byronmccaughey

Dave Grohl’s agent called and asked if he was sitting down – the universal sign that a bomb is about to drop. Fear and anxiety ripe as the Foo Fighters’ frontman held the phone to his ear. His agent went on, “The Academy Awards called. They want you to perform Blackbird by yourself on the […]

Haruki Murakami has a rather unique relationship with time. On the one hand, time is fleeting and it fuels his urgency, ensuring a steady output of words when writing novels. On the other hand, he sees time as abundant, allowing him ample opportunity to let his work settle before releasing it to the world. The

Madison Keys has won her first Grand Slam, defeating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to claim the 2025 Australian Open title. But this victory was far from a foregone conclusion. It wasn’t just about facing the top-ranked player in the world in the final—it was about overcoming a battle she had once lost within herself.

For some tasks in our work life, urgency comes easy. You know, preparing for a pitch, sending a sales contract or hitting our boss’s deadline. Urgency tends to emerge when there are external drivers like being evaluated, accountability or immediate consequences. Let’s call this fear-driven urgency. Perhaps it’s creative work like writing a blog, starting

On the day of a Grand Slam night match, most tennis pros try to control every aspect of their preparation—from sleep in their hotel room to hooking themselves up to performance-enhancing machines, analysing the match ahead, and eating the perfect amount of calories. But not Roger Federer, who was often seen strolling through one of

In the early ‘90s, Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, had a problem. Well, two problems. The first was growing pains. Patagonia entered the new decade riding a wave of 30-50% annual growth, but with it came a fragmented company structure that was inefficient and lacked unity. So Yvon sought the counsel of the late

Believe it or not, performance anxiety is your friend. And it’s really common, even among world-class performers like Adele, Nadal, Emma Stone, Andrea Bocelli, Lorde, Meryl Streep, and Jay Z, who have openly discussed their pre-performance nerves. Our anxiety gets misunderstood. It actually primes us for performance by sending signals to our body that the

Stephen King was so appalled by his draft outline of Carrie that he scrunched up the pages and threw them in the trash, resolving to give up on the story of a tormented high school girl with telekinesis powers. When he returned from his day job as a schoolteacher the following day, King found the

Winnie and Nelson Mandela shared a vision of dismantling apartheid in South Africa but had rather contrasting approaches to achieving that vision. Winnie adopted a strategy focused on grassroots activism and direct action. She was heavily involved in organising protests, mobilising the masses, and supporting resistance activities. On the other hand, Nelson emphasised peaceful negotiations,

Craig Foster, from the documentary My Octopus Teacher, was on his morning ocean swim in the Great African Seaforest when suddenly he spotted a giant 17 x 14-foot stingray, the largest species in the world. Keeping his movements steady and vibrations low—essential given a sting from their spine can be fatal—Craig glided alongside this giant