Monday Morning Mojo

As I have written before, a keystone is a wedge-shaped stone at the very top of an arch. It was the last piece to be placed in the construction and completes the curved structure. The other stones push against it and as a result the arch does not collapse. This is why it is key, […]

For many years I provided leadership training at the Goddard Space Flight Center. During that time, I had the opportunity to deliver two keynotes at a retreat for the Academy of Program Project and Engineering Leadership, or APPEL, NASA’s senior-most project managers. The managers at APPEL have been in their positions for decades, overseeing projects

The tree above has been dripping sap for days on a trail I regularly take. It’s been dripping sap for years. It’s just this one drip that is taking days. Whenever I walk past it, I am reminded how nature has its cycles. The process of a star collapsing could easily take a million years

I am at the Snowbird resort outside Salt Lake City. The drive was gorgeous as fall foliage was peaking up the mountainsides. Golden trees everywhere, punctuated by evergreens. I am here to kick off our national network for the Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders. We have over

Next week I will be facilitating a Design Summit for the Grand Challenge to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders. We have 115 organizations participating. It’s an exponential jump from our last major event, which had representatives from 25 organizations. Granted, it’s to the 1.5 power approximately, but that makes no

October 9-11 we launch the national network to eliminate the stigma around mental health and substance use disorders, Stop Stigma Together. It’s an amazing Grand Challenge that I am privileged to lead. We have over 100 organizations participating at this event as well as thought leaders across the country, researchers, and activists. I have been

My wife, Laura Baron, is a music video social artist. In 2013 she produced A Little Note, using the soundtrack to the song that won Best Song across all categories by the Washington Area Music Awards. This video was made possible by the generous support of In Honor of Her, and is dedicated to helping

In my 30s, I trained in search and rescue and got my Wilderness First Responder certificate, the industry standard for professional guides and trip leaders. I was motivated to do this because I loved the outdoor backcountry and had already gotten seriously lost once in Superior National Forest, Minnesota. That scared me enough that I

When I went on this last camping trip, I rented a 2014 Jeep Wrangler because the last time I took my car up these mountain roads, I popped off a lower door panel. I had no idea how much fun I would have driving the Jeep. On the highways, being up higher than most and

In the picture above my canine companion, Kaya, is drinking from a mountain stream on our recent trip up into the Adirondacks of upstate New York. I took a jeep up into the hinterlands, getting as far as Lyon Mountain, just 22 miles south of the Canadian border. I rented a 2014 Jeep Wrangler (4×4,