Ideas are free, execution is priceless.

he sanity tax is a minor cost that’s disproportionate to the massive value we get in return. It’s when we pay a little bit more, in money or time or effort or energy, more to get what we need. Rather than settling for less out of guilt, pride, consistency or frugality. Like spending a hundred bucks on an air conditioning unit for our bedroom, so we don’t sleep in…

Shakespeare wondered if a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Well, one psychological study from the seventies argued that it would not. Researchers were curious about the effects of labels on candidates during job interviews, so here’s what they did. Half the participants were labeled as applicants, while the other half were labeled as patients. After watching the videotape, clinicians were asked to complete a questionnaire evaluating the…

Meditation teachers often give a warning to their new students. For the first year of your practice, don’t tell anyone you’re doing it. If you feel the need to tell others you’re meditating and how much it’s changing your life, then you’re missing the point. That warning makes me so happy. It’s exactly the approach we should take to personal growth. Because if the work we’re doing on ourselves…

My first brush with celebrity happened at a taqueria a few weeks after my debut book went viral. The woman behind the counter recognized me from my article in the local paper, so she kindly offered me a meal on the house. Anyone who wears a nametag every day gets free nachos, she laughed. Now, at that time in my life, having only been out of college about a…

My nametag has become my social filter. It’s the central lever that instantly puts a social magnifying glass on any situation. Show me your reaction to a sticker, and I’ll show you who you are. It’s almost like an inkblot test. A shortcut to understanding. Based on how someone responds to my nametag, I know everything I need to know about them. Here’s a sampling of responses somebody might…