Somewhere sometime ago I heard someone saying “the best way to succeed is to help others succeed.” I believe it is attributed to the organizational psychologist Adam Grant. There is so much truth in that statement. I derive so much joy finding opportunities for others, whether it is writing a letter of recommendation, researching fellowships for a newsletter, or dreaming together with a friend . When you enrich the life of people around you, you are enriching your own spirit. This in turn makes you a warmer and lighthearted person to be around, which in turn opens you doors to new opportunities. It becomes a virtuous cycle. It is Newton’s third law of motion, “you get back what you put in.”

Today I spent a good portion of my afternoon enjoying coffee and lunch with the company of a dear friend at a fireplace in a restaurant. I have been craving that spot for a while now, and felt so energized after spending hours catching up on each other’s lives. There is something quite refreshing and replenishing both spiritually and physically just enjoying the company of another human being. The fireplace itself was key. It created a protective atmosphere of trust, warmth, and relaxation that cannot be delivered at a bar or a table. At the end I felt a high that usually comes from drinking at a bar with friends, but this was purely good company under the auspices of caffeine and the warmth of the flames.

Friends, a fireplace, and good conversation, the recipe for a well spent weekend.

When asked about how does one become an accomplished historian, Prof. Timothy Snyder said in a podcast that if you are going to be in academia, 1: you better go international; 2: it is a good idea to always be thinking about being good at something else besides your academic role; 3: getting along with multiple types of people is critical. Perhaps his most important piece of advice, though, was when he revealed he always had women bosses. Now that is some insightful career advice.

There are a few reassuring things than a warm handshake with your swim mayes after finishing a long and brutal workout. The eye contact communicates reassurance, a honest camaraderie, and a good teammate. We may all be in our own minds while enduring strenous laps, but in the end, we went through it together.

One thing I want to nurture and communicate to the people I work with is enthusiasm. Excited to do research. Curiosity to explore new worlds. Amazed to discover new things. Joy in trying new things. At the end of the day, I want to them to nurture and take that high energy with them on whatever they wish to do. That skill of developing a positive attitude to whatever they do, especially when they are challenged and turned down. That skill to continue trying things is crucial.

Today I stumbled upon an anti-ICE protest at the footsteps of Philadelphia’s City Hall. I was heading home from grocery shopping. With my heavy bags, I decided to stop my journey and join momentarily as an observer, listening to what the speakers had to say. There was something reassuring seeing other people take risks and deciding to show up in person for an issue that mattered to them –amidst a 10-year snowstorm that left a city covered in 12 inches of snow. I suppose it had something to do with the profile of the victims involved in the two extrajudicial killings in Minnesota. Both victims were caucasian U.S. citizens –a woman and a man. Before they were killed, they were both doing acts of bravery –one acting as a legal observer and the other protecting a woman from the brutality of the masked men.

This should be a turning point.

As much as I believe that the Americans are inching closer to Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World than George Orwell’s 1984, the extrajudicial killing of ICU nurse Alex Pretti and the legal observer Rene Good earlier this month demand a rereading of Orwell. Orwell warned us about the owning of language to describe the opposite. “Combating antisemitism” is an example of this. “Law enforcement” is another one. When ICE agents violate the law, the U.S. Constitution, and any sense of human decency, it is preposterous and grotesque to refer to them as members of law enforcement. They are clearly something else. Believe your eyes.

At some point in your life you will be asked to take some kind of a risk for the things you care about. It is very important that when those things are violated, you take some risk and do something about it. It is in those inflection points where you are faced with the tyranny of dual choice: either you do something or you don’t. It is not even about caring about everything. It is not about being courageous about everything. But it is about being courageous about something. It is about caring about a few things, and to act consistently with that.

When you look at the history of the Holocaust, and that of survivors, it is interesting to observe that the people who actually saved lives did not talk about it –at all. If anything, they felt guilty for not doing enough. Think of Oskar Schindler.

There seems to be an inverse relationship between the amount of doing good and self-promotion. The more you monitor and reflect on yourself, the more likely you are to do good, the more you feel the responsibility to do more. Conversely, people who constantly signal their virtuosity… are the least introspective people, and are therefore precisely the people you need to watch out for.

Today was a good day to remember Sherry Anstein’s “A Ladder of Citizen Participation.” I learned about this in a class called “Shaping the Urban Environment” when I was an undergraduate at N.Y.U. The Professor gave a passionate lecture about Jane Jacobs and citizen engagement. He presented that famous diagram projected on the wall, and opened it up to students about what they thought about the ladder. In hindsight, this was very much an act of bravery and vulnerability on the part of the Professor, who revealed the very mechanics of political power, which was very much operating in the dynamics of his role in academic life, and in so doing, making himself vulnerable to his students. In sharing this, he earned a genuine trust from his students.

I will always be indebted to that Professor, and today was especially a good day to remember his teachings.