Get some ice cream!
Learn Success part 1: DIY
I’m holding a huge piece of plywood. I’m trying to cut it with a teeny-tiny saw. Plywood wobbles, and I’m not a physicist, but I know it’s not good for the thing you’re trying to cut to be wobbling when you’re trying to cut it.
I’m 30 years old. It’s the summer of 2000. I’m trying to redo the downstairs bathroom.
I have no skills. Crap tools. And practically zero knowledge of carpentry, plumbing, and tiling. I hate painting.
Continue readingLearn by failing part 2 – Skiing
In my first year of teaching, the Ski Club director asked me to be a chaperone. It was a volunteer position, and I didn’t know how to ski, so I wasn’t really interested. When I told her I had never skied, she told me I could take a lesson. I replied “I don’t have enough money.” She told me it was free. When I told her I didn’t have equipment, she told me I could rent. I replied “I don’t have enough money,” and she told me that was also free. Same with the lift ticket.
It was impossible to argue with the math. So, there I was a few weeks later, taking my first lesson. I was nervous, but I remembered what I had learned from my stick-shift odyssey: new things are difficult, but anxiety only makes them harder.
I knew I would fall. And I did. A lot.
Continue readingLearn by failing
I’m at an intersection. The cars behind me are honking. My girlfriend is yelling at me. The light is green. All I have to do is turn left, but I am frozen.
The light turns red, and my girlfriend says, “You have to turn next time.” I reply: “I don’t think I can.”
Continue readingTonight
Fingernail Moon
Found my new pad!
Ask Boz: Top 2 Interview Questions
Dear Ask Boz,
I am doing a significant amount of hiring new people at work. What two questions do you feel are most impactful in understanding a person in an interview?
Thanks, Andy
Great timing on this question, Andy. Workers have their choice of so many jobs now, so getting the right fit for your company is harder than ever. That’s why I would skip the classics like “What’s your biggest weakness?” or “Why do you want to work here?” The interviewee is totally prepared for those questions. If you really want to find out that they have what it takes, there is only one solution: confuse them. The way to do this? Ask questions that don’t make sense.
Continue readingFrom my journal 2023
Ask Boz: What’s my lumberjack name?
Dear Ask Boz,
I just got a chainsaw! What should my lumberjack name be?
Brad
Congratulations on your purchase! Of course, just having a chain saw and cutting down some trees doesn’t make you a lumberjack. To truly join that craft, you have to hate trees. Loathe them. Wish they had organs so you could defenestrate them. And knowing you Brad, I think you have the right amount of rage to take down a forest!
So, if you’re committed, you can’t an average name like “Schmitty” or “Lefty” or “Old Stumpy”. Nope, you need a name that shows your rage at trees. And the best ones are in the language of anger: Ancient Norse.
Continue reading
Mark Bozeman 