Category: thelifeoftry

The Genius of Patience: Five Lessons from Thomas Edison

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“Nothing is impossible. The word itself says ‘I’m possible’!” – Audrey Hepburn

Last night, my six-year-old son, Mr. D, and I were out in our back yard at dusk. When night fell, the solar-powered string of LED lights that my friend Katie helped me string up about 4 years ago switched on. Mr. D wanted to know why some of the bulbs had water in them – a situation that has developed over time.

I’m amazed they still work. Especially after spending a couple of weeks delving into Thomas Edison and his efforts to invent the light bulb. In the time of Edison, bulbs had carbonized bamboo filaments in vacuum sealed glass. We’ve come along way in almost 150 years since his initial design but the light bulb still shines bright.

This episode of The Life of Try podcast is based on Thomas Edison and his methods to reframe progress: not as one perfect breakthrough, but as a steady practice of continuing to try. Behind the famous light bulb moment is a mindset of learning from what doesn’t work, building momentum through small improvements, and staying in motion long enough for the next step to appear.

I gleaned five practical lessons from Edison—be systematic, don’t do it alone, keep improving, apply what you learn across disciplines, and rest (yes, naps count)—plus a bonus insight on the tension between creativity and control.

  • Get unstuck by focusing on the next controllable step
  • Make progress through iteration—small wins that compound over time
  • Keep going with support, structure, and rest
  • Create more, control less

Here’s a snippet of Edison’s commitment to capture ideas:

If you’re working on a project, a habit change, or a long-shot goal, this conversation is an invitation to get unstuck by taking the next try. Here are some ways you can listen and watch this motivating episode:

47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat) – The Life of Try: Personal growth, one try at a time.

Feeling stuck? This episode of The Life of Try uses the story of Thomas Edison to reframe progress: not as one perfect breakthrough, but as a steady practice of continuing to try. Behind the famous light bulb moment is a mindset of learning from what doesn’t work, building momentum through small improvements, and staying in motion long enough for your next step to appear.You’ll hear five practical lessons—be systematic, don’t do it alone, keep improving, apply what you learn across areas, and rest (yes, naps count)—plus a bonus insight on the tension between creativity and control. If you’re working on a project, a habit change, or a long-shot goal, this conversation is an invitation to get unstuck by taking the next try.Get unstuck by focusing on the next controllable stepMake progress through iteration—small wins that compound over timeKeep going with support, structure, and restCreate more, control lessThe Life of Try is a personal growth and self‑help podcast about getting unstuck, navigating uncertainty, and choosing to try—even when it’s uncomfortable, inconvenient, or not your idea.Hosted by Wynne Leon, the show explores how real growth, reinvention, and discovery often begin not with confidence or clarity—but with a single attempt. Through thoughtful interviews, reflective conversations, and real‑world case studies, each episode examines what it looks like to keep going when doubt shows up, plans fall apart, or life forces a change you didn’t ask for.This podcast is for anyone who:Feels stuck or uncertain about what’s nextIs navigating change, burnout, or reinventionWants to live more intentionally without pretending growth is easyBelieves progress starts by trying—again and againThe Life of Try isn’t about hustle or perfection. It’s about learning as you go, surfacing what matters, and sharing what you discover along the way.If you’re ready to surf the uncertainty, outlast the doubts, and step into your own try‑cycle, you’re in the right place.Links for this episode:From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison's Method for Progress show notesThe Genius of Patience: Five Lessons from Thomas Edison transcriptEdison by Edmund Morris Thomas Edison on WikipediaAfter the Super Bowl, Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald Kept Repeating 2 Words. It's a Lesson in How to Win on Inc.com
  1. 47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat)
  2. 46: The Quiet Transformation That Changes Everything
  3. 45: The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  4. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  5. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

Links for this episode:

From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress transcript

Edison by Edmund Morris

Thomas Edison on Wikipedia

After the Super Bowl, Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald Kept Repeating 2 Words. It’s a Lesson in How to Win on Inc.com

Creating Without Elbow Grease

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“Do the difficult things when they are easy and do the great things when they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

What if “trying” doesn’t have to mean pushing harder?

I’ve been in a flow state often enough to know it exists but not so often to know how to reliably get there. Is it really possible to regularly create — to write, to connect with others, to co-author life in a way that doesn’t leave me sweaty and tired? My guest on this week’s podcast had some insight about finding flow. Even if it falls into the category of easier said than done, it’s the quietness of the approach that makes me think it’s possible

In this Life of Try episode, I talk with author and New York Insight Meditation Center co-founder Joseph Schmidt about The Torchbearer—a collection of short stories born from an unexpectedly effortless creative process. Together we explore the mindset shift from effort to openness: how letting go of the agenda can create space for insight, transformation, and a deeper, more alive way of meeting each moment.

  • Try smarter, not harder: why forcing outcomes can block creativity—and what changes when you partner with the process instead.
  • Mindset shift to “empty hands”: Joseph’s Zen chaplaincy training and the practice of entering a room (or a moment) without an agenda.
  • Personal growth through discovery: how his characters—and we as readers—find the next move by noticing what’s already here.
  • Feeling alive at the edge of the unknown: mindfulness as the place where consciousness meets what happens next.
  • Belonging as a practice: building a bond of belonging by showing up with curiosity, care, and presence.

If you’ve been working hard but feeling flat, this conversation is an invitation to loosen your grip, step back into the present, and discover a more natural flow—one where growth comes from attention, not strain. Listen in for a gentler (and often more powerful) way to create, connect, and keep beginning again.

Here’s great clip of Joseph describing the lesson he learned from a Zen monk about a powerful mindset shift:

This is a great episode if you’re craving a mindset reset, rebuilding your creative confidence, deepening a mindfulness practice, or simply want to feel more awake and engaged in your everyday life.

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this inspiring episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat) – The Life of Try: Personal growth, one try at a time.

Feeling stuck? This episode of The Life of Try uses the story of Thomas Edison to reframe progress: not as one perfect breakthrough, but as a steady practice of continuing to try. Behind the famous light bulb moment is a mindset of learning from what doesn’t work, building momentum through small improvements, and staying in motion long enough for your next step to appear.You’ll hear five practical lessons—be systematic, don’t do it alone, keep improving, apply what you learn across areas, and rest (yes, naps count)—plus a bonus insight on the tension between creativity and control. If you’re working on a project, a habit change, or a long-shot goal, this conversation is an invitation to get unstuck by taking the next try.Get unstuck by focusing on the next controllable stepMake progress through iteration—small wins that compound over timeKeep going with support, structure, and restCreate more, control lessThe Life of Try is a personal growth and self‑help podcast about getting unstuck, navigating uncertainty, and choosing to try—even when it’s uncomfortable, inconvenient, or not your idea.Hosted by Wynne Leon, the show explores how real growth, reinvention, and discovery often begin not with confidence or clarity—but with a single attempt. Through thoughtful interviews, reflective conversations, and real‑world case studies, each episode examines what it looks like to keep going when doubt shows up, plans fall apart, or life forces a change you didn’t ask for.This podcast is for anyone who:Feels stuck or uncertain about what’s nextIs navigating change, burnout, or reinventionWants to live more intentionally without pretending growth is easyBelieves progress starts by trying—again and againThe Life of Try isn’t about hustle or perfection. It’s about learning as you go, surfacing what matters, and sharing what you discover along the way.If you’re ready to surf the uncertainty, outlast the doubts, and step into your own try‑cycle, you’re in the right place.Links for this episode:From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison's Method for Progress show notesThe Genius of Patience: Five Lessons from Thomas Edison transcriptEdison by Edmund Morris Thomas Edison on WikipediaAfter the Super Bowl, Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald Kept Repeating 2 Words. It's a Lesson in How to Win on Inc.com
  1. 47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat)
  2. 46: The Quiet Transformation That Changes Everything
  3. 45: The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  4. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  5. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2

Links for this episode:

The Transformation That Changes Everything transcript

The Torchbearer: and other Stories of Borderline Redemption by Joseph Schmidt on Amazon

Joseph Schmidt bio – New York Insight Meditation Center

(featured photo from Pexels)

The Life of Try

Posted in thelifeoftryTagged , , , , , , 72 Comments

“Sometimes magic is just someone spending more time on something than anyone else might reasonably expect.” – Teller

In 44 episodes of producing the How to Share podcast, I realized that while I’m passionate about how to share, what I’m really interested is trying. Trying is a little upstream from sharing. We try experiments in our life, we learn, and then we share.

Trying feels right to me because matches my background as an engineer and consultant. Also, I see it in my kids as they develop new skills. And I’m fascinated by how we conduct experiments as foundational part of building confidence.

So I’ve spent some time reswizzling the podcast as The Life of Try – a podcast focusing on where innovation, reinvention, personal growth, and discovery begin with one simple choice: to try. Even when it’s uncomfortable. Even when you’d rather not. Even when life makes the decision for you.

The Life of Try will feature conversations with authors, scientists, athletes, researchers, coaches, and more to help inspire your personal try-cycle. And I’m debuting a brand-new segment—one that “reverse engineers” what world-class trying really looks like.

In this episode our case study is professional climber Alex Honnold, whose headline-making feats—from free soloing El Capitan in Yosemite to scaling the Taipei 101 Tower this January—offer a masterclass in what it takes to attempt the extraordinary.

I break down the real ingredients behind big outcomes: preparation, learning from others, and staying steady through setbacks—and how those same principles apply to the goals we’re chasing every day. Whether you’re gearing up to speak in public, throw a pitch, or learn a new song, you can borrow these lessons and put them to work in your own try-cycle.

This is The Life of Try.

Here’s a teaser clip that shows a bit of what I think is so compelling about Alex Honnold:

Here are some ways you can listen and watch this inspiring episode:

Please listen, watch, provide feedback and subscribe.

47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat) – The Life of Try: Personal growth, one try at a time.

Feeling stuck? This episode of The Life of Try uses the story of Thomas Edison to reframe progress: not as one perfect breakthrough, but as a steady practice of continuing to try. Behind the famous light bulb moment is a mindset of learning from what doesn’t work, building momentum through small improvements, and staying in motion long enough for your next step to appear.You’ll hear five practical lessons—be systematic, don’t do it alone, keep improving, apply what you learn across areas, and rest (yes, naps count)—plus a bonus insight on the tension between creativity and control. If you’re working on a project, a habit change, or a long-shot goal, this conversation is an invitation to get unstuck by taking the next try.Get unstuck by focusing on the next controllable stepMake progress through iteration—small wins that compound over timeKeep going with support, structure, and restCreate more, control lessThe Life of Try is a personal growth and self‑help podcast about getting unstuck, navigating uncertainty, and choosing to try—even when it’s uncomfortable, inconvenient, or not your idea.Hosted by Wynne Leon, the show explores how real growth, reinvention, and discovery often begin not with confidence or clarity—but with a single attempt. Through thoughtful interviews, reflective conversations, and real‑world case studies, each episode examines what it looks like to keep going when doubt shows up, plans fall apart, or life forces a change you didn’t ask for.This podcast is for anyone who:Feels stuck or uncertain about what’s nextIs navigating change, burnout, or reinventionWants to live more intentionally without pretending growth is easyBelieves progress starts by trying—again and againThe Life of Try isn’t about hustle or perfection. It’s about learning as you go, surfacing what matters, and sharing what you discover along the way.If you’re ready to surf the uncertainty, outlast the doubts, and step into your own try‑cycle, you’re in the right place.Links for this episode:From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison's Method for Progress show notesThe Genius of Patience: Five Lessons from Thomas Edison transcriptEdison by Edmund Morris Thomas Edison on WikipediaAfter the Super Bowl, Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald Kept Repeating 2 Words. It's a Lesson in How to Win on Inc.com
  1. 47-From Stuck to Momentum: Thomas Edison’s Method for Progress (Try, Learn, Improve, Repeat)
  2. 46: The Quiet Transformation That Changes Everything
  3. 45: The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study
  4. How to Share a Reimagined Sci-Fi Trilogy with Dr. Wayne Runde
  5. How to Share Advocacy with Sam Daley-Harris Part 2

Links for this episode:

The Life of Try: Alex Honnold Case Study transcript

⁠Free Solo: A National Geographic documentary⁠

⁠Alex Honnold Free Solo Climbs Tapei 101 Skyscraper⁠

(featured photo is of El Capitan and sourced from Pexels)