The longest day of the year

Among my favorite F. Scott Fitzgerald moments is when Daisy Buchanan admits to her friends in The Great Gatsby that, while she always watches for the longest day of the year, she always misses it. It's the perfect summer setting for a great American novel.

If you got outside at lunch today, you noticed that the sun was as close to overhead as you could ever recall. That's because today is the summer solstice, the longest day of the year,  a result of the Earth's seasonal tilt towards our distant Sun. Over the next six months, the Earth will actually move closer to the Sun but the Earth's tilt will shift so that the Southern Hemisphere receives increasingly longer days. Soon enough, the sun will set around 5 PM, but let's not rush it.

The next 10 weeks are what most Americans consider summer, a season during which many professionals attempt to ease their dress code and office hours. As a sales professional, these 10 weeks are when I schedule lunches, coffees, and networking meetings with busy professionals who briefly exhale and make time in their calendars for colleagues like me. I catch up with old clients and gain referrals to new ones. These meetings fill the pipeline for my third and fourth quarter work, work for which I am very grateful. 

What are you doing to build a pipeline of work for the rest of your year? Let's talk via telephone or in person before the 4th of July to get you going in the right direction.

What Brown does for me

Each June, my mom and I spend a few days in Maine opening our family's cottage. To open the rustic home, we remove the sheets covering the furniture, make the beds upstairs, and I vacuum the cobwebs and dust that accumulate over 9 months. At some point, I hear the UPS truck come down the small South Bristol street as Eric is honking away. What's he bringing?

Inevitably, my mom has accumulated more than a few boxes of clean bedding, outdoor cushions, and Maine-themed ephemera over the winter. We're thankful that Denise at Wall & Walsh, the family business, is our shipping department and gets Mom's boxes to the local UPS driver in a timely fashion for them to arrive in Maine while we're there.

I was vacuuming as Eric drove by. He was looking into the front windows and passed by before I could scramble onto the front porch. A minute later, he came back, headed the other direction, and saw me pointing towards the short, steep driveway, into which he immediately backed up. I met him by the backporch as he greeted me with a lilac bough for my wife or girlfriend, and was even more excited when I told him that my mom would be the lucky recipient. He gladly handed me the 8 large boxes that we were expecting and was off again, honking as he went.

Eric's a UPS driver in coastal Maine that greets returning summer residents with wildflowers that he collects along his route. In addition to delivering packages, Eric delivers happiness every day, which is definitely not mandated in his contract. I look forward to our once annual interaction so much that I spend 900 miles in the car with my mom to do it and was compelled to tell you about it.

What small moments of joy can you create for your clients? What will keep them shipping UPS instead of FedEx?

I went to the dermatologist.

I started this year with a list of things to do as I approach the age of 40.

Retirement Plan? My friend and financial advisor Dean Vetsikas is on it.

Will? My friend and lawyer James Bainbridge just sent it to me. 

Physical? My doctors say that I should lose some weight, but otherwise things are great after a few bumpy years.

Dermatologist? The dermatologist. I just couldn't bring myself to make an appointment to see a dermatologist. The sun-loving women in my life are seemingly always waiting for pathology results regarding irregular moles. My physician friends tried to recommend a colleague known for her Manolo Blahniks. I even posted a Wall Street Journal article imploring that high-risk indviduals get annual full-body skin cancer scans. I was rattled.

But when melanoma came back to a good family friend, I made the call. The usual suspects told me how invasive the visit would be. They described how I'd leave with bandages. I was not excited about my potential experience. They could not have been more wrong.

Dr. Edward "Ned" Ryan is a thoughtul physician who uses dictation and technology to map skin imperfections on his patients' bodies. He was excited by my lack of moles, but agreed that my fair skin and mountain of freckles made me succeptible to skin cancer. He was glad to hear that I so often fish in long sleeves, pants, shoes, a hat, and sunglasses. The best news: He didn't find anything suspicisous and looked forward to seeing me next summer.

That was the best 20 minutes of my week. Why will you visit your dermatologist? Let us know when you do. #TeamIHateCancer

To Build a Bed

Recently, I helped a friend to assemble a bed from IKEA. His wife and inlaws thought that it looked great on the internet. It was white, it had drawers underneath it, and it was half the price of all the other beds. In reality, it was cheap particle board, required a tiny allen wrench for dozens of fasteners, and took 8 hours to assemble.

My friend’s first (and last) experience with IKEA furniture was total bullshit. He'll never go back again - no matter what his family's need.

Do your new clients come back? In between muffled curses and stripped screws, I considered how those of us with professional practices help our first-time clients to have the best experience that they can, so that they'll return for a second engagement, matter, project, or case. Our clients are already thinking Caveat emptor, so let's help them love us.

Does your marketing plan reflect the reality of working with you? IKEA pushes price and convenience, pains that evaporate once you open the first box and see the dozens of parts.

Does your sales process create expectations for both you and your client for the first week or month that you'll work together? Once you've found and loaded the heavy boxes onto a wobbly IKEA cart, IKEA won't let you roll the cart to your car and you are restricted to a tiny loading area with concrete barriers.

Does your onboarding process lay out the reality of working with you and the expectations for everyone involved? IKEA buries its instructions inside the boxes, in which they lay hand and hand with Pandora herself.

That new client (in which you invested heavily to acquire) will be as disappointed as my friend in our day-long IKEA bed project if we don't make "some assembly required" as easy as possible.

This week, I'm going to assemble some key documents (a checklist, some templates, and project materials) that I can email to my prospective customers as part of the sales experience. My clients will know what they can expect of me, what I expect of them, and why they pay me to do it. I know some great small firm lawyers whose smart use of paperwork makes them A LOT of money. I'd be happy to introduce you to one of them.

Coda: We actually had two beds, and I built the second one alone. I had identified the trouble spots, laid out the fasteners ahead of time, and brought better tools. While it still took 8 hours to assemble, it required 2/3 the effort and angst. That's why repeat customers are so valuable to our practices.

Wax on wax off

Benjamin Frankin opined that "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." Each spring, boaters invest hours of prevention to ward off expensive days of cure. I won't bore you with the details of how I clean, polish, and protect 23 feet of fiberglass and metal, but imagine two four-gallon buckets full of cleaning products designed for the harsh marine environment and dozens of  terrycloth and microfiber rags to apply and remove them. So far, I've invested four long days in preparing the boat for the 2017 season while friends are catching dozens of striped bass each day and filing their taxes.

Why do I block out these four days in my calendar each April? Because, at the beginning of its fourth season, the boat looks brand new. We've kept our asset looking as good as it can for something that spends 8+ months each year floating in saltwater. The constant compliments reinforce our reputation for keeping a boat in "Bristol condition" - a reference to the English port that produced the finest ships in the world. 

Now that I'm done waxing the boat, I'm going to clean, polish, and protect the appearance of my consulting practice, in which I coach professionals through the sales, marketing, and business development processes. I'm going to strip down and re-varnish my website, detail my elevator pitch, and polish my business cards to better reflect who I am and what I do. 

I'm not alone in this effort. I know a partner in a small firm who just launched a new personal website focused on his representation of local businesses, especially breweries.  It's a great project in which I wish every lawyer would invest some web and content dollars. 

As well, my brother has done an excellent job polishing our charitable effort, Team I Hate Cancer, led by his cycling team's lightning-fast kits and our iconic t-shirts. It's a brand that excites a lot of people and allows us to raise a lot of money to support families facing a cancer diagnosis.

If you're thinking about how your business looks to current and prospective clients this spring, let's pool some resources and make sure that all of our practices are as shiny as they can be - in "Bristol condition" as they say. 

What story are you telling?

We all know that no one's life is as perfect as it is on Facebook. However, facing scores of old friends at my college reunion last weekend, I was unsure how a sober, single, childless CJ would fair in a room full of wine-fueled startup junkies and consultants married to investment bankers and law firm partners. So I decided to tell the truth.

When asked what I was doing with myself, I spoke to the impact that my brother, our colleagues, and I continue to create through Team I Hate Cancer. An amazing majority of the classmates were aware of our work via social media and wanted to learn more about it. I uncovered an entire network of biotech and medical professionals who are as excited about helping cancer survivors as we are, and I really look forward to staying in touch and collaborating with them.  

When given the opportunity to ask first, I asked about families, learning about the challenges of raising special needs kids, blending families, and the importance of grandparents as short notice babysitters. It made me thankful for all of the support that my family continues to provide to each other. 

By telling the story that you want to tell, you control the experience that follows. If you're having a tough week at the office, talk about your kids' little league team and gain the empathy of fellow parents. If you just scored two huge clients, talk about it and watch what happens with your practice as it continues to grow. 

What story are you telling this week?

Just show up.

Months ago, an old friend messaged me to ask whether I'd come back for my 15 year college reunion. I'd said, "Sure," rallied a few friends to join me and didn't think about it until Duke unleashed a relentless electronic barrage of donation solicitations. Even as a fundraiser, I was horrified by the frequency and tone of their messages. For the record, I haven't given to Duke since 2010. 

However, in the last week, a bunch of my Duke classmates popped up in a reunion-specific Facebook group, some friends local in the Triangle reached out, and all of a sudden I was driving 400 miles south without barbecue as my primary goal. 

Last night, Duke threw great parties, including turning Cameron Indoor Stadium into an '80s disco, at which I reconnected with a number of old friends, with conversations ranging from Tex-Mex, childhood anxiety, student government elections, social media sobriety, Easter plans, and I even witnessed a few quick hugs between college flames.  

As recently as Tuesday, I was more excited for a root canal than my college reunion but, because I went, I got to enjoy all of these friends while everyone else is at home checking Facebook with FOMO. 

Sometimes, once in a while, just show up. You never know who you'll see again. 

The most expensive spare tire on West Chester Pike.

The forward driver's side tire exploded when I hit the suburban pothole late on Friday night. Luckily, I limped into a nearby Wawa parking lot in which my local AAA flatbed driver replaced my blown tire with the spare. 

The next moring, I called Joe at Qyst Automotive, who used the information in his CRM to order me two Continental tires for delivery on Monday moning. With my car on the lift, a technician used a checklist to assess its bumper-to-bumber well-being, sharing his list with Joe, the shop manager. When he called to recommend 4 new tires AND rear brake rotors, I admittedly had sticker shock, but knew that my 2009 Volvo station wagon was in the best hands in the area as I made payment arrangements. I had not anticipated spending that much money but felt better that my car was in better shape than when I dropped it off because of the relationship that the Walshes have with the Qyst crew.

When you meet with a client, do you check-in with her about her business' needs and what other problems you can solve? Inevitably, someone's going to do that work for her and it might as well be you. I'm developing a checklist for my practice and would love to hear about yours!

Can my local coffee shop survive the Starbucks invasion?

I'm really fortunate that I live across the street from an independent coffee shop. For many years, it served hot coffee, crafted great drinks, and accepted packages for anyone in the neighborhood. Recently, the coffee's been tepid, the baristas high, and the package acceptance service eliminated.

Today, a shiny new Starbucks opens less than 2 blocks away and my independent coffee shop has not undertaken a single step to appreciate the scores of customers that it has developed over the years. I think that, among the whirring of espresso shots, I heard the death knell of my neighborhood shop, whose rusty service and stodgy beliefs have demonstrated to its customers that they, like the Dude, are just abiding.

Everyday, someone's trying to snipe one of your practice's customers, whether via price, service, or rebates. What are you doing to love your customers who you've developed and to protect them from your competition, who wants to do their work? I'd start with a handwritten note to each of them with an invitation to check-in over coffee of lunch. I'm reminded of a 1980s United Airlines TV commercial about a business losing its biggest customer. Go out and love yours. I'd be more than happy to share some ideas how to do it.

What will do you when Starbucks opens in your neighborhood?

Rejection never felt so good.

I awoke last Thursday like most days, reaching to silence my smartphone-turned-alarm-clock. In the course of my morning routine, I began to review the emails that had arrived overnight. Buried among the headlines and hype machines was this email title:

Lottery: Not Selected For 2017 Blue Cross Broad Street Run 

My heart leapt out of my chest; I was released! I had registered for the Broad Street Run entry lottery as part of an agreement with my doctor to get back in my running sneakers, but I knew inside that I wouldn't be ready for a 10 mile run by my 38th birthday (just a few days before the race). In fact, I had been dreading my glacial pace from the moment that I clicked "submit." However, I'm now pounding the Pine Street pavement for the first time in almost a year, an activity that has me moving towards a race pace 5k (3+ miles) as a March milestone.

So I'll promise you two things:

1. My legendary Team I Hate Cancer high-five stop is BACK south of City Hall.

2. I'll run a 10 miler on the Radnor Trail (out and back twice) before July 4.

3. IF we find someone who'll run Broad Street for Team I Hate Cancer, we'll throw a post-race party for your effort and my birthday.

Rejection never felt so good.

PhillySetGo seeks Philly's civic-minded lawyers

I had the opportunity recently to sit down with my friend and former colleague, Nolan Tully, with whom I worked on sophisticated life insurance fraud and long term care insurance issues at Drinker Biddle. In addition to his law practice, Nolan and two friends are the ThoroBros (hyperlink), a triumvirate of young horse racing aficionados who write widely on issues related to the sport.  Nolan’s lifelong interest in politics led him to join the South of South Neighborhood Association, the local organization for Philadelphia’s Graduate Hospital neighborhood in which he and his wife have started their family. He and I met to talk about his recent appointment to the board of PhillySetGo, a local political action committee founded to educate and engage area millennials around quality of life issues and to support local and regional millennial political candidates who seek to make a real difference.

Nolan explained to me that, as many of us have witnessed, the recent election cycle created a surge in interest in politics by Philadelphia’s young professionals. However, with the votes counted, many young Philadelphians are still looking for opportunities to stay involved in local and regional politics. Specifically, PhillySetGo believes that these young professionals want ethical, transparent, and effective local and state governance that seriously addresses affect quality of life issues, including education, job growth, poverty, and urban development. PhillySetGo believes that elected officials too often fail to provide competent and ethical leadership and too often trivialize millennial engagement in favor ofestablished interests.

With hundreds of lawyers across Philadelphia frustrated by the current political climate, PhillySetGo is hosting a Young Lawyers Night event at the Ritz Carlton Residences at 1414 Penn Square on Thursday, February 23 to engage these talented young professionals and to show them how PhillySetGo is working for them. The event’s golas are to provide a networking event for young lawyers interested in local politics, to create civic engagement opportunities for them, and to expose them to local political and business leaders.

Moving ahead, PhillySetGo seeks to identify candidates in 2018 Comonwealth-level races that represent the views of their young professional constituents and to host open events in the candiates’ Philadelphia neighborhoods. They also intend to financially support a subset of their endorsed Republican and Democratic candidates.

If you’re interested in learning more, reach out to Nolan at Nolan.Tully@drinkerbiddle.com.

I joined a shitty gym.

I used to belong to the pretty gym, where the machines were new, the lightbulbs were bright, and the guy's locker room was clean. The members were pretty and the staff regularly oogled them and each other. But the management created clerical and administrative moments where staff interrupted members to allegedly update their contact information, but really to upsell you into a personal training package which I didn't want. So I quit, because Team I Hate Cancer believes that "outside is free." That was February 2015.

December's cold snap convinced me that I needed an inside space in which to shed some pounds that I put on while sidelined with a chronic issue. So I joined the shitty gym, where the same treadmill has been broken since I joined, the lights are inspired by a prison, and the locker room smells like a frat house. While registering as a member, the staff person didn't ask my name until he read my American Express card. The bubbly personal training director attempted to save the experience but the torpedo had already exploded. Neither person has greeted me since with more than a nod or a grunt. However, because no one greets or bothers the members, there's no one to ask about the free classes, personal training options, or why the treadmill is still broken. 

It's amazing; nothing gets fixed and sold. In fact, the same staff person blares his Tupac-inspired Spotify playlist every night while trolling the internet for a new job.

But no one bothers me while I am working off those Christmas cookies.

Why Boxing Day is so AWESOME

Many Americans consider the day after Christmas as a day for the couch, the mall, or a walk in the park. However, in England, today is Boxing Day, a day during which Englishmen watch soccer for eight hours. On Boxing Day, English churches traditionally open the boxes in which parishioners made donations (alms) all year to support the less fortunate. 

How awesome is an entire day dedicated to those who need our help? We spend an entire season researching, acquiring, and wrapping the perfect gifts for family and friends. So why can't we spend just one day after Christmas supporting those less fortunate than we are?

If you see things the way that I do, would you consider a donation supporting the work of Bethesda Project, a leading homeless-support organization that serves more than 2,500 homeless Philadelphians each year? Your contribution will make an immediate impact of the lives of homeless men and women who come to Bethesda for shelter, food, and protection yearround.

Thanks for your generosity! Make your donation here:  https://give.everydayhero.com/us/YPAB

A Jeweler, a Tailor, and a Mechanic

Years ago, I read somewhere that every guy needs three specific craftsmen in his life.

When I have a lady friend, I turn to Trendz's Amy Hardy as Santa CJ's number one helper. She always has the perfect shiny bauble for the lucky lady in my life, she probably has my Amex on file, and she'll readily ship it from Stone Harbor to wherever I need it. When the day comes to buy a more significant ring, I know that she'll send me to the right diamond broker. 

For twenty years, Peter Marziano at Hassis Men's Shop has been my haberdasher, whether through a steady stream of bowties, at least a half dozen perfectly tailored suits, or a rack of my favorite sportcoats. As my waistline and checkbook expand and contract, Pete and his tailor's chalk keep my threads fitting like a glove. In fact, my tuxedo's in his shop for alterations in anticipation of a black tie wedding next weekend. Who's that dapper redhead drinking water? Oh yeah, that's me.

Finally, the Walsh family trusts its cars to Joe Giovanetti and his team at Qyst Tire and Automotive Center. A short Uber ride from Center City, Joe and his team in Upper Darby treat our Volvos like their own, ask great questions, and always consider the investment when proposing a replacement part or a solution. Most of all, they stand behind their work and don't give you your vehicle back until they are satisfied that it's fixed. Given the hundreds of miles that we cumatively drive each week, it's great having them on our team.

So who is on your team? More importantly, whose team are you on this year? Let's talk about making your practice indispensable to more clients next year. 

A few things for which I'm grateful.

I'm grateful that I'm finally over the flu which I contracted while working the polls on Election Day. 

I'm grateful for a lifelong friend who voted for the first time ever this year.

I'm grateful that Team I Hate Cancer can celebrate Thanksgiving with its newest survivor this year.

I'm grateful that, with your support, we'll soon provide mental health services to Philadelphia-area families facing a cancer diagnosis through our partnership with the Flatwater Foundation.

I'm grateful to help Bethesda Project with its support of Philadelphia's homeless and abandoned poor. They were kind enough to allow me to moderate a great panel on homelesness in front of a full room last week.

I'm grateful to Tony Brown and to Dean Vetsikas for introducing me to the incredible 160 students at the Curtis Institute of Music. I would love for you to join me for one of more than 100 free concerts just off Rittenhouse Square featuring the world's finest classical musicians.

I'm grateful that all the money that I've spent on fishing tackle and camoflauge results in so many incredible experiences with family and friends.

I'm grateful for three quirky physicians who always are thinking for and about me, and for the physicians and friends who introduced me to them! 

I'm grateful to so many who share so much with me, even when it really is "too much."

Finally, I'm grateful to all of the family and friends who continue to support me on  this incredible journey. It's because of you that I'm lucky enough to be grateful for so much.

May this weekend bring much gratitude to you and yours! 

Why We Mo.

Today, I shaved my signature ginger beard to reveal fall's first rosy cheeks. For the next 30 days, my nascent moustache will start conversations about men's health that will surely save lives. We'll talk about Chris Geschke's week with testicular cancer and his unique fertility story. We'll talk about the friendship that Bubba Nicholson and Andy Leonetti forged by a flesh-eating bacteria. We'll talk about a family friend now recovering from a significant surgery to remove a malignant brain tumor. 

We'll talk about these friends because, when faced with something odd, they checked with their doctor, who quickly put into place an plan to save their lives. Men unfortunately and too often fail to make that call, so we include the women in our lives who so often pull us out of a jam. 

Our moustaches are our month-long ribbons to celebrate that, through these conversations, we can prevent the death of fathers, grandfathers, uncles, brothers, nephews, and partners from testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and suicide. Join Team I Hate Cancer this Movember! 

Our favorite cancer haters

For each of the last nine years, the LIVESTRONG Foundation has invited my brother and me to Austin, Texas to participate in its annual Ride for the Roses Weekend in appreciation for the funds that we have raised for this leading cancer charity - funds totalling more than $270,000 to date. In recent years, Abbey Barron, an experienced oncology nurse who  happens to be my brother's girlfriend, has joined us both socially and on the bike. While we truly appreciate the Texan hospitality, meeting and collaborating with our fellow cancer haters is what brings us back year after year.

It was at the  Ride for the Roses where I met Mark Garza, founder of the Flatwater Foundation, which funds and facilitates more than $40,000 in free mental health services to family facing a cancer diagnosis. We continue to work with Mark and his team to make Philadelphia the third city in which the foundation fulfills this important unmet need.

A few years ago, Spencer Lueders and Michael Walsh set the Ride for the Roses 100 mile course record on a punishing day on the bike. Since then, we've not only admired Spencer's athletic prowess, but the incredible philanthropic success that 24 Hours of Booty, a series of 24 hour cycling events benefiting local cancer charities that he founded, continues to experience. Raising nearly $1.7 million in Charlotte this summer alone, Spencer and his incredible team are looking to raise $100 million in his lifetime. We know that they can do it! 

Finally, we're thankful to have met Ron Hamner and David Goodall, our cancer-hating brothers and founders of Grab My Wheel, a Raleigh, North Carolina-based charity whose all-women cycling event funds a number of cancer causes in the Triangle. They also generously manage Team I Hate Cancer's finances, saving us more than $5,000 annually and allowing us to focus on fundraising.

We're thankful to LIVESTRONG for the opportunity to support their cancer survivorship programs and continued advocacy for cancer survivors, including its leadership role in Vice President Biden's Cancer Moonshot initiative. But we're really thankful for the opportunity to have met so many fellow cancer haters that inspire and influence our work everyday.

More of us chasing less of them.

Already this week, I've talked to a number of professionals who are focused on growing their practices. A common theme from each of them were the new business challenges created by consolidation in myriad industries. As a young account executive in the early 2000s, I listened to sales training compact discs produced by Jim Doyle, who described the situation as "more of us chasing less of them." Those words are still true, but they do not preclude you from obtaining new clients. I can assure you that I'm not the only business development coach in Philadelphia, just like you're not the only industry professional working in your area. But my focus on meeting and speaking with attorneys through my network keeps me relevant in an already crowded space. Similarly, you likely already have a niche and/or expertise in your practice that we could introduce and/or market to the remaining decision makers in your industry. These are some of my favorite professionals with whom to work. Are you one of them? Let's chat!

Exercising your network aka I got a guy for that.

In the course of coaching professionals through the business development and career transition processes, new clients regularly allege that their networks aren't very strong. I ask them if they have ever introduced two professional connections. Most have not. To see how strong your network is, you have to exercise it.

I'm always eager to exercise my network. I'm quick to (re)introduce friends to Dean Vetsikas, my dear friend and trusted financial advisor, and Mike Gephart, our family's longtime accountant, when they are considering starting a family or a new business. My brilliant friend, Marija Ugrinich, MD, introduced me to an equally brilliant endicrinologist who's on his way to taming my fickle thyroid, totally improving my quality of life. I was able to connect an old friend, who had a very scary experience this summer, with my friend and trusted colleague James Bainbridge, who was able to protect  my friend and his client.

James and I share the saying "I got a guy for that." In fact, I think that James knows everyone between Norristown and Lansdale, and is happy to share (or exercise) his network whenever he can. He and Dean Vetsikas both make referrals part of their successful practices.

Are you making referrals to those in your network? If not, that could explain why you're not getting as many referrals as you'd like.

 "I got a guy for that" just means that you're exercising your network.

CJ's Endless Summer

I thought that this summer would never end. I officiated two weddings. I caught two blue marlin. I ate my weight in barbecue and lobster. I reconnected with old friends and former colleagues. I made new friends and closed new clients. I saw more whales, dolphins, sea turtles, and seabirds than Noah could consider. I doubled down on supporting causes that are important to me. I put thousands of miles on my Volvo station wagon from the foothills of Appalachia to the Gulf of Maine (and used FB and Instagram to record some of it). Most significantly, I'm healthier than I've been in 5 years. 

I'm very thankful for all of these things and aware that it's now officially fall. Let me tell you what I'm excited about this fall.

1. Expanding my coaching practice to help lawyers find jobs in other fields.

2. Highlighting promising prostate cancer research that the Movember Foundation funds here in Philadelphia.

3. Expanding the impact that Team I Hate Cancer creates by supporting families facing a cancer diagnosis.

4. Inspired by my friend Justin Park, managing my insipid thyroid to be more present in the lives around me.

If you want to learn more or have something to share, let's get together live or telephonically this fall.

I'm STOKED to do great work this season and beyond.