Maybe You’re Wrong About Participation Trophies Too

Participation trophies aren't just a way to make everyone feel good about themselves. Maybe they're that too, but they're so much more to my son.

My Top 5 Regrets From College (and few things I’d gladly do all over again)

This is a pretty terrible advice letter for anyone college bound, but what can I tell ya. College was awesome. Try to enjoy it.

The Ultimate Leadership Skill

Hubris slays another Ancient Greek. "Pride comes before the fall," says the bible. Gatsby was ruined by his own opulence and swagger. People have been warning other people through stories to stay humble for a long long time now.

Fortune Favors the Offensive: 5 Principles of speed and aggression from history’s greatest generals

One of the great regrets of my life is not having served in the military. I've become painfully aware of my lack of service since moving to the D.C. area, where it feels like everyone is either active duty or retired military or a "defense contractor" or an FBI/Secret Service agent. They're all way way … Continue reading Fortune Favors the Offensive: 5 Principles of speed and aggression from history’s greatest generals →

Banning the “O” Word

Age doesn't make us old. Admitting defeat to Father Time does. For my fellow thirty somethings, and certainly for people in their twenties, calling ourselves old is just insane.

Management Skills: 5 Ways to Develop Mental Toughness

How do middle class people of the developed world keep the edge, work ethic, and values their immigrant ancestors had? How do we develop mental toughness?

How to Overcome the Fear of Flying (or, my strange journey back to 30,000 feet)

The fear of flying is an emotional issue, and trying to overcome a strong emotional fear with logic is like bringing a knife to a gun fight. If you're stuck on the ground like I was, you're going to have to address the underlying emotional concerns before you're ready to hear the statistics.

How to be a Little Less Afraid of the World (advice from Jack London)

Jack London is one of my go-to mentors for manliness. What follows below is a snippet from his memoir about sailing around the world, The Cruise of the Snark.

How to Use Your Vacation and Paid Time Off

This post is for anyone thinking they shouldn't use their PTO because it might upset their boss or cause their boss to look unfavorably upon their work ethic. Because that's just not the case.

8 Tips on Weightloss: What I learned so far from my experiments with nutrition

Here are my 8 simple tips for losing pounds and maintaining a healthy weight, in order of importance:

Transcendental Meditation

"Do you just Google weird [stuff] to do in Virginia?" - anonymous friend My latest life experiment has been a strange journey into the world of transcendental meditation. Strange the best word I can think of for the panic attacks, mild depression, hallucinations, and general, well, strangeness of TM that I've experienced. And while I … Continue reading Transcendental Meditation →

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

A vein bulged from my forehead, looking like it was going to burst. My face was beet red, and I was getting sleepy. This was all on account of the instructor's thigh muscle constricting around my left carotid artery while my own shoulder betrayed me along my right carotid artery. Blood stopped flowing to my … Continue reading Brazilian Jiu Jitsu →

Get to Know Me, From My Company’s Portal Blog

This month my company featured me on our portal in a blog-style interview. I thought I'd share since I haven't posted much about work lately. Here you go: Get to Know John Demma We all share common goals, but rarely do we have an opportunity to share a cup of coffee and break the ice. Yet, studies show … Continue reading Get to Know Me, From My Company’s Portal Blog →

3 Quick DIY Life Hacks to Save You Money

People seemed to like my personal finance posts from the past few months about things like getting rid of cable and saving money on food, so I figured I'd share some other small changes we've made over the past year to keep more of the money we've earned. If you're keeping score you'll notice these … Continue reading 3 Quick DIY Life Hacks to Save You Money →

Expense Savings Go Right to the Bottom Line

You may have heard someone say that expense savings go right to the "bottom line". What does that mean? What is the bottom line anyway? For a business, the last line on the income statement is net income. Income statements are one of the core financial reports for a business (along with balance sheets and … Continue reading Expense Savings Go Right to the Bottom Line →