Photo by Sean Paul Kinnear on Unsplash I met up with an old friend over a beer recently. We hadn't seen each other in years. An aside: do you have friends where you can go years without contact, and just pick up the conversation as if those years hadn't passed? That's the case with this friend. His story … Continue reading Second chances

University of Michigan Monday morning aftermath I was in Ann Arbor recently, visiting my local team there. Lately, I've gotten in the habit of getting up early and starting the day with a long walk. So, off I went with a coffee in hand and Tegan and Sara's new album in my ears (very good, … Continue reading Finding oneself in college

It was the winter of 1983. I was a senior in high school. I had told my parents that I didn't plan to go to college that fall. So I didn't apply to any schools. As a parent today, the thought of this terrifies me. A college degree is a ticket to lifelong opportunities. So … Continue reading Fail forward: an origin story

I'm neither a musician nor a composer, but I do love music. And one song has me trying to deconstruct why I like it so much. Here goes my attempt to explain the perfection of Billie Eilish's "I Love You". First, the song is slow and spare. Very few notes and words. This negative space … Continue reading Did Billie Eilish write the perfect love song?

I'm playing around with a book concept. Something I probably won't get to writing for a while, given all that's going on in my life. But the central premise is that all forms of personal and professional growth are borne of risk-taking and failure. This isn't a new idea. So why don't we take those … Continue reading Fail forward?

I've been thinking a lot about leadership lately, as I make the transition from McAfee to my new role at Barracuda Networks. As I was leaving McAfee, I heard from a lot of folks expressing appreciation for my leadership and contributions. Some comments were about positive changes I drove at the organizational level and other … Continue reading Leadership is a privilege

Rob J. wrote me an email a couple years back, out of the blue. We'd lost touch since our days in Boston, as close friends back in our 20's. His email told me how he appreciated our friendship from those distant times past. My first response was sorta cynical. I thought maybe he was in … Continue reading On gratitude