February 24, 2023
Publishing for me isn’t based on productivity. As it stands, I have a portfolio of 11 unpublished blog post DRAFTS. Last week there was no blog entry, because I wasn’t ready to talk about what I’d been thinking about.
Why?
Before, I have written how easy it is to produce for my private work journal (Check out last year’s Why I Journal About Work). There, emotion and first-hand experience prompt me; whereas, with blogging, I have made a decision. My public blog will be devoid of specific employer-related and personnel scenarios. In my opinion my work and my employer are proprietary, or as Merriam-Webster.com defines it, in part, “something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker.”1 Despite my participation, the ties to the employer's specific business means it's a moral-based decision.
I have written, though. The material isn’t whole. A choice, I haven’t and won’t publish when that is the case. Moreover, I took a week off from my newsletter. I may do so again in the future. It’s not based on productivity. It’s based on when I’m ready.
Top News
Definition of Work Changes published earlier today. It is an open-minded look at how people’s perspectives differ when it comes to what work is. From there, I ask a lot of questions based upon a view that opposes my own. Lastly, I am fascinated that something so antithetical to my own definition exists that I am ready and willing to learn more! What’s your definition of work?
Supporting the Ambitions of Others
The Muse is the go-to destination for the next gen workforce to research companies and careers.2
I’m excited this week to promote a special contributor to my Inbox each week. A subscriber to almost 20 different newsletters, one that I enjoy reading through is The Muse. For example, one of their most recent editions covered how to make new habits stick (through “habit stacking”; here’s a link to article by Charlotte Grainger). Really interesting. In addition to career advice, they also send me lists of companies that are hiring, offer a robust job searching portal with companies’ information, and much more. Why not subscribe to them, too? (No compensation was provided; I’m just fan!)
What I Learned This Week
Explaining Stuff
Sometimes actually explaining stuff has to take a back seat to learning more about explaining stuff. And what better writer to learn from than the great
?! I subscribed to his Substack and highly recommend that you do, too. His way with words is as awe-inspiring as is passion for writing, current events, equality, popular culture, sports and more. Check out his article, What I Think About LeBron Breaking My NBA Scoring Record. He expresses himself so well.Working With Others
I enjoy the YouTube clips of Real Time with Bill Maher (link). While viewing those clips is not working with others, this past week Maher and his guests discussed two topics I thought were relevant to working with others.3 The first was about a YouTuber (not Maher) who paid for sight-restoring cataract surgery for 1,000 people. Some public reaction was that the YouTuber did it as a publicity stunt. Does helping others infringe on their current state of being? Maher’s guest, actor, Christoph Waltz, wondered aloud, “does the same thing go for literacy?" A rhetorical question, no doubt. Secondly, Maher spoke to his preference for working from home. His other guest, Sarah Isgur, made a strong point about being around other people. She said, "Here's the problem. I totally agree, but we are losing something. I work from home...but our generation...we already got mentored. We already got trained. ...We don't quite know what's going to be lost when we have an entire generation who doesn’t have anyone actually telling them how to do their job because we’re all home in our PJs.”
Other News & Updates
10% Off Coaching Services
My news about The Muse doesn’t end with my advertisement above. How cool of them to offer to my readers and podcast listeners the following:
👉 Use the promo code DANNY to get 10% Off coaching services through The Muse. Go to https://www.themuse.com/coaching, choose a service, book a career coach, decide on a time and get started! (Valid through 26-March-2023; this is not a product of affiliate marketing.)
30 and 20
Having brought up Kareem Abdul-Jabbar earlier, one might think I have just posted a double-double, or 30 points and 20 rebounds. Not so, but close. Today marks the publishing of my 30th blog post, and 20th newsletter. I’m not much for celebrating these types of things, but it is a neat milestone.
Upcoming Quotes and/or Graphics
Here’s the video I embedded in my latest blog post:
This homemade video was originally intended as a Thank You video for a gift received. Slightly altered, it analogizes the changing, contemporary definition of work - "Definitions evolve. It is not always because things change. It's how we think that changes - through development, new ideas, innovation and socio-cultural norms...Since Blue Bottle Coffee released its Craft Instant Coffee last year, now instant coffee can mean instant espresso - a different brew method with a vastly different taste profile."
Definition of PROPRIETARY. Merriam-Webster, Incorporated, 24 Feb. 2023, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/proprietary.
“The Muse | About.” The Muse - Career Advice and Better Job Search, Daily Muse, Inc., https://www.themuse.com/about. Accessed 23 Feb. 2023.
Overtime: Christoph Waltz, Ari Melber, Sarah Isgur | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO). YouTube, HBO, 2023. www.youtube.com, https://youtu.be/mHRJEmOoKvl. Accessed 18 Feb. 2023.