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On the Way Up, Humility. On the Way Down, Curiosity.


Rudyard Kipling's poem “If” is one of my favorites. I swoon when I arrive at the line, "If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster and treat those two impostors just the same."

This particular verse has been an anthem for me throughout my various businesses—Joie de Vivre, Airbnb, and MEA—during times when we appeared to be “knocking it out of the park” and also during those times when we seemed to be the “strikeout king.”

Over time, I have come to distill my own wisdom into the title of today’s blog. When we’re young, we tend to feel the highs and lows with heightened intensity. But, as we age, we realize that nothing lasts forever—neither the good nor the bad. Striking a humble balance while receiving applause prevents us from becoming egotistically insufferable. Maintaining a sense of curiosity amidst feelings of being cursed signifies our openness to learning and improving (a growth mindset), even when the “chips are down.”

As we age, we become better mixologists of our emotions with an eye to not veering too far off to the extremes.

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