Ever feel stuck in your own head when big challenges hit you? This post breaks down three sneaky thinking traps that mess with your perspective and how to get out of them and back into action.

Too easy, and we get bored. Too hard, and we give up. The sweet spot? It's where we succeed 85% of the time and struggle 15% researchers have found. This is the Zone of Desirable Difficulty—where real growth happens. It's the formula for entering the flow state.

“Got a minute?” might sound harmless, but it’s how small problems become big distractions and dependency replaces initiative.

These micro-escalations drain a leader’s focus and send the message that thinking belongs elsewhere.

With the right prompts, AI helps teams explore before they escalate, building confidence and ownership instead of handing problems up.

Acronyms can be efficient, but they can also quietly shut people out. When we assume everyone understands the shorthand, we risk silencing fresh ideas and contributions from those too afraid to ask.

This post explores how acronyms create hidden barriers to collaboration and innovation and why clarity is the real power move in any room.

When accountability is unclear, people shift from producing results to protecting themselves. This blog explores why ambiguity triggers anxiety, stalls momentum, and kills initiative, especially during new projects or change.

Learn how to spot the warning signs and the simple question every team should ask to create clarity, build courage, and move forward faster.

Change starts with endings, not new beginnings. Lots of people fear change because it’s uncomfortable to walk through the space in between endings and new beginnings, called the Neutral Zone by William Bridges in his book Transitions.

But holding onto the past makes the job of transition to something new harder. Learning how to let go allows you to move forward faster towards a new beginning.

AI is fundamentally changing brainstorming, but it can’t replace what is uniquely human about it. Which is working out what ideas matter.

There are two ways to solve any problem. Change what you do, or change what you have. That's it. Focusing on these two variables makes solving problems a whole lot easier.

We’re trained to judge, fast. Good or bad. Right or wrong. Success or failure. But judgement slams the door on creativity.

When we label something too quickly, we stop exploring it. We don’t ask why, we don’t look closer, we just move on. But what if, instead of asking is it good or bad, we asked what’s interesting here?

Feeling stuck isn't a dead end, it's a sign that your current thinking patterns have reached their limits. Our brains are wired to filter out information, focusing only on what's deemed relevant. Inviting chaos into your thinking breaks patterns and unlocks creativity that leads to breakthroughs.

Writing Problem Hunter was a life milestone for me. It may not yet be a best seller, but that's not the point. The journey of writing and publishing a book has reshaped who I am and how I approach this short life we live. Here’s three things I learned as I wrote the book.

Most teams don’t fail because they can’t solve problems. They fail because they solve the wrong ones. We chase symptoms. We fix what’s loud. We jump to action because sitting in the unknown feels uncomfortable. Here are three tests I use to make sure I solve the right problem every time.

Do what you say you will. It sounds basic. But it's the biggest complaint people have when collaborating with others. That people let them down. Neuroscience research shows that consistency calms the brain’s threat detection system (amygdala). And that’s essential for high performing collaboration.

Collaboration works when we turn in, not out. When tension shows up, and it always does when we try and solve challenging problems, most people turn out. Blame the system. Blame the customer. Blame each other. It feels safer. But turning out erodes trust. Turning in builds trust.

Collaboration isn’t about avoiding disagreement. It’s about knowing how to disagree. The #1 rule when challenging someone: Make it about the idea, not the person. When people feel attacked, they defend. When people feel invited, they engage.

The most important attribute to recruit for isn't competence, it's desire. Competence can be taught. Desire can't.

The Australian Museum in Sydney holds over 22 million specimens and cultural objects. But less than 1% is on display at any one time. Why? Because the goal isn’t to show everything. It’s to give just enough for visitors to understand, connect, and care about something. To create meaning and understanding, not to overload and overwhelm.

We fear what might cost us something we care deeply about: a relationship, our credibility, our sense of belonging. But what if fear wasn’t the problem, what if it was just a sign we care?

Creativity is just connecting things—especially things that haven't been put together before. Take transparent wood. Sounds impossible, right? But scientists at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, led by Professor Lars Berglund, figured it out.

Museum curators can teach as a lot about solving problems. The Australian Museum in Sydney holds over 22 million specimens and cultural objects. But less than 1% is on display at any one time. Why? Because the goal isn’t to show everything. It’s to give just enough for visitors to understand, connect, and care about something.