writing life

For the past few weeks, I’ve been putting in overtime hours at work. It’s not easy getting through the back-to-back twelve-hours shifts, and initially I declined the offer of overtime work. I wanted to have time to write, run, and do the things that matter to me. Because doing what matters has mattered more to me than money. But then I thought about some of my other goals, one of which includes paying off some debt. I realized overtime was a way to earn some extra cash to put towards that goal. It meant that life would be hard now but easy later. [Read more…] about Hard Now, Easy Later

For most of my adult life I’ve been a perfectionist. It started in university, when I found my academic groove, and wanted to excel at everything. When I didn’t get an A, I was devastated. I competed against myself to always do better on the next assignment or exam. After university, I sought to be the best in whatever role I took on, and that (in hindsight) created some tensions with my coworkers. And since my mid-thirties, I’ve been committed to growing and improving in all areas of my life. It took a long time to understand what I consider the most important ‘truth’ of self-development: change what you can. [Read more…] about Change What You Can

The great thing about life is that the lessons never stop. If you are open, life is always speaking to you. The question is…will you listen? As I ‘celebrate’ my fifty-first birthday today, I hear the whispers of life. To show up. To do the work. And to own it. Yes, you must own your life, your decisions, your circumstances. [Read more…] about Own It

In the age of social media and instantaneity, a lot of people are impatient for success. Despite what we know, there’s still a lot of talk about ‘overnight successes.’ The music artist that came out of nowhere. The first-time author who hit the bestseller list. The young athlete drafted into the NBA, NHL, or NFL. We know that behind every overnight success is someone who has slugged away at their craft for years (think Niecy Nash). And what got them there beyond their determination and hard work was their decision to stay committed to their goal. [Read more…] about Stay Committed

In the run-up to my birthday last year, life was pretty good. I’d quit my job and had most of the summer off until I started my current one. I was running, writing, and doing many of the things I loved to do. Two days before my birthday, I was out for a run when, afterwards, I started to experience a dull pain in my chest. I thought I pulled a muscle and didn’t think anything of it. The pain didn’t really go away, I just ignored it. I kept running. I went kayaking. And two days after my birthday, I finally listened to that still small voice and took myself to the Urgent Care Clinic at Toronto Western Hospital. [Read more…] about That Still Small Voice