I love learning about tools and how to use them. Here are some of the tools I use often: Manual tools I use in the kitchen. Electronic tools for my work, such as visualizing the flow of work, systems thinking models, as well as the tools I use to write and publish. Thinking tools, such
How Can You Know the Right Tool to Use for Your Current Problem? Read More »
I look forward to fall every year. First, it’s apple season, with terrific, crunchy, and tart apples. Second, it’s the High Holy Days. I use the holidays to reflect on my life over the past year. Then, I can plan a little for the kind of person I want to be for next year. The
How Much (or How Little) Can We Do to Repair the World? Read More »
As I’ve processed the deaths of Dolly Parton and Tim Curry (fixed the bad reference) this week, I realized that I used the examples of their creativity and output as inspiration for my career. Not because I could ever “compete” with them and their careers, but to use their careers as inspiration for my own.
How Can You Tell the Difference Between Inspiration and Competition? Read More »
I’ve been using Edgar Schein’s definition of corporate culture for years. (Ever since Esther explained it to me.) Schein rolled around artifacts and several other ideas, but Esther clarified them for me. Culture is: What people can discuss How people treat each other And in organizations, what the organization rewards. All this means we can
What Are You Willing to Do to Create the Culture You Want? Read More »
This is Johanna Rothman’s August 2026 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. I hear a lot about work/life balance. I don’t buy that. While we spend time at work, we only get one life. And my theory of life is to live it with as much
What Would You Keep, Change, or Remove to Make Your Best Possible Life? Read More »
This is Johanna Rothman’s July 2026 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. (Looking for the video? Go to the bottom of the newsletter for the video link.) We’ve all had strange days, when we just could not get anything done. When we have days like that,
How Do We Choose Between a Straight Reset and Starting Anew? Read More »
David Dame, in a LinkedIn post, said, “We are all going to be disabled one day. Some of us just beat you to it.” While he is correct, that is not the full story. I said, quoting his post, “I do not think of myself as ‘disabled.’ Instead, I think of myself as having ‘insufficient
How Do We Differentiate Between Being Disabled and Our Insufficient Abilities? Read More »
The Tartan Army has left Boston. They are bringing their joy to other locales. The local newspaper, the Boston Globe, took out a full-page ad, thanking the Tartan Army. While I can’t find the actual ad, there was a post on X showing the ad: https://x.com/BenVolin/status/2068384741313634405. (Somehow, I can’t embed that into this post, so
How Can We Find and Use Our Courage to Maintain Our Joy? Read More »
While I manage my alcoholic intake because of my vertigo, there is nothing like a great beer at just the right time. On vacation, or on a hot summer day, especially after something active. Right now, there are World Cup games all over the world, with several here, in Boston. And what happened in Boston?
How Could Anyone Run Out of Beer? (A Note on the World Cup and Culture) Read More »
This is Johanna Rothman’s June 2026 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. We have no end of problems to solve or manage these days. Some problems are “today” problems, where we have an immediate need to solve that problem. In the Eisenhower Matrix above, that’s the
How Can We Assess Risks to Solve Both Today’s and Tomorrow’s Problems? Read More »