Newsletter

We have a skewed view of entrepreneurship thanks to prevailing media narratives. Take the idea of the young 20-something drop out. Too many people think that’s who starts most successful businesses. They think of people like Bill Gates, who cofounded Microsoft when he was 20 years old, Steve Jobs, who was 21 when he cofounded …

We all heard it growing up: Quitters never win, and winners never quit. While it’s true that those who persevere at something often enjoy success, it’s not true that perseverance guarantees success. According to author Annie Duke, winners quit a lot. In fact, that’s how they win. Duke is a former professional poker player, a …

Energy is everything. That’s a literal statement — we’re comprised of atoms, and quantum physics says if you take a deep dive into the inner workings of an atom, all you’ll find are energy waves. Energy, as we know, is constantly in flux. But in midlife, energy drainage often seems to be the norm. Some of …

I don’t think I’ve described something as “neat” since middle school. But in this case, NEAT is an acronym for Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis. Which doesn’t exactly clear things up. Basically NEAT means energy expended (i.e. calories burned) other than by sleeping, digesting, or exercise. Examples include walking around the house, standing, and fidgeting. We generally …

What do you want to be when you grow up? It’s a question we ask of children, and the answers are often delightful in their innocent enthusiasm — a cowboy, an astronaut, a ballerina. But then we actually do “grow up” and things generally take a more pragmatic turn. We’ve got to get a job, …

Considering we’re card-carrying members of the “Just Say No” generation, you’d think we’d be easily able to laugh in the face of temptation. And that we could quickly size up a given situation and respectfully decline. But the truth is saying no isn’t always so simple. In fact, it seldom is. I know I have …

Midlife is an inflection point. It can often feel like a Talking Heads moment: Well, how did I get here? The things we thought mattered most in our careers and social lives often fade in importance. Or perhaps we pine for a different path than the one we took. All of this is fine as …

We’ve been wondering out loud here at Further about the coming impact of artificial intelligence for years. Specifically, if it was going to put a lot of people our age out of work at exactly the wrong time. The original prognosis was that up to half of all jobs would be lost to A.I. And …

People between the ages of 45 and 65 are starting businesses at an unprecedented rate. At a time when we’re expected to be planning for retirement, we’re instead blazing bold new paths. This is our version of “unretirement,” where instead of going back to work after retirement, we build businesses that allow us to keep …

It’s perhaps ironic writing about cheerfulness for a predominately Gen X readership. But please put any cynicism aside because history shows choosing to be upbeat can be a power move. Now, I don’t mean that in a gross way, how a cheesy salesperson, pushy social media influencer, or surface-skimming colleague might fake joviality to get …

Jesse had been a star athlete and a straight-A student. Then, the insomnia hit. Shortly after his 19th birthday, Jesse woke up at 3:30 am, shivering. Nothing he did could stop the sensation that he was freezing. Worse, he was haunted by a recurring thought: If I go to sleep, I’ll never wake up. This …