The responsibility lies not just with those who spread misinformation but with all of us who choose whether to nurture it or call it out for what it is: A betrayal of trust for the sake of likes and shares.

The evidence is clear, four hours of deep work is not a limitation to be overcome but a natural threshold to be respected. The question isn't whether we can push beyond it but why we keep trying to force ourselves into an artificial schedule that serves neither our best interests nor those of our clients and employers.

I remember the exact moment I realized we were in trouble. I was watching what should have been an absurd scene, a respected astronomer, their decades of research and observation reduced to a mere "perspective," forced to debate a flat Earth conspiracy theorist as if both viewpoints deserved equal consideration. The host, in what they surely thought was admirable fairness, insisted that the audience respect both sides equally. That their individual "expertise" held the same weight.

Most of us are just a few misfortunes away from losing everything we've built. Our towers aren't nearly as sturdy as we pretend, our foundations not nearly as solid as we believe. Yet we can't – or won't – see it, because acknowledging this truth would mean confronting our own vulnerability, our own potential to fall. The question isn't whether we'll learn empathy, but when.

The scratch was nothing, barely a graze from a dried branch while retrieving a golf ball from the rough. No blood, not even broken skin. Just a faint red line across my leg. But in that moment, my mind launched into overdrive, constructing an elaborate scenario of flesh-eating bacteria, of tissue deteriorating hour by hour, of death creeping through my body before I could make it home. On the outside, I continued playing, swinging clubs and tracking balls across the fairway and into the rough. Inside, I was drowning in terror.

In the end, the question isn't, "Do I offer the world any value?" but rather, "How can I best use my skills and passions to make a positive impact?"

Let's lift each other up. Let's help each other out if we can. A simple act of caring creates an endless ripple.

No one. Let me repeat. NO ONE, plays at the top of their game without first making a lot of mistakes and falling on their ass many, many times. If you aren’t falling down, you aren’t pushing yourself hard enough.

“When you've done well and another has benefited by it, why like a fool do you look for a third thing on top—credit for the good deed or a favor in return?”

While talented people are collaborating with other talented people and in the process becoming more talented everyday, those who are protecting their knowledge are falling further behind, their knowledge becoming more and more outdated by the day.

The greatest lesson i ever learned was the importance of sportsmanship. With time, i could no longer go 5 sets on the tennis court and gone were the days i could pull up for a transition 3 but what i learned about how to treat others has never left and it is a skill that has prepared me well for a successful business career.

My friend Michael Sanders, who makes brilliant products at BambooHR, has always provided me with balance. His view on life, business, and success is so refreshing. i miss having the opportunity to work with him everyday. Michael always has a good story to share to illustrate the importance of putting things into their proper perspective and the parable of the American Tourist and Mexican Fisherman is one he has shared with me many times.