Blog
Hello, Readers!
Welcome to my blog! Here, you’ll find a mix of topics from intentional living to navigating your career in the age of AI to updates on my various projects. The themes that run through my work are Living the Life You Want, Simplicity, Continuous Improvement, Iteration, Travel, Indie Book Publishing, and Agile Software Development.
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Recent Posts
Viking Rhine River Cruise: The Good and The Bad
We went on a Viking River Cruise down the Rhine River this July. The trip was wonderful in many ways, but it was not quite what I expected in a few important ones. The Rhine River was low so we ended up switching boats partway through the cruise. This is my account of both the day-by-day itinerary, what we actually did, and my verdict on whether a Viking River Cruise was right for us (and whether it may be right for you).
A Day and a Half in Amsterdam
Here’s how we spent our day and a half in Amsterdam before we jumped on a Viking Rhine River Cruise.
How I Plan a Trip (And Why the Planning Is Half the Fun)
I am an enthusiastic trip planner. At any given moment, I would rather be traveling (seeing new things, trying new foods, meeting new people) than almost anything else in the world. For me, planning the trip is almost as fun as actually taking it. So, let me walk you through how I plan a trip, from the first spark of interest to the last booking.
I’ve Been a Nonfiction Reader My Whole Adult Life…Until Now
For most of my adult, working life, I’ve been a nonfiction person. And then, sometime in the last year I started reading more fiction. And once I started, I couldn’t stop. And there are some very important benefits of reading fiction that make me happy I’ve added a lot more fiction to my stack of books.
How to Find Friends As an Adult (And We Really Need Friends)
On the heels of an amazing girls’ trip last weekend, I’d like to share part of a chapter from my upcoming book (publish date still to be determined). This section is from Chapter 11: Go To That Event By Yourself and it’s all about making friends as adults and why those friendships are so valuable.
A Newport, Rhode Island Girls’ Weekend: Mansions, Cliffs, and a Lot of Kilts
Last week, two friends and I escaped for a girls’ weekend in Newport, Rhode Island. It included gilded Age mansions, a dramatic coastal walk, beaches, a flower show, and more seafood and cookies than I’d like to admit. Newport, it turns out, is an absolutely perfect setting for a few days away with your closest friends.
Exit Interview: A Book Review
I recently read Exit Interview: The Life and Death of My Ambitious Career by Kristi Coulter. I picked it up because the title resonated with me. I, too, have had an ambitious tech career and just recently semi-retired, pulling back to teach and run programs at my alma mater, the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Coulter’s book was funny, interesting, and, above all, kind of PTSD-inducing if you’re in tech and especially if you’re a woman in tech.
A Different Kind of Power: Why Jacinda Ardern’s Version of Leadership Matters
I just finished A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir by Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand’s Prime Minister from 2017 to 2023. At a moment when the political world feels particularly bleak, Ardern’s book feels different. It’s full of hope (and good decisions). Her tenure as New Zealand’s Prime Minister shows us that a person can hold the highest office in a country and still be, unmistakably and unapologetically, a human being, a woman, and a mom.
Stick Together: What the Women’s Suffrage Movement Can Teach Us About Politics Right Now
I’ve been working on a new book for women trying to kick ass in a male-centric world and I’m in the developmental editing stages right now. I just got through my final chapter and I love it so, darn much. The chapter is called: “Stick Together: How To Stop Undermining Other Women & Get Things Done Together”. Historically, our failure to stick together has cost us decades of progress. Here’s just one example.
Overwhelmed by AI? It’s OK to Watch for a While
There’s a particular flavor of anxiety that’s causing us all to believe that if we’re not using AI all day every day we’re falling hopeless behind. If you’re overwhelmed, resistant, skeptical, or just genuinely uninterested in the AI hype cycle right now, I want to say something that you might not be hearing very often: That’s okay. You’re going to be fine. And here’s why I think that.
We’re Looking for Partners for UW-Madison’s CS Capstone — Could That Be You?
One of the things I’m most proud of during my career is creating and running UW-Madison’s Computer Sciences Capstone course (CS 620). Every semester, hundreds of computer science Seniors work in teams of four to six on real software projects for real organizations, using agile development practices. And every semester, I need great partner organizations to make it happen. Last year, we had 27 amazing partners and we’re looking to grow quite a bit to accommodate 40% more students for the 2026-2027 school year.
What I Learned at the Global Agility + Innovation Summit: AI, Judgement, and the Future of Leadership
I just returned from the Global Agility + Innovation Summit, a one-day leadership conference in DC hosted by Sanjiv Augustine and his team at LitheSpeed. It was a day packed with sharp thinking, genuine conversation, and the kind of energy that only happens when a room full of practitioners who actually care about the work they’re doing get together. Here are some conference highlights.