I started this week with a lot of drive and intensity. Then today, the CEO asked me to work on something that required effort, but didn’t feel like it would move the needle in a meaningful way. That’s when I noticed my false identity showed up: “Just work harder. Put in the hours. Be useful.” But underneath that was a deeper truth. I don’t actually thrive on activity. I thrive on meaning. On work that creates leverage, direction, and real impact. Today felt uncomfortable because my old identity wanted to stay loyal to busyness, while my real identity was asking a different question: "Does this actually make a difference?" That tension was the signal. Curious where others are noticing this gap between activity and impact this week.

I wish there was some sort of conversion calculator for Florida cold to Nothern States cold. I mean…we had frost this morning. My rear defroster actually melted frost not just foggy moisture. That’s got to count for something. 😂 Temps dropping into the 20s over the weekend. Even a slight chance of flurries. 😳

Sleet hasn’t turned to freezing rain quite yet. It’s cold, 17 degrees, but not Northern cold like @Toby Thomas @Dwayne Van Harberden Hope everyone is staying safe.

A few weeks back, @Toby Thomas shared the idea of choosing a word to define your year. That stuck with me, and I chose FOCUS. It’s been a lens for everything. Today, @Dwayne Van Harberden and I had a deep dive conversation about what that really means, not just in strategy, but in practice, how we stay focused in the chaos of daily life. We talked about: - Managing attention with intention - Saying no to distractions - The discipline of being fully present with the task at hand - How your whole life supports your ability to focus — nutrition, rest, energy And Dwayne dropped a line I’m definitely stealing: “My day starts when I go to bed.” 💥 That’s it. No more treating rest as optional. This all ties directly to the “impossible” Q1 goals I’ve committed to at our MedTech startup, and how I plan to make them inevitable through focused execution: 1. Raise $2M in funding 2. Build and implement our quality management system 3. Complete our feasibility study So thank you again, @Toby Thomas , for planting the seed with that word-of-the-year idea. And thank you @Dwayne Van Harberden for sharing your insights! Would love to hear from others: What’s helped you protect your focus lately? How do you keep your mind in “builder mode”?

Half a year ago, as most of you know, I stepped into a new chapter: joining a MedTech startup as COO. And as you also know, that transition stretched me more than I expected. Today was one of those days that quietly confirms "you’re exactly where you should be". I was invited into a hospital’s heart catheterization lab by an interventional cardiologist on our advisory board. I got to observe a live procedure and, we discussed our product, how it could fit into the clinical workflow, what to improve, and which technical details really matter in practice. Also: I got to gown up like a surgeon to enter the lab. Not going to lie… that was pretty fun. 👨‍⚕️ What hit me most wasn’t just the technical conversation. It was the equal partnership in the room. Ten years ago, I would’ve entered a setting like that with “underdog energy,” especially around dominant personalities. Today, it felt different: respectful, collaborative, focused on the patient, and on building something better together. And seeing the patient improve so quickly (within minutes) was the real reminder: this is why we do it. Not for slides, not for meetings, because real-world impact can happen fast when the right people and the right tools come together. Just wanted to share this small win as encouragement: growth often looks like discomfort… right up until the moment it clicks. Wishing you all a strong start to the week.