I am the father of two sons. It is my job to help each of them answer the most important question every man faces. Unfortunately, a lot of dads whiff on this assignment and their sons end up battling the question well into adulthood. Some guys battle it their entire…

The Gift of Desperation. “Man, you just don’t know. I lost my best friend to gun violence. I just had to do whatever it took to get out. It was just like, I cannot be in this space.” I met Marlon Terrell in 1998 when we were both midshipmen at the Naval Academy. We…

This is a surprisingly important question, and I have gotten the answer wrong more than once. My first mistake was saying titles are stupid. Then I flip-flopped and said they matter a ton and should be handled with extreme care. Then I flip-flopped again. There is a right way to…

“I just gave him a raise and an opportunity in the role he’s been after forever. Then I went and sang his praises in front of the entire company. Now, he wants a new title too? Sheesh.” “What title does he want?” asked Reid. “He didn’t even say! He wants…

So, you think you are an entrepreneur? You need to wrestle with this question first. My friend Phil is a first-generation Korean American, former Naval submariner, Oxford grad, and all-around impressive guy. We had lunch recently and he told me a story I want to share. I kicked off lunch…

I have discovered a wonderful hack for making hard decisions. I live in Dallas, TX. It’s awesome, except in July and August when the average temperature is like 112 degrees. Mix in the mosquitoes and let’s just say it can be slightly less than pleasant. I feel bad for the…

I am the co-founder of a technology company. There are a million things to do. Everything is a priority. Nothing is sequential. You are simultaneously stuck waiting and hopelessly behind. It’s a battle to take ground every day. Welcome to startup life! I knew how much work a startup would…

The picture above has 100,000 dots. You would have to stack 2,500 of them to show 250 million dots. I bet you underestimated what 250m dots looks like, didn’t you? Launching a startup feels like there is someone screaming “We’re all counting on you! No pressure!” in your face at…

I admit it. Most of my best ideas are taken from someone else. Plagiarism: the process of taking another person’s work, ideas, or words, and using them as if they were your own. Someone who does this is called a plagiarist. I frequently read about the habits and ideas of…