Matthew's Blog
On Being a Consistent Writer
I am not a great writer. I am not even a good writer. But I have published a blog post every day for the past year. Therefore, I can say this with pride: I am a consistent writer. And that is an important step.
A 2022 Creative Project: Nietzsche’s Concept of Health
One of my 2022 creative projects is to write about Nietzsche's concept of health. I intend to work my way through his published works (roughly one book a month) and attempts to extract from each one how he approaches the idea of health. I hope that I can find a common...
One of My Deepest Intellectual Regrets
I continue to build up my reference book collection on the Ancient Greek language, with the recent addition of The Cambridge Grammar of Classical Greek. One of my dreams is to devote a year to learning Ancient Greek sufficiently well such that I can do a primary...
All I Want For Christmas Is …
My wife recently asked me what I wanted for Christmas. After a moment of reflection, I realized that I don’t want anything for Christmas. In terms of stuff, I have everything I need. And in terms of intangibles, I am wealthy beyond belief. So, all I want for Christmas...
Pivoting My Physician Ikigai
As a physician, my ikigai has always been solid. It's an activity the world certainly needs and is willing to pay for. It's also something I am skilled at doing. And, finally, because it was a chance to talk with and help interesting people every day, it's something I...
A Potential 2022 Art Project?
It’s the end of the year—a time to play with new ideas for next year. And one of the ideas I have is for an art project, or more specifically, a poetry project: Create a large-scale poetic work based on the Manhattan Project. I haven’t yet decided on the form....
Ikigai and My “Passion”
When it comes to choosing a career path, I am not fond of the word “passion.” Taken for the Oxford English Dictionary, here are some of its definitions: As a mass noun: strong or overpowering feeling or emotion.A fit, outburst, or state marked by or of strong...
LinkedIn and Corporate Ikigai
Years ago, at a social media healthcare conference, I gave a presentation on the use of corporate ikigai. Using a Venn Diagram representation of corporate ikigai (the point of overlap of corporate mission and corporate capabilities with customer wants and community...
Career Languish and Ikigai
Here are several of the Oxford English Dictionary’s definitions of the verb to languish: Of a person, animal, or plant: to decline in health; to weaken, wither, or become faint; to exist in a state of weakness or illness.To live in an oppressive or dispiriting place,...