times need steadfast progress over…

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The Cult Elephant in the Room

Are we becoming cult-like? Yes and no. We must be careful. We must be inclusive of different people and ideas, while maintaining and adhering to our core values. We must know the difference between cult and not. Cults require blind Faith. Healthy organizations consist of curious people who question and engage in healthy conflict. From…

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Bureaucracy

Bureaucracy is a necessary element (evil?) in larger organizations, one that must be controlled. If it (bureaucracy) grows in power and size, larger than what is required of it, it can become cancerous. Once too large, it will only want to increase it’s size and power. Too large and too difficult to cut out without…

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So much time wasted on campaigning

The difference between popularity vs royalty training… — Royalty Training Training your entire life to be a model citizen. A person for the people. Etiquette. Manners. Kindness. Popularity So much time is waisted on campaigning. So little time and money invested in solving problems.

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Career Politicians

The president is a tool. Anyone or group who controls the king, controls the nation. Control the king of worlds, control the worlds. Career politicians outlast presidents, rulers, kings, and emperors. Beware of career politicians, those who are behind the scene. How can you beware of something you do not see? Be on the lookout,…

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What is Red Alert? It means no democracy for you.

First, to appreciate Red Alert behaviours and decision-making processes, one must understand and appreciate what is the Ready Room, and the Observation Lounge, aka Conference Room. Ready Room: A place the Captain does his work, and has private meetings. Longer description below. Observation Lounge: A place the senior staff meet to discuss important business, and…

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Great power

Uncle Ben said, “Peter, with great power comes great responsibility.” True. But you know is truer? With great responsibilities, come great power. Choose to take on more. Choose to be responsible for more. Choose to be a leader, a motivator, a champion of goodness. The greater your responsibilities, the more power the universe will give…

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Be okay with getting shed, and shedding friends

We will grow apart. This is a non-negotiable reality. If you’re working hard, studying, learning, and growing – there’s a very high likelihood that you have friends that are not keeping up with you. This is normal, especially when you’re young. Or perhaps, you have a friend or two that’s really pushing themselves, and you…

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To say we want diversity is a half truth

We want diversity only if it is profitable. Profitable being defined as something that is good for us. What use is diversity if it negatively impacts ones culture, one’s organism? We call that a virus, which can lead to an eventual mutation of the organism. Diverse thoughts and thoughts that lead to a degradation of…

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Culture Shield

Thoughts running through my mind: Protection. Shield. Empire. Careful entries. Undocumented immigrants. Virus. Infection. Mutation. Assimilation. It’s naive to underestimate the damage that can be caused to culture by not guarding and protecting it. Would you not guard your castle, empire, city, state against invaders designed to wipe you out – cease your existence? How…

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Conquer her dragon

On the subject of woman: I conquered. What does that mean? Did I conquer her? No. Her dragon. Did I save her? No. I joined the party and saved her some time. Princesses become Queens that can conquer their own dragons. Sure. Just like a Lady can open her own door. A Gentleman takes pride…

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The Spirit

The spirit you’re born with is the only spirit you will ever know. If you are lucky enough to understand that you must invest in getting to know this spirit. Many will die without ever getting to know this spirit. Walking lost from place to place, one vocation to another, one relationship for another. There…

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The Third Culture Advantage

Third Culture Kids Advantage or disadvantage? Many variables. Can go either way. You can take the best of two worlds. You can take the worst of two worlds. This depends on your upbringing, activated DNA, environment, and so much more…

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WARNING: Your mobile phone…

An idea I had for my Pixel 2 phone case… Warning. The overuse of this tool will result in the following: Loss of productivity, increased irritability and distractibility, addiction, serious changes to the brains reward centre, decreased ability to remember, lower quality conversations, decrease in quality of sleep, and nomophobia. In recent studies, participants that…

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Dear Father

Dear Khalid: What do you love and cherish about your childhood? What do you value, respect, and want to preserve from your childhood? — Yes. Life is nothing. Yes. We’re all going to die. Yes. My whole life, whether another year or fifty, is a minuscule moment in the universe’s grander timeline. But what, out…

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The loving wife – A story from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

The loving wife – A story from Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai

From the book: Hagakure – The Book of the Samurai Written by Yamamoto Tsunetomo (1659-1719), translated by William Scott Wilson Shambhala Publishing Inc 1979, 2002 Hagakure was a great read. A time machine back to an era of Japan where honour and dignity meant life and death, and cutting heads and committing suicide was somewhat…

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Regarding Lannie and Marriage

Regarding Lannie and Marriage

The first person that’s gonna scold me after reading this is most likely my wife Lan. She’s advised me time after time, not boast, especially about my marriage. And you know, she’s right. For the most part, I’ve stopped. That said, this is my first time writing about my marriage. Sorry. Point being – this…

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Admitting to my complacency

Admitting to my complacency

True or false: we resemble tiny insects with roles and hierarchies, fate is almost certain, with little to no actual ability to maneuver our positions and change our directions in life, let alone do grand things that we’ll be remembered and be immortalized for. Those who have are celebrated, and become celebrities, and for good…

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You are being attacked

You are being attacked

There is an attack on us. Don’t be fooled. It’s everywhere, and at the same time, nowhere. It’s prevalent in our lives, quietly hidden under our beds, in our knapsacks, and in the shows we watch and the sites we visit. The attack is on your brain. Their weapon: Distraction. The booty, the bounty, the…

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When should I get a mentor?

When should I get a mentor?

Part 01: When? Now. – End of Part 02: Why? What? Where? Who? Why should you get a mentor now? Simply, because a mentor will drastically increase the speed of your development and growth. You shouldn’t wait until you have a crisis before you seek out mentorship. Your crisis will most likely kill you before…

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Prioritizing your dreams

Prioritizing your dreams

In our youth, we are filled with dreams and aspirations. As we age, dreams we once held sacred and critical to our identity slowly begin to dematerialize. There are many reasons for this, none that really matter. What matters is, that as the possibilities of obtaining our dreams begin to fade, so do our childhood…

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It’s your responsibility to grow

It’s your responsibility to grow

It’s a privilege that your employer creates time in your workweek for you to study and learn new things. However, don’t get this confused with the responsibility you have for your own growth and prosperity. For far too many, this new-age-hippie tech industry has created this false idea that it’s the employer’s responsibility for you…

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Doing the uncomfortable

Doing the uncomfortable

Change is the only constant I love the uncomfortableness of change. It’s such a beautiful feeling. I fucking love diving into a cold lake knowing very well the ice-hell that awaits. I love public speaking knowing I’m about to lose my shit right before going up – and possibly throughout. I love being amongst those…

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What The Matrix got wrong about our future

What The Matrix got wrong about our future

What is reality? The question what is reality has been studied and discussed for millennia. Despite of our attempts to understand reality through meditation, prayer, philosophy or science, there is still no clear answer. One thing’s for sure: We’re living in a Matrix of sorts. We take in over 400 billion bits of information per…

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Hiring, and your company culture

Hiring, and your company culture

A friend recently posted about his staffing troubles. “It’s about 2am and I cant sleep because our ongoing staffing problem keeps me up all night…” My response Company culture is what will keep a team together, not a big paycheck or prestigious work. You’d be surprised how little people are willing to get paid when…

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Rituals that make my day awesome

Rituals that make my day awesome

“Rituals are a form of structure that makes life flow more easily. They’re mindless — you do them without thinking. Perhaps most important of all, they orient you as to where you are and what you should be doing.” – W. Doyle Gentry, Happiness For Dummies[01] I choose to have an intense life My life…

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We are all crazy. Let’s deal with it.

We are all crazy. Let’s deal with it.

We’re not crazy. We’re batshit crazy. There’s no doubt about it. The best among us know it and have quietly acknowledged their craziness, while the rest live in denial. Personally, I’ve acknowledged this – and that there’s a finite time before my craziness gets out of hand. Broken brains How fucked up would it be…

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I’ve fallen back in love again

I’ve fallen back in love again

Young love At the beginning, there was a lustful obsession; an intense infatuation. A desire to impress and a willingness to be impressed upon. The relationship was new, and like all new relationships, I was blindly optimistic, romantically hopeful, and expected nothing but eternal bliss – forever. Like all relationships – the honeymoon stage ended…

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Paint your project: Avoid the black-hole

Paint your project: Avoid the black-hole

Problem: Creative’s Black Hole Often times Creatives (artists, designers, writers, speakers, and entrepreneurs) get stuck in what I’d like to call The Creative’s Black Hole. Similar to a blackhole, the Creative’s attention and focus is trapped in one small area of a project. So much that the rest of the project’s completion is threatened. I’ve…

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When I die

Dear Mother: if you’ve outlived me, I know it’s tragic to outlive your child. I cringe in fear at the thought of anything happening to Philo or Sophie. But such is life. A few things to consider. I’ve lived long and I have prospered. I’ve achieved so many of my dreams, more than most people…

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InboundCon 2014 – Presenation notes and resources

InboundCon 2014 – Presenation notes and resources

  Preface On Thursday, September 18th, I had the pleasure and honour to speak at InboundCon 2014, Canada’s Premier Inbound Conference. The subject of my talk was on branding, specifically identity and storytelling; topics that are extremely important to me professionally and very personally. In 20 minutes or less Preparing for my talk, I recognized…

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Project managing your workout

Project managing your workout

I read a long time ago that the most important activity in working out (training) is documenting efforts and measuring results. By far, this outweighs diet, workout regimen, or gym equipment. Simply because, measurement activates us to become more mindful, and thus, not only make better decisions about our workouts but better decisions throughout the…

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Brick by Brick: Inside Lego

Brick by Brick: Inside Lego

Short but packed with valuable data and wisdom, I watched Bloomberg’s Brick by Brick: Inside Lego (available on Netflix) three times this week. Why three times? For one, I absolutely love lego. After the second time, I thought I should record some of the finer points for later reference. Below you’ll find my notes from…

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No email policy

No email policy

The policy Don’t check emails until a 11:30am. Emails are the bane of productivity Emails provide an easy magical doorway to the land of Sans Focus. Emails are distracting, giving the illusion of working hard, ensuring you don’t meet your goals for the day. Our Creative Director, Lannie, has been preaching for a no-email policy for years now. As of late,…

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Branding: What’s in a name?

Branding: What’s in a name?

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, By any other name would [not] smell as sweet. – Romeo, Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare Reality vs perception Shakespeare’s Romeo got it wrong. A rose does not smell as sweet by another name. Our brains are not just recording devices capturing our experiences, but rather…

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Case study: Re-branding the potato

Case study: Re-branding the potato

Market opportunity In the late 18th century, Frederick the Great, of Prussia realized the potential of potatoes to feed his people and his army. The volatility of wheat crops posed a threat to the market and to the people of Prussia. By adopting potatoes, Prussia would decrease the chance of famine and overcome their reliance…

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Setting daily priorities

Setting daily priorities

You already know that setting daily priorities is key to accomplishing long term goals. Yet, you find yourself jumping into work and rushing to deal with ‘important’ crap before doing so, only to find at the end of the day, you did not set your priorities. Why is this? It’s most likely because your subconscious…

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Mental systems: Staying positive

Mental systems: Staying positive

If you’re like me, you have a lot on your plate and sometimes you are guilty for neglecting to have those conversations with yourself. Leaving things to figure themselves out is a recipe for future misery. Feelings of uncertainty, frustration, and even anxiety are waiting a few feet away. Reminder system Here’s what I do…

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Have your cake and eat it too

Have your cake and eat it too

Contrary to the saying, you can’t have your cake and eat it – I very much believe that eating your cake is not just possible, but necessary. Happiness: At the end of the day – isn’t that what we truly want? I’ve achieved my most important goals in life, and look forward to achieving more….

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The importance of healthy conflict

The importance of healthy conflict

For the first several years in business, I was a big wuss. I avoided conflict, and wanted everyone to be happy. Everyone but me. I was a wuss with my clients, my staff, and even my suppliers/contractors. I convinced myself that I was being a nice guy, and that was what leadership was about. This…

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Use Gmail shortcuts

Use Gmail shortcuts

Not using Gmail shortcuts? Shame on you. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t use gmail. Once I found out about gmail shortcuts, my process-obsessed mind made it a priority to learn and implement. Everyone on my team is required to learn and use, at minimum, the basics. They are: ? show…

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Lift app. My daily habit tracker.

Lift app. My daily habit tracker.

What does Lift do? Simply, it tracks whatever daily habit that is important to you. Here’s a list of a few habits I track. No snooze button Wake up early Daily affirmations Drink more water Set priorities for your day You can also follow others, get ‘props’, and make comments on your daily activities.   …

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Nice looking sites

Nice looking sites

2014 The secret to a really nice website is a combination of three things. Great photography, preferably in that bullshit parallax effect Beautiful typography And cute iconography. Bonus: Instagram your photos. That’s it. Keep in mind: Just because your site ‘looks nice’ doesn’t mean it will be effective. Great looks without strategy is useless. 2010…

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How brands become icons – Coca Cola

How brands become icons – Coca Cola

Brand message: Open Happiness Execution: This video. …Iconic brands have been guided by a set of tacit strategic principles that I call the cultural branding model. These principles differ entirely from those advanced by conventional branding schemes. In fact, cultural branding upends many verities by which managers have sworn for decades. To learn how cultural…

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Making marketing decisions based on psychology

Making marketing decisions based on psychology

Do you account for perceived value? Businesses often want to spend their marketing budget to increase and enhance the public’s opinion of their product or service. Straightforward? Not exactly. If a few dollars spent here and there could always produce new customers or happier existing customers, marketing would be, well, boring. Rory Sutherland’s TED talk…

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