I've been thinking about this quote:

“The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material.” ― Michelangelo

1/x

This past year has been strange for some obvious reasons, and for others that are private. Caring for an aging parent has moved to the next level and the thought of my oldest leaving for college next fall is impacting me in ways I didn't anticipate.

2/x

In the meanwhile, I've been working on some new projects that I can't wait to share, but aren't ready yet. So when I look into 2021, I'm betting on a year that will be intense, but I suspect or at least hope to be rewarding.

So back to the quote...

3/x

The idea that the good life is as much about getting rid of stuff you don't want as it is acquiring or creating the stuff you do has occupied my thoughts more.

Increasingly, my speeches and workshops focus more on regret minimization and less on gain maximization

4/x

I've observed that the theme of avoiding regret resonates well with audiences. It's a heavier topic than aspiration, but people get it, some in their bones. And for the community of financial advisors I now live in, it opens new introspection, new conversations.

5/x

And it hits home personally, the idea of eliminating "superfluous materials" - unserious and unkind people, media that are just chum in bloodied conversations, tasks and errands that convince us to wave the white flag of "busy."

6/x

I do a shit job at avoiding some of this, and even worse I am sometimes the problem, for myself and others. Yet I feel I'm at a crossroads to do better, in multiple ways. In a life that is already blessed, that's kind of where I'm at, getting rid of pain, friction, noise.

7/x

Some of that will be due to little things I can do (including on this hellsite) and some will be based on big decisions with real costs. All the while striving for amazing things, for doing exceptional work, for having so much fun on this one-ticket ride.

8/x

I guess in a way we are all *both* painters and sculptors, finding blank canvases to create amazing things while also taking big messy blocks of stuff and chipping away in order to create something beautiful.

9/9