jaywalking

I have always been fascinated by various fields of scientific study, including astronomy, botany, (marine) biology, geography, and zoology, just to name a few. Anything to do with the natural world on this planet or other planets, stars, galaxies, black holes, etc. in the cosmos.  Did someone say "cosmos"? Fun fact : my love of botany started when I worked at a nursery  (the kind for plants) in high school. I learned about  all types of indoor/outdoor plants and how to care for them. I also learned  to stack 50lb. bags of potting soil, a skill which I am considering putting on my resume at this point. I am also an animal lover and a frequent aquarium and zoo visitor. As an avid nature show viewer and consumer of all manner of animal-related information, I also consider myself quite knowledgeable on the subject (if I do say so myself). If I ever get on Jeopardy! and "Mammals" or "Marine Biology" come up as categories, watch out! Although with my luck I'...

Webster's Dictionary defines a routine as a "habitual or mechanical performance of an established procedure" . This guy knows about daily routine! For years I had a daily routine which became comfortable and actually somewhat enjoyable. It went something like this: get up (at 4:30am-uggh), shower/shave, get dressed, drive downtown, go to work, drive back home, have dinner, watch TV, go to bed.  Rinse and repeat.    On the surface it doesn't sound enjoyable, does it? But I am someone who thrives in a structured environment, so there was an element of joy that came with doing the same thing every day. Although I would say what I found most gratifying were the relationships I built over the years. There were my co-workers, the guys in the parking garage, the barista at the coffee shop, the guy at the security desk, the shoe repair guy across the street, etc. The network of people I interacted with on a daily basis made each day interesting and worthwhile.   When I ...

Do you ever get that feeling of self-doubt? Questioning your abilities, skills, and accomplishments, despite the evidence of success? Or you feel you are not capable of completing that big project at work and are consumed by the fear of failure. These are the tell-tale signs of imposter syndrome , which I think affects us all to some degree. I have no data to back this claim, but whenever I mention it to someone, I get a nod in agreement. Living in fear of the "invisible choke" I have experienced imposter syndrome throughout my career.  This was especially true whenever I was promoted and/or asked to take on a high-profile project. I was truly fortunate that I had some great bosses along the way who believed in me and gave me the tools to succeed. As I make my career transition, I am often overcome with that same feeling of not being worthy or capable. When that happens, I take a step back and acknowledge my past accomplishments. I have been writing them down as part of the j...

This weekend is the first race of the 2024 IndyCar season, and to quote my racing compadre TK, "I love the smell of methanol in the morning..." I am an avid motor-racing fan, specifically "open wheel" series such as IndyCars and Formula One (F1). To clarify, "open wheel" refers to cars that do not have fenders (or a roof for that matter) like traditional road cars. While I follow both series, I am most passionate about IndyCars. Example of an IndyCar I could write a VERY long post comparing IndyCars & F1, the nuances of racing, my favorite drivers, tracks, etc., and bore most of you to death (although if anyone reading this is a hard-core race fan and wants to "geek-out", hit me up in the comments). Instead, I want to write about how I got into this and why I love it so much. However, I should first address the two biggest ironies in all this: 1) I know nothing about working on cars 2) I drive slow like an old man. Now that we have gotten tho...

When I tell people about my career transition to communications, the first thing they often ask is "why"? Allow me to answer this one-word question with the following 212 words:         Riddle me this... I worked in the same field (foreign exchange) and at the same company (a large U.S. bank) for 25+ years, so most people associated me with my job. Here I am, expressing my desire to go down a completely new path, which naturally arouses curiosity about my motivations. For many of those years I worked on a trading desk. Amid the hustle and bustle I discovered how much I enjoyed the communication aspect of the job. Specifically, my passion for writing and connecting people through words (if that sounds familiar, it is from the very first “jaywalking” post). Now I am taking that passion and applying it to a new career path.   So, there is your "why". As to the "how", well, that is a work in progress... In a trading environment miscommunication can result in...