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Michael Pennell
Jul 172 min read
So Rude! Friendships and Requesting Payment via Venmo
Earlier this week, I had one of those moments where you see a headline or a snippet from an article and immediately react "Yes!" Further,...
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Michael Pennell
May 236 min read
Getting into the Flow: Habit versus Practice
Recently, at the not-so-young age of 48, I decided to pick up a new hobby. Despite little to no experience with music, I chose to learn...
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Michael Pennell
Apr 229 min read
“Time to make the donuts”: Habit versus Routine
NOTE: This post begins, hopefully, a series of posts where I start working through aspects of my book project on the rhetorical history...
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Michael Pennell
Mar 68 min read
Lifestyles, Internships, and Careers: Imagining Employability in the Humanities
“You’re told your entire life, ‘Go to college, get a bachelor’s degree and your life is gonna be gravy after that,’” said Alexander...
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Michael Pennell
Feb 97 min read
Rhetorically Curious: Review of Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most
Recently, a colleague asked me for some advice on saying “no” to a student’s request for a letter of recommendation to medical school....
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Michael Pennell
Nov 14, 20238 min read
From the Box to the Trail to the Wallet: Social Media, Social Networking, and Social Fitness
In their book sharing results from the Harvard Study of Adult Development, Harvard researchers Marc Schulz and Robert Waldinger noted...
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Michael Pennell
Sep 14, 20236 min read
"What the F is FERPA?"
I am at the age where I have a daughter in college and a son heading that way in a few years. This means that my friends, acquaintances,...
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Michael Pennell
Sep 5, 20235 min read
Resisting, Embracing, and, Maybe, Pursuing Change
Previewing his forthcoming book on change, Brad Stulberg had a recent piece in the New York Times opinion section titled, “Stop Resisting...
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Michael Pennell
Aug 10, 20236 min read
Sabbaticals, Not Just for Academics
Recently, a friend who works in management for Chipotle mentioned that he was beginning a sabbatical the following week. He would have...
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Michael Pennell
Jul 19, 20236 min read
No, Really, Thanks for the Feedback (a quick take on Stone and Heen's Thanks for the Feedback)
When it comes to course evaluations, I think there are two types of instructors. Some get the evaluations returned and jump right into...
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Michael Pennell
Jun 16, 20234 min read
Is the Salad Fork on the Syllabus?
I regularly teach a class for juniors and seniors titled, "Intro to Professions in Writing." The class has a fairly vague description,...
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Michael Pennell
May 31, 20235 min read
Student Athletes, Motivation, and Identity
Earlier this week, I heard the statistic that only 58 Little League Baseball World Series players have gone on to play Major League...
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Michael Pennell
May 24, 20237 min read
Smartphones, Social Media, and Stasis Theory
Yesterday, the U.S. Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, issued an advisory on youth and social media, claiming, "We must acknowledge the...
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Michael Pennell
May 19, 20233 min read
My Hot Take on Hot-Desking
A recent trend in the world of flexible workspaces is hot-desking. According to Heidi Mitchell in her recent piece, "Why Employees Hate...
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Michael Pennell
May 15, 20233 min read
GenZ and Work-Life Balance
In light of recent writing and thinking I've done regarding generational differences in the workplace, I found this recent article from...
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Michael Pennell
May 8, 20232 min read
YouTube music as Pomodoro Technique
Different types of audio, whether music or podcasts or silence, creates different environments for work for me. Further, I find the right...
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Michael Pennell
May 5, 20232 min read
Griping about GenZ (again)
I've seen this survey from ResumeBuilder.com making the rounds sharing the results from a survey of managers and their issues with GenZ....
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Michael Pennell
May 1, 20235 min read
Considering Mindsets in Team and Individual Sports
(The following short reflective essay was written earlier this semester, as I considered fix versus growth mindsets. With many track and...
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Michael Pennell
Apr 28, 20238 min read
Achievement Goal Theory and Ungrading
A recent article on "equitable grading" from the WSJ got me re-thinking about a brief reflective piece I wrote considering achievement...
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Michael Pennell
Apr 25, 20231 min read
Testing
Getting this blog off the ground--a place to share idea, early writing drafts, and reflections on stuff I've read, listened to, etc.
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