“One of my clients had candles spread all over her house, in every room,” Diane Button, an end-of-life doula, writes in her book What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.
“They were on nightstands and dressers, surrounding her bathtub, and even along the walkway of the woodsy entrance into her house,” Diane notes.
“There were dozens of them, and they were beautiful, but not one … continue reading
1: Looking for lighthearted conversation?
You’re unlikely to find it if you visit the Button family on New Year’s Eve.
“Our oldest daughter, Carly, is getting her doctorate in counseling psychology and is a fan of stoicism and existential psychology,” Diane Button writes in her book What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.
“Her passion inevitably leads us to deep conversations about the meaning and purpose … continue reading
1: Imagine a beautiful summer morning on Lake Erie.
“The sun’s out, but there’s just enough breeze to keep you comfortable. It’s not too hot and not too cold,” Erik Peterson and Tim Riesterer write in their powerful book Conversations That Win the Complex Sale.
Erik is lying in a hammock right by the beach. He’s reading a good book. On the table next to him is a cold … continue reading
1: “Our conversations started out funny and just got funnier,” Diane Button writes in her wonderful book What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.
Diane and Franck Battelli, both end-of-life doulas, were meeting with Greg, 53, who was dying from ALS.
Before proceeding, Greg wanted to make sure it would be a good fit.
“He let us know in a very serious tone of voice that … continue reading
1: “We live as if we can control the hands of time,” Diane Button writes in her wonderful book What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.
“We spend time, waste time, lose time, save time, kill time, and buy time,” Diane notes. “We live as if the clock ticks based on our own needs and desires.”
And yet, time is finite. And we never know how … continue reading
1: Bo had Parkinson’s disease. He was sixty-one years old.
“He lived alone for two decades until he needed extra care, and moved back to the town where his kids and ex-wife still lived,” Diane Button writes in her wonderful book What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living.
Bo went to live with Joon, his youngest daughter, whose husband was in the army and was deployed … continue reading
1: “Shutdown complete.”
Those are the two words we should say at the end of our workday.
Why? Because we are trying to create a “bright line” between our professional and personal lives.
When we are working, we are working. All-in. 100%.
And when our workday is over, we set a boundary so we can be 100% present with our families, friends, hobbies, or whatever we do to relax and … continue reading
1: The summer of 1995 was a dizzying time for the people working at Netscape.
In August of that year, the company went public.
“The Netscape initial public offering (IPO) was both spectacular and historic,” Ben Horowitz writes in The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers.
“The stock initially priced at $14 per share, but a last-minute decision doubled the … continue reading
1: It was a broiling hot day.
Future entrepreneur and venture capitalist Ben Horowitz was early in his career. He was married with three young children.
One day, his father came to visit.
“We could not afford air-conditioning, and all three children were crying as my father and I sat there sweating in the 105-degree heat,” Ben writes in The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There … continue reading
1: Ben Horowitz had been set up on a blind date by his friend and high school football teammate Claude Shaw.
It was the summer of 1986, and Ben had just finished his sophomore year of college at Columbia University and was living in Los Angeles with his father.
This would be a double date, and Ben and Claude decided to prepare an elaborate dinner for Claude’s girlfriend, Jackie Williams, … continue reading
