If you're an excitable boy like me, you can get really juiced over headlines. This one, for example, grabbed me by the tonsils: "Scientists discover new organ in the throat." My first thought, of course, was that someone had found a new, original Hammond B3 organ in...

COMPASSION & HONESTY HappinessJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group22 October 2020 fear seeks control revenge prolongs pain animosity disrupts peace compassion ignites healing honesty releases burdens happiness is letting go   -yung pueblo   Have...

I normally wouldn't copy and paste an email in its entirety. But this one, which I received on October 16, 2020, warrants the sharing of every word. Please forgive me: Very good afternoon From Mr. Ibrahim Guido Stella Roberto Address: Aldo De Luca Via Cardano 20042,...

BIRTHDAYS & PHILOSOPHYThe Ides of OctoberJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group15 October 2020One-hundred-seventy-six years ago, on this very day, Franziska and Carl Nietzsche became parents to Friedrich Nietzsche, a German writer and philosopher. And 36...

ROLLER COASTERS & ANTICIPATION Nitro - The RideJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group8 October 2020 We had four Coke cans collected in a disposable plastic bag. I heard them clanking into each other and the subtle rustle of the bag every time we hit a bump...

I read an article in The Washington Post the other week entitled, “Hot new job title in a pandemic: ‘Head of remote work’”. My first thought was that only the kind of creative imagination that characterizes American business could come up with that title: Head of...

SUNSETS & HARMONYHorizontal HarmonyJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group1 October 2020Have you ever seen a sunset while sitting on the beach? When you take a picture of such a breathtaking sight, it never comes out even close to being as vibrant as it was...

If you’ll forgive the redundancy, there are a million books in print about how to become a millionaire. You can easily find The Millionaire Next Door, The Millionaire Fastlane, Millionaire Mindset, The Mindful Millionaire, Millionaire Success Habits, and How to Make a...

Between the deaths of criminals resisting arrest being called murder — and burning, looting, and killing being called peaceful protests (to say nothing of the myriad malefactions of this election season) — we seem to have had a dearth of real news in this long Summer...

There are times at which I can be so dimwitted that it frightens me. As all of my friends, family members, co-workers, and professional colleagues can attest, I’ve always been an advocate of thinking outside the box. Most days, even without a hangover, I’m completely...

IMPERMENANCE & KINDERGARTEN Let's Do This! JoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group3 September 2020 This week marked my daughter’s first day of Kindergarten at her big-girl school. It looked much different from what I’d imagined. And it was likely the most...

PEACE & PARADISE My Shangri-LaJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group27 August 2020 In the 1933 novel, Lost Horizon by James Hilton, Hugh Conway finds inner peace, love, and a sense of purpose in Shangri-La. After having that experience, he decides to leave....

As if we didn't have enough to worry about with COVID-19, now, according to the American Psychiatric Association (APA), there's a new disorder to be concerned about. We can expect it to be added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Sixth...

SWEETNESS & VITRIOL You Can’t Catch All Flies With Honey … JoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group20 August 2020 There is an old adage that says, “You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar.” This statement implies you’ll get more from a person by...

In doing some research for one of our clients, JoAnna came across an entity called, Positive Physicians Insurance Company. That prompted her to ask me if there's a Negative Physicians Insurance Company. It's a fair question. And I imagine there must be. It seems to me...

CLOUDS & SKYBackyard BeautyJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group13 August 2020 The Beginning We’ve eaten breakfast. I’ve fed the dogs. The chickens are out. And I’ve got enough cold brew in my system to effectively navigate the day. One glance at the clock...

Since yesterday was Sunday, since Anne and I had no immediate plans for the day, and since Sunday breakfast is a thing, I decided to surprise Anne and make the perfect breakfast for two. I began by slicing scallions, mushrooms, and some Trivial Prosciutto (that’s the...

SUNFLOWERS & A HURRICANE Sunflowers in the StormJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group6 August 2020 I have about 25 sunflower stalks lining the side of my driveway. They’ve bloomed more than 40 beautiful flowers, but that number grows each day. They’re a...

While idly perusing Fast Company online, I came across an article. Before I get to that, however, I'd like to make a few things clear: I came across the article on a Saturday, so I wasn't procrastinating. Okay, I might have been procrastinating. But my procrastination...

The esteemed philosopher and philanthropist, W.C. Fields, once said: "There comes a time in every man's life when he must take the bull by the horns and throw it." And so it is that fast-food giant, Burger King, and its parent, Restaurant Brands International (RBI),...

I don’t know if there’s necessarily been an uptick in celiac disease. But since the onset of COVID-19, there’s been a markedly discernible increase in bellyaching. Contrary to the intentions of the Founding Fathers of these here United States, we want to be completely...

WAITING & RIDING Welcome to the Ride of Your Life JoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group18 June 2020 Life is often described as a roller coaster. It’s full of ups and downs as well as twists and turns. Sometimes you’re slowly creeping up a hill, and other...

SELF-PRESERVATION & SURRENDER Chaotic but Cathartic JoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group11 June 2020 When the pandemic started, I was a nervous wreck. I couldn’t see my behaviors for what they were in that moment. But in hindsight, I’m able to reflect. I...

In the midst of (1) the global coronavirus pandemic, (2) a black man was killed in Minneapolis by a white police officer, who now stands charged with murder for taking that man's life. Evidently, those two things weren't enough to satisfy our appetite for chaos. In an...

On June 13, 1995, Bennett R. Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, launched a contest called, "Yo! I'm Your C.E.O." Ben Cohen had decided to relinquish his role as CEO of the company, which was then 17 years old. Part genuine effort,...

A STORY & A BIAS It's Just A StoryJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group21 May 2020 It was a warm and sunny day in May, the temperature was 72 degrees. It’s not a common occurrence in the northeastern United States. In my 40 years of existing on this planet,...

The combination of ignorance, gullibility, imagination, and fantasy is a truly beautiful thing. Before I go any farther than that first sentence, please allow me to explain something: There's a distinction with a high degree of clearly discernible difference between...

SUN & SELFYou Get What You GiveJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group14 May 2020We have several client companies that develop software for the insurance industry. From time to time, they mention dissatisfied customers. In most instances, those customers are...

That hush you hear is the vacuum in which all the palaver about digital transformation used to be. In April of 2018, I wrote the first installment in what's turned out to be this two-part series. In it, I expressed my wonder at the phrase — digital transformation — my...

NORMALCY & NEW BEGINNINGS The First Day JoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group7 May 2020 At the beginning, I liked to think it would end at some point. Knowing there is a light at the end of the tunnel makes the process easier. But the longer it goes on, the...

Last Thursday morning, I had to don the obligatory N95 mask and nitrile gloves and head out to a local diagnostic lab for some routine bloodwork. Considering the fact that the list of tests to be performed on said blood was longer than I am tall, I have to imagine the...

I don’t know if there’s yet a definition of or a clinical diagnosis for the derangement caused by coronavirus and its associated emotional and psychological manifestations. And I don’t know if any such diagnosis yet appears in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of...

HALLUCINOGENS & QUARANTINE The Other SideJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group23 April 2020 Jim Morrison, lead vocalist for The Doors took psychedelic drugs. Some of the songs he wrote were about his hallucinogenic experiences. One of his songs, Break on...

What a difference a pandemic makes. It’s that time of year in which companies in all industries would be gearing up for trade show season. But this year’s festivities have been rudely interrupted by COVID-19, which means many shows are being cancelled or postponed....

SPRING & REBIRTHA Springtime RuminationJoAnna Bennett, O'Brien Communications Group16 April 2020A 60-degree day in early Spring can feel like summertime when the sun isn’t hiding behind the clouds. As a burst of serotonin flushes through my brain, my body quickly...

Does anything lend itself to satire any better than Harvard Business Review (HBR)? I don't think so, either. It's almost as if the editors are trying to let us know HBR has become a parody of itself without coming out and telling us HBR has become a parody of itself....