The 5 Best TED Talks I've Ever Watched

Wish you constantly had something interesting to talk about? [TED Talks](http://www.ted.com) are one of the best sources of insperation, thought fodder, and background noise to get the gears turning. My favorite morning ritual? Watch a TED talk to re... (Read More)


Best books I read in 2015

In 2015, I challanged myself to read 100 books before the end of the year. Unfortunately, I didn't reach my goal of 100 books— I got busy writing my own book and life generally just got in the way. The good news is I still read a TON of books. Her... (Read More)


What I learned from Max Levchin about starting companies and morning routines

This week, I got the pleasure of listening to [Max Levchin](https://twitter.com/mlevchin) address the Bigcommerce office with some thoughts about business, entrepreneurism, and [helmets that help you re-grow hair](http://theradome.com/). Max Levchin... (Read More)


Favorite reads from Jan-Feb 2015

I've been pretty quiet on the blog this year! It's because I've been busy reading :) This year, I set my reading goal ambitiously high at 100 books— or about 8 books per month. While it seems crazy, it's only about 55 pages per night. So far, I've ... (Read More)


How to become your own Messiah in 2015 (and why I HATE Resolutions)

It was the end of 2006 and my life was a disaster. I was sleeping on the floor, curled up in the corner of my rented bedroom. I couldn’t afford a bed. I made $15,392.19 in 2006. I had over $10,000 in credit card debt. (Read More)


How to finally start meditating (like a pro)

I’ve failed at a daily meditation habit more times than I can count. I used to think it was ridiculous, a waste of time, new-agey eastern-philosophy pseudoscience. I was so damn wrong. It was like I didn’t get it— I’d close my eyes and sit on the f... (Read More)


You have a .15% chance of dying in 2015

Here's the cold, hard truth— you're quickly running out of time. Between 25-35 years old? You have about a .15% chance of dying in 2015. That's a 1 in 750 chance. Decent odds, but there's an inherent reality to face: There's a non-zero chance t... (Read More)


6 lessons I learned sleeping on the floor for a year

I got kicked out of college when I was 19. My GPA was 0.33. I was broke and too ashamed to ask for help. It was the end of the year and everyone was packing up for the summer. I was packing up forever. I gave away most of my stuff. I was too lazy to... (Read More)


How can you stay hyperfocused?

The word “procrastination” is like this totally loaded term. It’s a scapegoat. Truth is, when you’re truly procrastinating, you don’t realize that you’re doing it. Procrastination is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. (Read More)


Build-your-own morning routine

The morning routine sets the tone of your day. No matter how shitty yesterday was or how much you have to do today, the morning routine is your daily constant— your totally 100% selfish ritual. It’s the time that you allocate towards yourself, everyd... (Read More)


Be superhuman without coffee or caffeine

The average american drinks 3 cups of coffee per day. If you’re reading this, you’re probably not average, which means you likely drink EVEN more than that. I know the feeling— I can put down espresso shot after espresso shot with the best of ‘em. (Read More)


Morning Rituals— The 3 T's of Success (3/3)

Today we’re going to talk about the 3 T’s of Success. The first two posts talk about things I do every morning to prepare myself for a productive day. Kind of like small appetizers before getting to the entree of the day. (Read More)


Morning Rituals— Mind Games (2/3)

I’ve done my morning ritual in one form or another for a couple of years now. It’s constantly evolving— this morning’s ritual isn’t the same one I did a year ago, and next month’s ritual will be different from the one I do today. I’m constantly learn... (Read More)


Morning Rituals— 1/10/1000

Over the years, I’ve come up with about 10 or 15 things that I do every single day, habits that I’ve noticed multiply my success and creativity. (Read More)


I’m giving away $3,000,000 this year

Today, I want to share one my loftiest resolutions from 2014— to give away $3,000,000 in value. I know what you’re thinking.. impossible! Unless you just happen to have a cool 3 million in cash laying around (and I don’t). (Read More)


Why I gave away all of my books (for free)

Who’s not a sucker for a good paperback? Over the past 5 years I’ve morphed from a self-proclaimed non-reader to an avid doggy-eared paperback collector. (Read More)


I stopped relying on motivation and took control of my creativity

Fuck motivation. I’ve been staring at a blinking cursor for seven months, trying to write the perfect blog post. 237 mornings, I’ve scribbled “write a blog post” on my thin, yellow legal pad hoping motivation would visit just one more time. (Read More)


Lessons learnt crashing a hang glider

When I was 21, I crashed my hang glider. I was taking hang gliding lessons from an 85-year old German immigrant named Henry, and during a training flight I plummeted out of the sky and crashed in the woods. (Read More)


Life360: The biggest platform that you haven’t heard about (yet)

I’m obsessed with connection. I crave sets of things. Why do we love Apple products? It runs deeper than just the user experience of a single device— it’s the experience of the entire ecosystem. I love things that just.. match. Fit together like puzz... (Read More)


Inspiration is procrastination’s cousin

I used to wait for inspiration. But inspiration is always late. Sitting nervously, waiting for the perfect moment to pounce. Is it here yet? No, I don’t think so. I’ll just wait a little bit longer. (Read More)


Distraction is a 4 letter word

Ever burn an entire day knowing exactly what you need to do but just not doing it? Because you can’t seem to get traction- spinning your wheels, searching for focus?... (Read More)


Electric Toothbrush

Monday morning, May 2009. I spent 2 weeks in Italy after turning 22 and was back in the office for the first time, catching up on boatloads of email... (Read More)


Ideas have a 2 week shelf life

I have a new rule that I’m making for myself and holding others to. If you haven’t worked on something in the past two weeks, you’re not allowed to talk about it. (Read More)


How I automated the boring parts of life

I have a bad habit: waiting until the last minute to do things. Like, last month I had to fly to New York to run a 193 mile relay race. I knew about the trip for almost 6 months, but didn’t buy plane tickets until 3 days before, at 4x the cost. True ... (Read More)


Create value by writing

Rewind 6 months. If you asked me for the 10 things that I hated doing the most, writing would surely make the list. It’s not that I’m a bad writer, but I was out of practice and my only memories of writing were from when I was forced to do it. I imag... (Read More)


Living without time

Time. When broken down into minutes, hours, days, such small units over a lifetime, they don’t really seem to exist. It’s almost like a reality that we all subscribe to – existing only because we agreed it should. On the other hand, time is always ... (Read More)


The most interesting people are “local”

I used to frequent a small sandwich shop, O’Bagelo’s. The owner and only employee, John Vito, was a miser and philosopher of sorts- he’d make interesting and thought provoking conversation while crafting your lunch. (Read More)


College was my biggest mistake

When I turned 18, my parents expected me to go to college- it was the only option, the only way to be a successful adult. I’m a 2nd generation Italian. My mother and grandparents came over to America and bootstrapped themselves from nothing, so nee... (Read More)


How 30 days without Social Media changed my life

30 days ago, I made the decision to give up social media for a month. Well, here I am, reporting that I’m still alive and that the past month has been life changing- the most successful month of my existence. (Read More)


On Keeping a Journal

One thing most people don’t know about me: In 2008, fed up with the daily grind of a 9 to 5 and being unsatisfied with life, I decided that I wanted to chase after my childhood dream of becoming a cop. I took the test for the New York State Police an... (Read More)


Run naked

In life, in business, in everything, we have the tendency to hide the rough edges, smooth over the unappealing, and give the illusion of perfect. Startups gloss over numbers, exaggerate, hide details- terrified of giving away some non-existant secret... (Read More)


You’re an artist too

I’ve never identified as a creative type. “I’m just a programmer”, I’d say. “I don’t have an eye for that design stuff”. But really it was a defense mechanism- a cop out- being afraid of judgement and criticism. (Read More)


Giving up on Social Media

It’s no secret that I love social media. And my friends love it too. We love it so much, that when we hang out in real life, at any moment, someone in the group is checking Twitter. It’s the norm, and it’s stupid. (Read More)