The HR Philosopher

"A cynic is a man who, when he smells flowers, looks around for a coffin." -- H. L. Mencken Last night, I attended DisruptHR Chicago—a gathering built around sharing ideas that challenge how we think about people and work. The format keeps things moving: Each speaker gets five minutes, with 20 slides advancing every 15Continue reading "Cynicism Isn’t a Leadership Competency"

A radiant woman embraces a wounded, shadowed figure amid storm clouds, flowers, and breaking chains. “To feel affection for people even when they make mistakes is uniquely human. You can do it, if you simply recognize: that they’re human too, that they act out of ignorance, against their will…And, above all, that they haven’t reallyContinue reading "Pity the Fool, Don’t Hate Them"

The aim of totalitarian education has never been to instill convictions but to destroy the capacity to form any. — Hannah Arendt I believe that America is in decline. A lot of people won’t like that I wrote this. However, I study history. I study political science. I study human nature. All of my studyingContinue reading "Books to Understand America"

Photo by Denniz Futalan on Pexels.com “The best revenge is not to be like your enemy.” — Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 6.6 The past several months, I’ve been focusing a lot on Marcus Aurleius’ Meditations. It’s existence is a fascinating story. An emperor, the most powerful man in the world, would write to himself aboutContinue reading "The Best Revenge"

A small sample of books that have shaped who I’ve become and will become. “The right book at the right time is a powerful thing.” - Ryan Holliday  Reading has always been more than a hobby for me; it has been a form of self-discovery, of self-leadership. While I’ve read thousands of books over myContinue reading "Philosophy Books That Have Sharpened My Mind, Body, and Soul"

“What injures the hive injures the bee.” — Marcus Aurelius This article is written for men. I welcome and want women to read this piece, too, of course, but they mostly know what I am about to discuss. They experience a life every single man cannot experience. It is men who need to hear myContinue reading "Stoicism Is Not a Refuge for Misogyny: Masculinity Is Having Moral Courage"

“No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it's not the same river and he's not the same man.” – Heraclitus This is a story of how I changed. How I could have been part of MAGA, but somehow along the way, I took another route in life. Before I dig in tooContinue reading "People Can Change, If They Want To"

Photo by Benni Fish on Pexels.com "I am not a self-made man. You understand that you are here because of a lot of help then you also understand that now is time to help others.’” – Arnold Schwarzenegger Martin Luther King, Jr. doesn’t need me to write about him. So, I won’t. I’ve actually writtenContinue reading "The Hivemind"

“Fascism is cured by reading, and racism is cured by traveling.” — Often attributed to Miguel de Unamuno I’m not going to pretend that 2025 was normal. It wasn’t. These are not normal times (if any such thing as ever really existed). DO NOT let ANYONE convince you that any of what is happening isContinue reading "My Top Books I Read in 2025"

When will this nightmare be over? Tell meWhen can I empty my head?Will someone tell me the answer?Is God really dead? -- God Is Dead?, Black Sabbath, 2013 SHRM has been hit with wave after wave of bad news lately with the recent news crescendo of them having been hit with an $11.5 million verdictContinue reading "SHRM Is Dead: Nietzsche, HR, and the Rebirth That Follows Ruin"