Entry 1 - Journaling and Holding Myself Accountable

I got this idea from my new friend Zach Mierva and am excited to begin putting this in place for myself. Every week he publicly posts a journal, and I thought having to do it publicly for myself would hold me accountable to doing it. I’m okay at journaling, I do it somewhat often in my notes on my phone, but I want to be better. This LinkedIn post and holding time on my calendar will hopefully hold me accountable. Thanks for joining me on this ride and learning a little bit about me.

What I’m reading and learning: I started the "Art of Fielding" which is a bit different than the normal books I read. I am normally someone who likes to read non-fiction, but I wanted to do something different, and decided to try a fiction book. I have also spent a lot of time recently in self-reflection around baseball, what it currently means to me, and what it used to mean to me, and this book is helping me along that journey.

Self-reflection(s) of last week: It’s embarrassing how little time I typically spend on “self-reflection.” As I was beginning to write this, it took me a solid 15-20 minutes to think of something to write. So… my self-reflection of this week is to be present and enjoy what is going on. Make note of what worked well and what didn’t so I can be intentional about changes in my life.

Goals for this week: Catch up with an old coach/mentor over lunch, continue positive momentum on some business projects, get a good push on a big proposal I need to put together, do something unexpectedly nice for someone out of nowhere, take some time for me.

Inspiration, passion, or excitement of the week: I connected with some amazing individuals last week! I can’t name all of the conversations, but just a few that really stood out; Cheryl Stewart and I talked about partnering together to help police forces with EQ, Jan Cummings and I had a nice conversation around what drives and what drains her, Robert Velhest, Hassan Kamel, and I keep moving forward on our program to support front-line workers with EQ, Penny Potter and I discussed graduate education in OD and a proposal where she may want to use the EQi 2.0, Tondalayo Royster and I discussed how she can use the EQ to coach people dealing with trauma and stress, and I got a chance to connect with an old friend and colleague Elizabeth Ressler about using the EQi for DEI work at EAB! And finally, on a personal note, we were up in Boston for my wife’s (we got officially married last year with a small ceremony) first wedding shower! 

Gratitude: Big thanks to my mother-in-law for taking the time and effort to throw my wife a wedding shower, and to my family for making the trek from DC to Boston. I am grateful to be connected and with family ESPECIALLY after a year of not being able to get together physically. I am insanely grateful to the scientists, doctors, and front-line healthcare workers that have helped and are helping us get back to “normal.”