Personal essays & field notes

Slow notes on making things, and the long way around.

I'm Wade — a higher education leader and builder writing about the projects I'm making, the ideas I'm wrestling with, and what it takes to actually finish.

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What Do You Want to Be

The question I've spent 14 years helping students answer is the same one I quietly stopped asking myself. On monetizing what you love, Matthew Crawford's motorcycle shop, and rebuilding a 1969 Mini Cooper with my son.

April 23, 2026
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01
What Do You Want to Be
The question I've spent 14 years helping students answer is the same one I quietly stopped asking myself. On monetizing what you love, Matthew Crawford's motorcycle shop, and rebuilding a 1969 Mini Cooper with my son.
Apr 23
02
How to Make a Perfect Negroni: A Complete Guide
Dec 11
03
Navigating Transitions: The Power of Personal Rituals
Oct 23
04
AI-Powered Shutdown Ritual: Automating Cal Newport's End-of-Day Routine
Oct 14
05
Project-Based Bonding: How Rebuilding a Mini Cooper Rebuilt My Relationship With My Son
Sep 24
06
Technology & Human Connection
Sep 16
07
From Square One to Sustainable Creativity: Building Systems That Prevent Starting Over
Sep 9
08
The Practical Path to AI Integration: A Levi Strauss Approach
Aug 27
09
Digital Life Design
Aug 20
10
The Empathy Advantage: Why Human-Centered Leadership Drives Results
Aug 11
11
Finding Your True North: The Journey to Authentic Values
Jul 31
12
The Productive Friction: Finding Balance Between Analog Constraints and Digital Freedom
Jul 22
13
Learning to Create Better Puzzles: A Birthday Scavenger Hunt Story
Jul 15
14
The Art of Delegation: How to Empower Your Team and Free Up Your Time
Jun 30
15
My Journey to Embracing Conflict
Jun 23
16
My Journey from Tech Resistance to Embrace: How Reluctance Became Transformation
Jun 16
17
Leadership Philosophy
Feb 14
18
The Creative Power of Limitations: Why Constraints Set Us Free
Feb 1
19
Planning Like a Dungeon Master
Jun 19
20
Transitions Despite Emotions
Jun 17
21
The Distraction of Tools
Jun 15
22
Hard Conversations = Love
Jun 14
23
Audio Book Practice
May 16
24
Underestimated, The Wisdom and Power of Teenage Girls - Book Report
Apr 24
25
Layers of Complexity
Feb 27
26
Complex Reality
Feb 26
27
Meaning Behind EveryDay Objects
Feb 15
28
What Delegation Is and Isn't
Feb 14
29
When Hesitation Isn't Helpful
Feb 13
30
Weightlifting as Meditation
Feb 12
31
The Overwhelming Appeal of Everyday Carry (EDC)
Feb 8
32
Emergency Preparedness
Feb 7
33
Google is Theory, and Theory Will Only Get You So Far
Feb 6
34
Dirty Hands
Feb 5
35
Anger
Feb 1
36
Consistency > Intensity
Jan 31
37
Learn to Love the Process
Jan 30
38
The Important Transition into Art Critique
Jan 29
39
Photo Friday
Jan 26
40
It's Like Going to Church to Me.
Jan 25
41
Leadership is Like Parenting, But Not in The Way You Think
Jan 24
42
My Judgement Gets in My Way
Jan 23
43
Living in the Time  of the Super-Specialist
Jan 22
44
Photo Friday 1.19.24
Jan 19
45
Taking On or Passing Along Energy
Jan 18
46
Knowledge Isn’t Enough
Jan 17
47
Working in Data
Jan 16
48
Defining Myself with Objects
Jan 15
49
Photo Friday 1.12.24
Jan 12
50
Writing as a Magic Wand
Jan 11
51
Consumption Turns Me Into Someone Else
Jan 10
52
Addiction = distraction
Jan 9
53
That feeling that resonates
Jan 8
54
Wanting to be in the calendar
Jan 5
55
Calendar of Perspective
Jan 4
56
Calenaring Ratios
Jan 3
57
Extreme Changes or Bust
Jan 2
58
Quality Matters
Dec 29
59
Craving Work, Fulfillment, and Being Done
Aug 17
60
The Stories We Tell Ourselves
Aug 12
61
Purpose Driven
Aug 8
62
The Power of Story
Aug 7
63
Why Learn Design...Even if you're not an Designer
Aug 5
64
Social Interactions Post-Pandemic
Aug 4
65
Process is Better than Outcome
Aug 3
66
There is Never "A" Solution
Aug 2
67
The Role of Discipline
Aug 1
68
Endings: from order to disorder
Aug 14
69
Frame and Compassion
Apr 7
70
Outcome and Process Independent
Jan 11
71
Embracing Detachment and Becoming Present
Jan 9
72
April 10, 2021
Oct 7
73
Response to Bukowski
Sep 27
74
Playing it Safe - A Bukowski Warning
Sep 18
75
Remembering 9/11
Sep 12
76
I'm 37. I'm not old
Sep 10
77
A Softer Shadow
Sep 8
78
So, I've been thinking about...
Sep 7
79
Pandemic Time
Aug 20
80
Goodbye, Things
Jul 16
81
March 8, 2021
Jun 16
82
Consolations of Philosophy
May 28
83
January 2021 - Values
May 28
84
David Chang's Eat A Peach
May 14
85
Craft and iPhone Repair
May 23
86
To The High School Class of 2020: Do NOT take a gap year.
May 11
87
Thank You, Newport Beach
Dec 21
88
Right Here. Right Now. Halloween 2017
Nov 1
89
Developing a Studio Practice
Oct 26
90
The Untapped Potential of Mind-Mapping
Oct 12
91
How I Unexpectedly Prepared to Interview
Oct 5
92
Right here. Right now. 9/28 7:00 pm
Sep 29
93
From Millennial Impatience to Mastery
Sep 21
94
Home Made Ramen Noodles
Sep 14
95
Getting Out of My Social Situations
Sep 7
96
Right here. Right now. August 2017
Aug 29
97
I am Scared to Start
Aug 3
98
Right here. Right now.  July 2017
Jul 19
99
June 24, 2017 10:00 pm
Jun 28
100
My Sonicare Time Management Hack
Jun 22
101
Money Shows Value
Jun 15
102
Raising Kids with a Sense of Purpose
Jun 9
103
Right here. Right now.  May 31, 7:05 pm
Jun 1
104
Mo Money, Mo Problems....I'll Take the Problems
May 25
105
Getting Present...with Dance?
May 19
106
Style is Everything
May 8
107
My Fear of the Unknown and Potential Success
Apr 28
108
Parenting is Rough
Apr 18
109
April 10, 11:47 AM
Apr 11
110
The Liberation of Getting Out of My Head
Apr 11
111
Getting Things Done is Boring
Apr 4
112
I'm a Maker Dottie...a Rebel
Mar 28
113
Right here. Right now.  March 23, 2017 at 1:07 PM
Mar 24
114
Organization is the Key to Everything!
Mar 21
115
I Don't Need Anyone's Permission
Mar 16
116
The Benefit of Rituals
Mar 8
117
Time Management is Bull S#!%
Mar 2
118
The Valuable Lesson I Learned from the 2017 Best Picture Fiasco
Mar 1
119
I am a Borrower of Truth.
Feb 27
120
That Time A Little Old Lady Made Me Cry
Feb 22
121
How I Learned to Stop Caring and Just Love Myself
Feb 15
122
Uhhh...I Didn't Know That Skeleton Was In Here
Feb 9
123
Financial Literacy is Important
Jan 24
124
I Sure Hope I'm A Good Dad.
Jan 19
125
I've Been Too Busy To Be Present
Jan 12
126
It's Time to get some Mise En Place.
Jan 11
127
My Positive Attitude Has Screwed Me
Jan 9
128
Donald Trump and the Power I Give to Others
Dec 28
129
Social Media Makes Me Special
Nov 13
130
I Will No Longer Rely On Your Opinions
Nov 3
131
Yes, And...My Marriage.
Oct 26
132
Leaning into the Creative Process
Oct 12
133
Faith Crisis and Blue Like Jazz
Aug 31
134
Mike Tyson, A Case Study
Jul 10
135
Meeting Masculine Standards
May 18
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