by Eddie Pipkin Photo by Dayne Topkin on Unsplash Perhaps you are familiar with the work of Arthur Brooks, author, academic, and researcher of the science of happiness. He has lots of practical advice about how to build a better life, and although his work with Oprah occasionally veers into woo-woo territory for [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by Ivana Tomášková from Pixabay Last week I wrote about Starbucks and “forced joy,” a directive from corporate leadership that employees would express joyful interactions by writing encouraging messaging on customer cups. It didn’t work, because dictating employee happiness and enthusiasm rarely does. On the other hand, giving employees [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Did you see Starbucks in the news in recent weeks for adding an additional mandate to the responsibilities of employees? Beginning in January, according to an edict from CEO Brian Niccol, all baristas were required to add a handwritten comment to each beverage. A note of affirmation, a tasteful funny observation, or [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image used under Pixabay content license. I had designated the past couple of weeks to work on home projects. I am not known as a handy guy. I can get things done when needed, but I am not gifted in this department, and I don’t have much fun doing it. [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by Perlinator from Pixabay I went to the county fair with my wife and my godson last week, and although we had gone mostly to check out the prize-winning chickens and sample some fried Oreos, we took advantage of some of the ‘free’ entertainment on the midway. Of course, [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by StockSnap from Pixabay I’ve always been a Saturday Night Live fan, and I’ve been consuming comedy for most of the show’s tenure, so I really enjoyed the 50th anniversary special that aired last weekend. It was a star-studded event (featuring many of the kinds of mash-ups I wrote [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by Wolfgang Eckert from Pixabay I went to see the local opera company perform this week, and I had a great time. I realize that puts me squarely in the nichiest of niches a person can inhabit, culture wise. That’s why the opera folks are passionately invested in doing [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay Chances are you are reading this blog on your smartphone. If so, it will have come to you by email, a now old-timey communications pathway. If you are a normal American, you will use that same smartphone for a chunk of today for scrolling. [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay There is always that one elusive personal goal, the thing you really want to accomplish but can’t ever seem to get done. Maybe it’s a fitness goal, maybe a writing goal, maybe a home improvement project, or if you’re a ministry professional or volunteer, [...]
by Eddie Pipkin Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay I was watching a basketball game last week, a spirited back-and-forth between two evenly matched teams, and my team was ahead and had victory in their grasp. That is, until one of our players made a mind-boggling mistake, being whistled for taking longer than five [...]
