This is Johanna Rothman’s September 2026 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. When I first learned to program computers, I was not very good. I had to practice organizing my thoughts, thinking through the problem(s) to solve, and using the computer language to actually solve those
How Can We Enjoy the Necessary Practice to Master Valuable New Skills? 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 »
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 »
Everyone I know wants to do good work with fair compensation. Often, that work gives them purpose and fulfills their need to do something that matters. However, everything is changing. Managers feel pressure, and that pressure flows down to the people they are supposed to lead and serve. Then, there’s AI, in the form of
How Will You Reinvent Yourself and Your Work So You Can Do What Matters? Read More »
There are two parallel ideas going on in my world right now. First, the news is full of “us” vs. “other.” We don’t believe “them.” They don’t trust “us.” Second, tonight is the start of Yom Kippur, where we pray as a community to make our lives—and the world—a better place. (The specifics are repentance,
How Can We Manage to See the “Other” Perspective to Create a Greater Good? Read More »
By the time we start school, most of us have heard the word “no” a lot. Parents tell children not to do unsafe things—a form of rejection. Most of us learn from these rejections and decide what to do next. In school, we experience a ton of rejection. As a short child with zero athletic
When Can Rejection Help Us Create a Better Life? Read More »
This is Johanna Rothman’s March 2025 Create an Adaptable Life Newsletter. The Unsubscribe link is at the bottom of this newsletter. Dave (not his real name) asked me this question: “How do you know when you have to quit? Or retire? Is it when you’re no longer on the top of your game?” (Being at
How Do You Know When You’re No Longer On Top of Your Game? Read More »
I’m writing this on Christmas day in 2024, which coincides with the first night of Hanukkah. Kwanzaa is tomorrow. The solstice was a few days ago. I feel as if the calendar gave us all a big present: “We’re all on this little rock together.” I hope that all your gift acquisition and receiving experiences
What Present(s) Do Both Your Heart and Mind Desire? Read More »
(Warning: This post contains a discussion of US politics.) When was the most recent time you had to choose between doing what was right instead of what was easy? At work, people—not just leaders—make these decisions all the time. Too often those decisions disappoint the people with the most power. What happens? Sometimes, the powerful
How Can We Find the Courage to Do What’s Right, Not What’s Easy? Read More »
Professionally, I work in the tech sector. Right now, when tech is making money hand over fist, many companies are laying people off. Not one here and one there, but significant percentages of people. In my experience, companies do need to make rapid-enough decisions about when to lay some people off to save the company
Who Benefits and Who Loses from Other People’s Actions or Decisions? Read More »