In today’s age of media mistrust, I believe the pursuit of truth is one of the most important quests of our time. It is our holy grail. Our pilgrimage.  Because democracy as we know it is in peril. Generally speaking, people don’t know what to believe anymore and...

This approach can help you solve complex problems. Imagine a new way of solving complex problems. No deep thought in front of the screen, no number crunching or data analysis. Instead, people who wouldn't ordinarily have the opportunity to convene come together to...

We'll Take a Cup o' Kindness YetAnd surely you will buy your cupAnd surely I’ll buy mineAnd we’ll take a cup o’kindness yetFor auld lang syne…As we leap into a new decade, we all need a powerful resolution. In these uncertain and often hostile times, we could all do...

Here’s a fun challenge for you: if you had to describe yourself in three words, what would they be? Before you answer, think: these words have to apply to all facets of your life. They have to be so innately true to you that they permeate your career, your home life,...

If my former high school English teachers knew I’d written a book, they’d likely roll in their graves. Then they’d probably leave their graves, find me, and demand answers. I was a kid who crashed into teachers’ cars and calculated the exact number of days I could...

I recently had the honor of speaking at the 75th annual Bretton Woods Conference. The amalgamation of people was one of the most fascinating I’ve ever encountered in my life, filled with a wide range of perspectives and beliefs, which got me thinking about my own...

Years ago, I helped my daughter build a miniature working roller coaster for her middle school science class. As someone who paints in his free time, I have to say, the roller coaster looked great. But by the time we were finished, there was about a fifty/fifty chance...

At the end of July, more than 200 of the world’s boldest and most diverse thought leaders gathered in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire over 4 days to examine the past, assess the present and explore the future of the global economy. It was beyond wonderful to be a keynote...

Artificial intelligence has had many promising applications in medicine, but has also had some disappointing failures in realizing that promise.  IBM’s Watson was supposed to provide expert diagnostic advice by learning from interactions with doctors during...

Multiplayer video games rise as players flock to their virtual worlds only to fall because they are no longer fun to play.  This often happens because players become disgusted with the behavior of other players and it becomes impossible to play without someone else’s...

Growing up and still living in South Boston, Massachusetts, I don’t find myself to be a truly open person. I tend to hold things a little close. That was until a ruptured brain aneurysm almost ended my life on April 30, 2017. Laying in the ICU for two weeks, and not...

“Democracy is not guaranteed and it’s not inevitable.” Pop quiz – which great American hero is the above from? I’ll give you a moment…take a guess… Time’s up. Trick question. It’s a British investigative journalist named Carole Cadwalladr. If you don’t have 15 minutes...

Here’s a question for you, what do Hollywood storytellers and National Security red teams have in common? They both start with the bad guy, or villain. A Hollywood writer knows that a story won’t come to life without the tension of the adversary. DoD red teams know...

Lying is far more pervasive than most people want to admit.  People naturally want to believe that they are honest and have good intentions, and only bad people lie, cherry pick facts for an argument, or pass themselves off as being more certain about something...

Many online games feature extensive and realistic worldbuilding and have rich, complex environments that reflect reality, at least on a social level.  Items in the game World of Warcraft are often traded for real world currency outside the game, as they are in...

“Winning” is rarely an accident, in my experience. Even if you have your Queen and your opponent’s highest piece on the chess board is a rook, there’s a process required to get to checkmate. Life is frequently a chess game and the game changes with every move. That’s...

Archetypal Renaissance Men and Women inspire me. I love their seemingly insatiable curiosity and ability to look at life and problems differently. Perhaps that’s why I’ve attempted to learn something new every year, and why the Renaissance became such a core component...

As someone who has been involved in national security my entire adult life, I will be the first to tell you that I’m biased, I have to think about foreign policy, international affairs, threats to the homeland and more all the time. That has been my reality since...