YEAR IN REVIEW

In 2020, I spent hundreds of hours creating personal and professional development articles and podcasts to share with you. If my writing has enriched your life this year, helped you find a job, or given you more confidence at work, please consider subscribing to my newsletter. Thank you!

🎧 If you want to hear me talk about this story and go into more detail: Listen now

It’s hard to see the forest for the trees with all of the articles I’ve written. So, I wanted to do an end of the year wrap-up to categorize and summarize everything for you.

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RELATIONSHIPS

This is Part 3 — the final story — of my three-part series with my lessons from 30 years of marriage. If you haven’t read Part 1 or Part 2 yet, here you go:

My wife and I have raised our children together for 20+ years. Our daughter has already graduated from college and is now in graduate school. Our oldest son will soon be graduating from college. Our youngest son is finishing up his senior year in high school and has already applied to several colleges.

That’s right, folks. We are nearing the “empty nest” phase, and I’m already…

RELATIONSHIPS

This is Part 2 of my three-part series with my lessons from 30 years of marriage. If you haven’t read Part 1 yet, here you go:

The first act of your marriage is exciting. You have the honeymoon phase and spend years getting to know each other. You have so much fun exploring and experiencing things together as a couple.

You don’t know it yet, but you’ll never have quite that level of freedom ever again. The second act starts when you move past this initial glow and settle into a routine. …

RELATIONSHIPS

Divorce rates spiked globally during the pandemic last year. Legal firms saw dramatic increases in divorce research and applications. There was a 57% increase in divorce agreement sales just three weeks after quarantines began!

A sobering statistic is the percentage of marriages that will end in divorce:

• First Marriages: 42–45%
• Second Marriages: 60%
• Third Marriages: 73%

Many of us older folks — Gen X here — grew up assuming that we would get married someday. But, the marriage rate in the U.S. has been declining since 1982. In 2018, marriages hit a historic low.

People are also waiting longer before…

What is the best purchase you’ve ever made that has improved your sleep?

This question was asked on Twitter recently. The answers were all over the board.

People mentioned:

• Edibles
• Melatonin
• Pillows
• Sleep machines
• Sleep masks
• Sleep curtains
• High-tech gadgets

It seems like so many of us struggle with sleep. I don’t think our massive amounts of screen time help (blue light is terrible for your sleep cycle).

I’m sure all of the anxiety and depression due to the pandemic, economic uncertainty, and political unrest aren’t helping either.

However, instead of dabbling with treatments, why not go to the heart…

Impostor Syndrome can be a crushing weight when you fear that others are allowed to determine your value.

Take ownership of your core truths and strengths that no one else…

SOLOPRENEURSHIP

Has anyone ever told you that you have a nice voice? If so, it may be a hidden goldmine.

One of my friends is a very talented voice artist. She’s recorded commercials for world-class brands such as Mastercard, GMC, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, Airstream, Nintendo, and dozens more.

I was exposed to the world of voice talent after working with her on a project. My view of the potential markets for voice artists had been pretty narrow (e.g., music, animated movies, cartoons, video games). However, I soon discovered how many industries rely on voice over actors.

We first met many years ago…