When it comes to health, there’s a lot of hearsay out there these days. World-renowned scientists, health experts, doctors and researchers disagree about fundamental aspects of human health; implications of exercise, diet and other lifestyle factors are hotly contested (see podcast debate between Dr. Chris Kresser and Dr. Joel Kahn on the topic of meat consumption: source ), making it nearly impossible for the average person to determine what is healthy and how to live.

As science has advanced, the internet has become an effective channel for disseminating information to the masses. For decades, people relied on scientific journals, newspaper articles, books and magazines to stay up-to-date. Today, podcasts, blogs, and web content are even more accessible than their predecessors. Dr. Jordan Peterson compares podcasting to the Gutenberg revolution(printing press); newspapers require that consumers know how to read, while podcasts can be consumed by anyone with a computer or smart phone while working, exercising or commuting.

Dr. Matthew Walker, Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology at the University of Cal Berkeley shares some recent (and not so recent) revelations regarding sleep. Today I am sharing some of the major takeaways from the discussion. Find the full podcast here: Joe Rogan Experience #1109 – Matthew Walker

Negative Effects of Lack of Sleep

• • • We need 7-9 hours a night
      • Impairment in the brain can be measured below 7 hours a night
    • There is a small fraction of <1% of the population, that has a certain gene that allows them to survive on 5 hours of sleep
      • You are more likely to be struck by lighting than have this gene
      • The gene promotes wakefulness chemistry in the brain
    • The shorter your sleep on average, the shorter your life
      • Short sleep predicts all cause mortality
    • Wakefulness, compared to sleep, is low level brain damage. Sleep offers a repair mechanism for this.
      • During deep sleep at night, there is a sewage system in the brain that cleanses the brain of all the metabolic toxins that have accumulated throughout the day
    • If you’re getting 6 hours of sleep or less, your time to physical exhaustion drops by up to 30%
      • Lactic acid builds up quicker the less you sleep
      • The ability of your lungs to expire CO2 and inhale oxygen decreases
    • A higher injury risk
      • One study showed a 60% increase in probability of injury comparing people who get 9 hours of sleep a night, to those who get 5
      • Your stability muscles fail earlier when not getting enough sleep
    • One of those toxins is beta amyloid – which is responsible for the underlying mechanism of Alzheimer’s disease
      • The less you sleep – the more this plaque builds up
    • Insufficient sleep is the most significant lifestyle factor for determining whether or not you’ll develop Alzheimer’s Disease
      • Insufficient sleep is linked to bowl, prostate, and breast cancer
    • The WHO has decided to classify any form of nighttime shift work as a probable carcinogen
      • Shift workers have higher rates obesity, diabetes, and cancer
    • Leptin and ghrelin
      • Both control appetite and weight
      • Leptin tells our brain we’re full
      • Ghrelin does the opposite, it’s the hunger hormone
      • With less sleep, leptin gets suppressed, and ghrelin gets ramped up
    • People sleeping 4-5 hours a night will on average eat 200-300 extra calories each day (70,000 extra calories each year which translates into 10-15 lbs. of body mass)
      • You also eat more of the wrong things
      • Lack of sleep if a critical factor of the obesity epidemic
      • 1 out of every 2 adults in America are not getting the recommended 8 hours of sleep
      • 1 out of 3 people are trying to survive on 6 hours or less of sleep
    • The average American adult is sleeping 6 hours and 31 minutes during the week (it used to be 7.9 hours in 1942)
      • “The number of people who can survive on 6 hours of sleep or less, rounded to a whole number, and expressed as a percentage of the population is 0”
    • “You don’t know you’re sleep deprived, when you’re sleep deprived”
      • Under slept employees will take on fewer work challenges, are more likely to slack off in groups, and are less likely to come up with creative solutions
      • Less sleep does not equal more productivity

Light and Sleep

• • • “We are a dark deprived society in this modern era” – this lack of darkness is destroying out quality of sleep
      • Incandescent light bulbs suppress melatonin
      • Screen usage on top, suppresses it even further
    • One hour of phone screen use will delay the onset of melatonin production by about 3 hours
      • Your peak melatonin levels will also be 50% less
    • All of this adds up to less REM sleep

Sleeping in Foreign Environments

• • • One half of your brain won’t sleep as deeply as the other, when sleeping in a foreign environment, like a hotel room
    • There are two types of sleep
      • REM Sleep
      • Non-REM Sleep (of which there are 4 stages, stages 1-4)
        • In stages 3 and 4, that’s where a lot of body replenishment takes place
        • These are the stages of sleep that one half of your brain will resist going into when you’re sleeping in a foreign environment

Benefits of Sleep

• • • Sleep doesn’t improve the places where we’re already good in terms of motor skills, sleep is intelligent – it finds friction points or motor skill deficits, and smooths them out/improves them
      • This is very common with musicians – one day they aren’t able to nail a piece, and the next day they can
    • During dream sleep, we take old information, and combine it with new information we’ve learned, and form new connections/associations
      • For this reason, we might often find new solutions to previously unsolvable problems after a good sleep
      • Thomas Edison used sleep as a vital tool for creativity
      • “Sleep is the greatest legal performance enhancing drug that most people are probably neglecting”

For those sleeping 5-6 hours a night, these findings are not convenient. While many claim they only need 6 hours to function, the science says otherwise. It may take months or years for sleep deprivation to result in serious health consequences. In addition, the adaptability of the human body compensates for lack of sleep and prevents individuals from noticing negative effects. Rather than sleep less, people should find ways of increasing their productivity through cutting out time-wasting activities such as late-night phone use and television. The less you sleep, the shorter your life will be.

But don’t take my word for it… investigate Dr. Walker’s claims at SleepDiplomat.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For years I’ve been advised to make journaling a habit. Folks would say, “you can reflect on your thoughts,” “writing down your goals will make them happen” or “find three things to be grateful for each day” (Three Good Things). A friend of mine once attributed his ability to cope with depression to his journaling practice. Successful people keep journals. I don’t have any numbers to back that up, but based on my own experience, it is the case. I’ve tried several times to ingrain journaling into my weekly routine, but it hasn’t happened, until now.

 

Lame (but somewhat valuable) video here:

 

Something about writing straight from the heart makes it worthwhile, and it wasn’t until recently that I figured out what it was. The following is an excerpt written earlier today from the gusty alpine of Mt. Rainier.

 

“Sitting in a small rock shelter at 2nd Burrough above Sunrise. [As I look up at the grand mountain] One thing that comes to mind is the idea of details. From Seattle, on a clear day, most folks have the chance to appreciate Mt. Rainier’s beauty. From afar, all you see is the snow, some large exposed rocks and the general appearance. Up close, there is so much to see! Thousands of crevasses, many glaciers, waterfalls, lakes and meadows. If you never came to see for yourself, you would never be able to understand why I sat and took 5 minutes to write this. *(Yes, at 8k feet elevation with chilling wind gusts in my face, it took a whole 5 minutes to write just a few sentences)*”

 

Following up on that thought… DETAILS: the grandeur of the mountain can be seen from afar, but so much more beauty is revealed up close. Not to be too philosophic/poetic here but this lesson applies across many aspects of the human experience. The first thing I think of is people; there is unseen beauty in people, and if we looked a bit closer maybe we could appreciate each other more(and maybe get along a little better). The same goes for a science, a book, or a movie; on the surface, biology can be cool, a book cover can spark your interest, or a movie trailer can catch your attention, but it isn’t until we understand the full picture that we can truly appreciate something’s value. The point is, there is more to see if you just look.

 

My takeaway from my quick trip to Rainier is to inspect the details before making a judgement. Without my little notebook and pen in my pack I wouldn’t have solidified this realization as thoroughly. Not to say I came to some hysterical realization, but the thought was a reminder to go below the surface level.

 

The tipping point for journaling becoming a habit in my life was not the result of a conscious decision, but rather the natural outcome of carrying a small notebook and pen with me on hikes. Try it for yourself: bring a small notebook with you on a walk to the park and spend just 5 minutes writing down your thoughts. Use your journal as a tool for improvement and happiness. No pressure, no obligations, no requirements… just one tip: pick a notebook with small pages so you can fill them up faster 🙂

 

 

 

I don’t know who chose the cover photo… but after listening to this speech compilation I am eager to share this with my peers. I referenced this during my wellness Wednesday takeover for the Scooty Fund Instagram account last week because it addresses many things that people struggle with and offers ways of thinking and acting to improve oneself. Dr. Peterson is an incredible speaker who wears his emotions on his sleeve, believes in helping others, and has a wealth of scientific knowledge.

Take a listen….

What was the most memorable/powerful part of the video for you?

COMMENT BELOW —>

Listen to the episode from July 5th: https://www.nytimes.com/podcasts/the-daily

 

Why create content when great content is already out there? While I don’t plan to make a habit of re-posting podcasts, today’s episode of The Daily Podcast, by the New York Times, offers a stand-alone, 20-minute conversation that dissects the opioid crisis and exposes its founders.

 

When I was in high school I learned about how Britain used opium to topple the Chinese empire. Today, I look at the pervasiveness of opioids in the United States’ society to ask one simple question: How can the US avoid the fate of china? With healthcare costs devastating small, rural communities, politicians, doctors, journalists and citizens are proposing solutions for battling the opioid crisis: for example, the death penalty for dealers(Source), murder charges for those who share drugs involved in an overdose (Source), more regulation over doctors(Source), etc… but why has blame not been assigned to those who actually produce, market, and distribute these narcotics?

 

This podcast is an excellent example of investigative reporting and a reminder of the crucial role of the press to hold corporations and government accountable.

 

My theory: if you want to find a solution you must first find the source of the problem. Nobody should be above the law. It’s a shame that our justice system is so corrupt that all it takes to reverse prosecutors’ minds is an hour-long meeting and a $600 million dollar plea deal.

 

Taken from the podcast description:

Prosecutors, seeking to hold someone accountable for the opioid epidemic, have been targeting doctors, dealers and users themselves. But those who made billions of dollars from sales of OxyContin, a painkiller at the center of the crisis, have gone largely unpunished. Guest: Barry Meier, the author of “Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America’s Opioid Epidemic,” who has reported on Purdue Pharma and the opioid crisis for The New York Times.

 

The fact that a single 20-minute audio file can contain 17 years of investigative reporting(and all I have to do is share the link) gives me hope that long-standing, systemic corruption can be identified and corrected.

It’s been months since my last blog. But today, listening to the most recent episode of the Joe Rogan Podcast, episode #1139, with Jordan Peterson, I felt the urge to dust off the ol’ keyboard and type some words.

Jordan Peterson is a clinical psychologist and tenured professor of psychology at the University of Toronto. His recent speaking tour has been selling out auditoriums across the United States and Canada. Given our current socio-political climate, Jordan’s long-form discussions have filled a void for intellectual discourse. While some people prefer mainstream news and bite-size information bits, there are others who want something deeper and more complex. Both the Joe Rogan Podcast (which reaches a bigger audience than CNN) and Jordan Peterson’s live discussions are examples of this trend. Jordan Peterson is on Twitter- where he occasionally tweets out “good, non-naïve news,” something that is almost completely non-existent in mainstream outlets. The conversation begins with the analogy of the internet to Guttenberg’s printing press. Peterson makes the point that while the printing press was revolutionary, it was only accessible to those who could read, whereas video and audio can be consumed by almost anyone.

A few takeaways I’ve noted in just the first hour of the podcast:

The importance of incremental self-improvement: Jordan Peterson’s explanation of its importance is spot on. Something I’ve said is that if you want to reach the summit of the mountain you have to start by taking small steps.

Question: What matters? Jordan’s answer: something that impacts how you make decisions. – I love it.

A (very) brief update on what I’ve been up to:

After returning from Europe high on life and ready for my next endeavor, I transferred to Seattle University. I took an incredibly powerful course on Business Communcation (a blog/article has been in the works on this topic) that fundamentally changed my business communication strategy from a guessing game into an evidence-based science. I became involved in the SU Filmmakers Club, and submitted a short film, titled: Leave it as it is, to the Seattle U Film Festival. During the Spring, I took a significant step in my photography business, joining a BNI (Business Networking International) group and actively launching Kyle Huber Creative Studio. Currently, I am living in San Francisco working as an Assistant on a documentary film production with Schendel Films. As I continue working with Schendel Films through the end of 2018, I will be taking on freelance real estate and lifestyle video projects, corporate promotional work, and personal/family portrait photography.

The featured photo was taken by yours truly, above Crater Lake, OR.

Also, if you want a few more great standalone podcasts to listen to, drop me a message!

 

Enjoy this curated list of leadership resources and articles related to organizational effectiveness. I made this list for a class but it’s actually somewhat valuable for anyone interested in what business schools are teaching these days.

Games Managers Play (Business Source Complete)

This article focuses on the advantages and drawbacks of “play” in developing leadership and teamwork skills in organizations. The article dives into the interplay of human psychology and job attitudes that impact performance. With the proper frameworks in place, using games and “play” in the workplace can foster a positive culture.

How to Organize team building (Business Source Complete)

This article delves into team-building exercises that create value for the firm. Balancing fun and games with a team challenge builds bonds between the colleagues which can be taken into the office and leveraged more effectively. Managers and employees can develop their communication and collaboration through various leadership activities and games.

12 Benefits of Teambuilding  Article

This blog article written by Dwain Richardon, Managing director of Corporate Challenge Events, discusses 12 reasons why team building benefits the team. It sounds redundant, and much of the article is common sense, but two things stood out as unique thoughts I had not considered previously. One is respect- it takes time to get to know your teammates before you can gain their trust. Second, trust itself can be built in these exercises. Interactions are broken down into a simple game or team challenge, where status and job title no longer matter and the group trusts one another.

Create a culture of trust-Business Source Complete

This article goes into 10 specific ways leaders build trust in their teams. These include accountability, consistency and clear communication. Leaders must do more than talk- their actions are what set the tone for how trusting their teams will be, and ultimately, how successful.

Overcoming the 8 barriers to confidence – Link

Self-defeating assumptions, unrealistic goals, declaring victory too soon, blaming others, and neglecting to anticipate setbacks are a few of the ways confidence erodes. Ultimately confidence is crucial to success- if you think you can’t, you won’t. And its true, if your team thinks you are going to lose, there is not a chance you win. Overcoming these failure-causing barriers can prevent mistakes and setbacks that are not necessary to the learning and development of the team.

3 ways to build self-efficacy- Article

This article begins on the premise that research suggests the role of self-efficacy includes cultivating resilience. The piece hits home on the cyclical relationship between self-efficacy and resilience. Individuals who perceive their skills to be sufficient and capable are more likely to tackle bigger challenges. If they fail, it’s okay, because these folks tend to be resilient. Individuals who aren’t as confident in their abilities tend to be less resilient to adversity. Today, more than ever, resilience is necessary to having a successful career. When robots, a dip in the economy, or changing trend in society can disrupt traditional occupations, being resilient and adaptable as a professional is absolutely crucial.

Building Employee Confidence- Article

Often leaders have enough confidence- maybe too much. But new employees and subordinates with less experience tend to be less confident. According to this article, the number one personality trait that allows individuals to deal with change- is confidence. This article outlines 7 ways that managers and leaders can help build employee confidence. A few include: create small victories, acknowledge when things are going well, and don’t assume people know how good they are.

Three keys to building trust- Link

Limit lecturing, listen to learn, and work smarter. Simple and to the point, this article chooses three tangible ways a leader can be more effective. We all fall prey to these mistakes once in a while- learning how to listen, refrain from micro-managing, and use teammates effectively will boost the entire team’s productivity and elevate the status of the facilitator/leader. A good leader knows when to step back and when to be the coach- getting into the trenches might seem like the best option but will ultimately erode colleagues’ confidence and destroy trust.

How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity- BSC

A common mindset in business is that good ideas are rarer and more valuable than good people. The President of Pixar Ed Catmull disagrees- he says this is a misguided view of creativity that exaggerates the importance of the initial idea in developing an original product. According to Ed, creativity involves many people sharing their perspectives and collaborating to create a unique and creative product. He also understands that just because the company is successful doesn’t mean every idea they produce is good- he challenges employees and new hires to question everything and avoid assuming everything that comes down the pipe is a good idea.

Managing Multicultural teams

This study considers two groups of projects- Technical assistance and information technology. The article highlights and comparison between these two types of projects and how they function, focusing specifically on how the multicultural background of the group impacts the team performance and team management. Team managers have some tools and options for resolving conflict and knowing how to minimize cultural clashes and avoid misunderstandings. This article is incredibly valuable to anyone going into international business or wanting to work abroad.

Want high performing teams? Balance tasks and relationships Article

A blog by a young businessman from Emergenetics discusses the specific ways managers can strategize by balancing relationships and tasks in a project team. I won’t spoil the whole article, but it begins with understanding your resources and ends with effective communication and execution.

Are the Seattle Seahawks creating a new model for corporate culture? Article

Although a bit outdated- a few recent happenings would offer counter arguments to this article, the points contained remain valid. Players are encouraged and social issues are welcome in the locker room. The culture of openness and a sense of space for players’ personalities had both positive and negative outcomes. Coach Pete Carrol and the leadership of the organization had a huge impact on the success of the organization- whether it worked out to its full potential or not there are many lessons to be learned from the Seahawks culture during the past 5 years.

We can measure the power of charisma. Harvard Business Review, Jan-Feb 2010, pp. 34-35

One of the most interesting readings of the quarter- this article addresses the social cues that successful people send and defends the claim that the winner of a business plan can be predicted simply based on the social cues they send. “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.” This is a must read for anyone interested in one of the earlier studies on charisma and success- as it turns out charisma is related to success. The folks who are more enthusiastic and positive tend to be more successful.

7 tips for effective listening. Internal Auditor. August 2003, V. 60, p. 23

This article touches on 7 tips for internal auditors to be more successful at their job as effective listeners and factors that make listening difficult. One thing I took away from this article was the importance of practicing paraphrasing- repeating what the other person says in the terms that you are thinking in will alleviate any misunderstanding and bring up any questions that need to be addressed. Other important things to consider include: sending the message that you are listening with your body language, focus on what others are saying, avoid early evaluations, and most importantly, listen for feelings.

Collaboration vs. competition: Lessons from a leaderless firm- Link

Influenced by two books, and with 16 years of professional law experience, two colleagues founded a law firm based on the principle of valuing the individual while turning a profit. The article, which is only accessible with a subscription, is a discovery of alternative workplace environments that do not depend heavily on competition.

More “boomerang” employees return to Microsoft as corporate culture shifts. Seattle Times, 3/3/18, Business Technology, by Rachel Lerman.-Article

This article is the story of how Microsoft developed a company culture which forced out good talent through a competitive and cutthroat environment. After CEO Satya Nadella took over, the company has attracted many of its ex-employees to return. The phenomenon of “boomerang employees” is a testament to one leader to implement a new culture which fosters creativity, growth and change.

Collaboration beats smarts in group problem solving-Article

Anita Woolley, an assistant professor of organizational behavior and theory, has been studying what it means to say a group is “intelligent.” The research suggests that teams which have many individuals with high IQ levels in a team tends to be less effective than a group of individuals that simply communicates and shares participation equally.

Goal Getters (articles by Kelly Robertson and Jason Womack). Personal Excellence. August, 2006, V. 11, p. 15

How effective are you with your time? This article offers 10 ways to be more productive in whatever you do by focusing on outcomes. A few that stood out include “talk about it, then sleep on it” and “get coaching.” Both of these resources involve collaborating with other people to get the most of the idea or task at hand: find good coaches and friends who can be honest critics and use them to get feedback on your work.

YouTube video on motivation

This animated video talk addresses scientific studies on financial rewards’ impact on performance and motivators in the workplace. Interesting and counter to what you might expect, a higher financial reward tends to lead to worse performance, and de-motivates the organization. While money does begin as a factor, once it becomes established at a high enough rate so that the employee isn’t thinking about the amount of money they are making then there are three determinants of performance: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. As a leader of an organization or member of a team this is a great video spark ideas for how to improve and become more effective.

What makes a leader? Harvard Business Review. January, 2004, V. 82, p. 82. Article

This article discusses the importance of emotional intelligence in predicting leadership performance. The term “threshold capabilities comes to mind here: while technical and analytical skills are required to get in the door, emotional intelligence and the “soft skills” differentiate good leaders.

The Power of Introverts: TED Talk

Susan Cain, a self-labeled introvert, tells her story and invites us to leverage the power of introverted people in organizations and teams. Not only do they often have great ideas which can contribute to the teams’ success, but they also have become increasingly more communicable through digital media such as blogs and podcasts. A great TED Talk and well worth listening to.

What is psychological capital? Article

The author highlights four pillars of psychological capital: hope, self-efficacy, resilience, and optimism. These predictors determine the amount of psychological strain or effort a person can withstand. These skills can be built and fostered through trust. Humans can withstand more psycholigcal demands when they have a team to endure the suffering with- think about a group of first-year finance professionals working 80-100 hour weeks- they get through it by chatting with their colleagues, planning lunch and dinner meals, and sharing in each other’s misery. Positive support and conversation has an incredible power to aid another person’s challenge.

How to develop confidence while speaking- Article

Public speaking- some people claim it is their biggest fear, and become physically ill to the point of nausea or worse. What is it about speaking in front of a group of strangers that is so daunting? This article discusses some strategies to overcome that fear and embrace opportunities to speak in front of audiences. One thing I always remember is: you are rarly as important as the topic. Even if you think you are the center of attention because you are the only person speaking remember the topic at hand is more important. Focus on delivering the message.

What you don’t know about making decisions. – Article

This HBR article from 2001 sets a great foundation for the importance of decision making. Leaders most important task is making decisions. The biggest the decision the more important the leader’s performance. The article provides a framework for fostering productive conflict and establishing a collaborative and open work environment that welcomes criticism but does not tear down others’ ideas.

HBR: Level 5 Leaders – Article 

A classic on leadership and the need of an organization to have an effective CEO or leader. Level 5 leadersn have humility, will, ferocious resolve, and the tendency to give credit to others while assigning blame to themselves.

The agenda – Grassroots leadership- Link

A great story on the USS Benfold, a Navy Destroyer which implemented a progressive leadership and collaboration model before winning awards for being the most battle-ready ship in the Navy. While you might think of the Navy as a structured and top-down leadership system, this crew of 300 had autonomy to make decisions and give feedback whenever they felt compelled, without the fear of consequences, resulting in greater effectiveness.

A critique of service learning projects in management education. Journal of Business Ethics. Jan 1996, V 15, p. 133.

This critique discusses 9 service learning projects and offers constructive ways to improve them. It isn’t as simple as you might think.