by Brooks Mendell | Jun 16, 2025 | Leading/Managing, Books, Communication Skills, Learning, Thinking/Analysis, Writing
I can basically do one round of creative work each day. Maybe two. No more. The attention, capacity, and focus required to write, research, and develop ideas are limited to a few hours daily, especially when life includes a spouse, children, bills, bowel movements,...
by Brooks Mendell | Apr 27, 2025 | Thinking/Analysis, Communication Skills, Learning
How to Load a Dishwasher Take a break from fixing the world via social media to consider the art of loading silverware into a dishwasher. Dishwasher manufacturers recommend putting knives point down and spoons and forks tongs up (though there exists a minor kerfuffle...
by Brooks Mendell | Jan 15, 2025 | Thinking/Analysis, Learning
I am passionate about learning and logical, rational thinking. If something does not make sense or fails to explain how things work, then it doesn’t make sense or explain. At a minimum, it is incomplete. Perhaps it answers a different question. Or, simply, it is...
by Brooks Mendell | Aug 25, 2024 | Communication Skills, Leading/Managing
My parents gave me a sport coat earlier this year. The sleeves were too long, so I looked for an experienced tailor near my home. Multiple calls later, I found a helping hand at the local Men’s Wearhouse, where the staff didn’t require me to have bought the coat in...
by Brooks Mendell | Jul 30, 2024 | Learning, Thinking/Analysis
In college, my friend and mentor Mark Lundstrom taught me that “earning good grades gives you more freedom.” I had struggled as a freshman, and Mark, an actual rocket scientist, talked to me about how getting straight on study habits and academic performance...