Hello, fellow tinkerer 👋 I’m a huge fan of Trader Joe’s, and Trader Joe’s has a really delightful podcast. A recent episode was about Unexpected Cheddar cheese. I can’t stop thinking about this quote. (I’m from Wisconsin, and we take our cheese seriously.) No profound thoughts to share… other than that I like cheese. 1) Reflection: I’ve been blogging for years, and recently refreshed an old post about downtime. An interesting element I added was the impact of AI on downtime. This thing that’s...
17 days ago • 1 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer 👋 Since May, I’ve been consistently hosting two live sessions per month. They’re mostly aimed at a solopreneur audience (though not exclusively), and I focus on topics like tools, automation, and AI. If you’ve got an idea for a topic you’d like me to cover, I’d love to hear from you! Reply to this email and let me know. 1) Reflection: My kids started school this week — two in high school (yikes) and a fourth grader. My oldest can drive now, so actually drives to school...
about 1 month ago • 1 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer đź‘‹ Earlier this week, I drove my teenager to an overnight camp. It was more than 3 hours round trip, so I had a lot of car time. I'm currently listening to David Sedaris's new book The Land and Its People. I listened to an interview Sedaris gave about his process for writing essays. If you're not familiar with him, he's a humorist, and his essays are self-deprecating and semi-autobiographical. He tests out material in front of live audiences for a long time before...
about 1 month ago • 2 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer đź‘‹ Happy Wednesday. If you're intrigued by Claude CoWork but not quite sure how to get started, I'm hosting a live session on Thursday, July 23rd at 10:00 am CT (GMT-5). I'll walk through how to set up CoWork projects, scheduled tasks, and how I use CoWork in my business. Even if you can't make it, signing up will give you access to the replay. Register 1) Reflection: When I was a kid, my family had an annual croquet tournament on the 4th of July. I've kept the tradition...
2 months ago • 2 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer 👋 Happy Wednesday. Ahead of the 4th of July holiday in the U.S., my kids have no summer camp this week. We are headed to the Pokémon Fossil exhibit at the Field Museum in Chicago. I've been listening to Pokémon conversations since my kids were little, and it goes in one ear and out the other. But my kids are excited. 1) Reflection: When I was younger, I had to travel a lot for work. I was implementing enterprise software at banks and credit unions. I'd go on-site to the...
3 months ago • 1 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer 👋 Happy Wednesday. If you're a solopreneur, I am hosting a free live session next Thursday, June 25th — Your Solopreneur Tech Stack: What You Need, What You Don't. If you're not sure which tools are worth paying for, this session is for you. Register 1) Reflection: I'm writing this from a hotel in San Francisco, my second trip this month (the first being New York two weeks ago). My spouse is here for a conference, and I've been enjoying kid-free days and eating my way...
3 months ago • 2 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer đź‘‹ Happy Wednesday. I got a Stream Deck as a gift and have had all kinds of fun configuring it this week. Mostly just opening different apps and web pages when I click the buttons. But I feel like the possibilities are endless, and I'm not thinking creatively enough with this little device. If you have any experience with Stream Decks and have something interesting configured, can you reply back and let me know what you've got going on? 1) Reflection: I'm coming up on...
4 months ago • 1 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer đź‘‹ Happy Wednesday. I have a giant wooden fence in my backyard, and it's being repaired today. Old boards replaced, some structural issues addressed (big storm about a month ago), repainted. Necessary work, but expensive. Houses are money pits. 1) Reflection: On this day a year ago, I had just arrived in Barcelona, Spain, for a 9-day trip with a friend. About three weeks later, I found out that I had a brain tumor and needed surgery to remove it. I haven't written in my...
5 months ago • 1 min read
Hello, fellow tinkerer đź‘‹ ICYMI, I'm co-hosting a free live session about taxes and budgeting for solopreneurs with tax expert Hannah Cole of Sunlight Tax on April 30th at 10:00 am CT. Register Can't make the live session? Sign up anyway, and I'll send you the replay and resources after. 1) Reflection: My 16-year-old got their driver's license last week. Let me tell you, I thought it was hard when they got behind the wheel for the first time with their permit. But at least I was in the car...
5 months ago • 2 min read