Dr. Daniel (Danny) Friedland is a guest faculty member of MEA and the author of “Leading Well from Within,” which focuses on the science of practice of Conscious Leadership. He’s one of the most delightful humans I’ve ever met and a real mensch.

Christmas can be a joyous or lonely day. This year, we’re likely experiencing it in an unfamiliar way, connected by screens, wondering about vaccines. My gift to you is this six-minute video by my friends, Louie Schwartzberg and Brother David.

My friend Arthur Brooks, who is working on a book on the curse of success based upon many of the principles we talk about at MEA (challenge of letting go of one’s identity, being defined by ego), has a podcast called The Art of Happiness based upon his exceptionally popular Harvard University class.

The days bleed into each other. I wake up later than usual. It’s nice to get more than 7 hours of sleep every night. I go for a run. I go to work. Mostly, I’m the only one there. When I get back home, I take a shower, meditate and do stretches.

These four beautiful words have been attributed to Michelangelo as the last sentence he ever uttered. It’s also been said that the same mantra appeared above the doorway to the entrance of his studio. What a full life this human lived.

Graduations, weddings, birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, baby showers, and reunions. We all love rituals. They represent the momentous and profound moments of our lives. Unfortunately, they’ve all but disappeared during the pandemic.

This poem was offered to me by my friend and MEA alum Matt Clark for my birthday. Given the name of the poem and its message, I asked him if I could share with you.

When I was in fifth grade, I had my first geography class. I remember pointing out on the map my hometown and feeling pride. We went on to learn about the next bigger town, the capital of the region, the capital of the country, other countries and their capitals, and eventually about the towns, cities, and countries of other continents. Learning about all these places excited me.

An MEA alum recently asked me why I’ve never reviewed my last book, “Wisdom@Work,” for Wisdom Well. Honestly, I’d never thought of it...until this past week with the Airbnb IPO. So, here’s my attempt at giving W@W a new view based upon my past eight years as CEO Brian Chesky’s in-house mentor.

Recently, I was asked on a podcast about what someone my age could learn from someone half my age. Here was my spontaneous list, all of which is terribly generalized. Take what’s valuable to you and leave the rest: