“God is in the details.”

“The devil is in the details.”

“The truth is in the details.”

“Success is in the details.”

Whatever you see as being in the details, it’s important to know which details matter.

The details upon which we fixate — how we judge them and the story we then tell — help create the foundation of who we are in this world.

Some saw an imperfect slab. A giant, but average-quality block of marble. A project that had been abandoned for a quarter century.

Michelangelo didn’t see it that way. In 1501, the 26-year-old sculptor saw what could be.

* * *

With which people do you choose to spend your time?

The kind who see a block of marble?

Or those who see David?

In many conference calls, I’ve heard a speaker stop to apologize, “Sorry for the background noise.” They usually mention something like children playing, dogs barking, or nearby construction.

In nearly every case, the speaker is the only one aware of the sound; none of it transmits over the call.

Two points here.

One, unless someone says, “We can’t hear you over the racket,” apologizing for noise isn’t necessary. Most of the time, background commotion is out of our control once the call begins.

Two, what we hear in our own environment is often louder than what others hear. Said another way — and more broadly — the noise that fills your head might be loud, but it’s not the same for others. Others have their own ears, their own heads, and their own noise.

“Count your blessings.”

It’s a nice thought. It’s a useful practice. But there’s more than just counting blessings.

Name them. Acknowledge them. Reflect upon them. Honor them. Share them.

Gratitude is many things, but it’s not a bookkeeping exercise.

It turns out that core exercises can improve posture and decompress the spine, potentially making you a little taller.

It’s an interesting idea, but it works even better as a metaphor.

Strengthen your core and you’re likely to stand a little taller.

So the question is: What’s at your core?

Of the material you read every day, how much do you underline? Or highlight? Or copy? Or save?

If little is worth noting — that is, marking for future reference or as a signal for you to commit it to memory — then what are you reading?

How much of a difference would it make if we read more things worth remembering?

I spent a few minutes trying to squeeze a window screen into place. I tried pushing, bending, prying. It was fractionally too big.

Then I realized that it shouldn’t be this hard; I must be doing it the wrong way.

So I fed the screen completely through the opening and tried securing it to the outermost side of the frame.

And it worked.

Sometimes we don’t need to struggle and force and deconstruct. Sometimes we just need another way in.

When we can’t modify the situation, we need to modify the way we see things.

Yesterday, at 50 years old, Phil Mickelson became the oldest golfer to win a major championship. (It was his sixth.) There are a lot of takeaways from his post-tournament interview.

While playing, he didn’t let himself think about the potential results. He stayed in the present. Stayed focused on the shot at hand. Didn’t let his mind race.

He shut out noise. Didn’t watch television. Wasn’t checking his phone. Tried to quiet things down.

Phil believed for a long time that he could play at a high level again, but he wasn’t executing the way he knew he could.

“Although I believed it, until I actually did it … there was a lot of doubt.”

An interviewer asked, “As age crept up, you never let that get in the way. How did you do that?”

Phil’s answer was immediate: “Worked harder.”

“I just had to work harder, physically, to be able to practice as long as I wanted to. And I’ve had to work a lot harder to maintain focus throughout a round.”

Throughout the interview, he gave credit to his caddie, his coaching team, and his wife. They supported him throughout his journey and never lost faith in him.

We’re all getting older, and we can all learn from Phil. Believe in yourself, even when the odds aren’t in your favor. Stay present and focused. Know the value of those who support you. And sometimes, in order to get what you want, you might have to work a little harder than you used to.

Ultra-marathoner Dean Karnazes writes, “Somewhere along the line we seem to have confused comfort with happiness.”

How accurate. So often, we seek comfort. But it’s not the same as happiness. And when we’ve made that mistake in thinking — and we layer comfort upon comfort — we ultimately find ourselves disappointed and wanting.

The comfort does not bring lasting happiness or satisfaction.

Struggle and discomfort serve a purpose. Leaning into that suffering — even deliberately challenging ourselves physically, mentally, and creatively — can lead to rewards that comfort cannot provide.

My wife playfully asked my kindergarten son, “When you get bigger, will you still give me hugs?”

He looked her in the eyes, replying as though the answer was quite obvious: “Yes. I’ll just give you bigger hugs.”

For however it translates to your life, let’s all try to keep giving bigger hugs.

There are a lot of details to consider. Mostly science and a little bit of art. But if things aren’t done properly, people will die.

Packing a parachute is a consequential operation.

Yet all that control is a set-up for a freefall — followed by a deployment and a more controlled descent.

Control and freedom. A balance of the two. A dance.

Sometimes process and constraint are exactly what set the stage for exhilarating freedom.

In the spirit of politeness and healthy boundaries, we’re careful to not overstep.

But that hesitation can be worth examining. Sometimes what we think is overstepping might just be speaking the truth. Or standing up for what’s right. Or giving good, welcome advice.

Overstepping can happen. But sometimes it’s not stepping over. Sometimes it’s stepping in the right direction.

* * *

In some situations, turning on the lights is just the thing to do. And while fresh light can bring clarity, there are times when the shift from darkness will be awkward and uncomfortable.

Just like waking up, it might take a moment for our eyes to adjust.

Many of the problems we have arise from choosing the wrong math operator in a given situation.

We add instead of subtracting.

Or we multiply instead of dividing.

Or we make another substitution.

Do we have a default choice? Is it skewing our decisions?

Next time you think “I need more of x” take a moment to consider whether “less of y” is a better option.

I used to think the phrase “First Annual” was silly.

If it’s the first, it’s the first; there’s nothing annual about it … yet.

But I’ve come to appreciate the optimism that’s baked into a “first annual” event.

When an event is billed as a first-annual, its organizers are saying, “We believe in this idea so much, we’re already planning to make it happen every year.”

I like that.

Go ahead. Lean forward.

Plan something worth repeating.

Beautiful, ex officio.

Capable, ex officio.

Creative, ex officio.

Remarkable, ex officio.

You’re a human, and that brings along with it a wealth of positive attributes.

Knowing who you are is important. Knowing what that means is even better.

Steph Curry misses shots; he’s not 100 percent.

But his team doesn’t ask him to stop taking shots just because he misses a few.

No. They ask him to keep taking shots.

* * *

You’re not going to succeed every time. You’re not always going to win. You might even go through a slump. But note the word: through a slump. You don’t end there.

Keep taking shots.

Maybe you’ve heard the phrase: Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight.

Well, don’t bring tentative brush strokes to a big, blank canvas.

Don’t bring a whisper to an expansive stage.

Don’t bring tenuous hopes to a fresh season.

And don’t bring small dreams to your bright future.

Be bold. Be confident. (And try to avoid actual gunfights when possible.)

While our voice is always ours, it’s not always the same. In writing and in speaking, we get to choose the version we call upon.

The voice of the counselor is not the same as the storyteller.

The announcer is not the same as the lover.

The supervisor is not the same as the friend.

The exact style doesn’t quite matter as much as, “What does this remind me of?”

When the voice we choose rhymes with the wrong genre, it can be at the expense of our effectiveness … or at worst, it can communicate the opposite of what we intend.

We have options. Choose thoughtfully.

Usage of the word “hereby” has declined over the past 100 years. Probably a good thing.

But there’s value in its meaning: by this statement or action.

Since we’re forward-leaning and optimistic, we often talk about plans for the future. And yet there are some things that can be made so just by beginning.

No waiting. No stalling. Making the change happen now.

Are you bold enough to take any “hereby” actions today?

I had a heavy piece of equipment delivered to the workshop yesterday. The driver used a hand cart to bring it from the truck to the door, but that’s as far as the cart could go. We had to move it by hand from there.

As I lifted one side, the driver said, “Let’s slide it.”

Dragging and pushing the 350-lb. box was a bit easier, but I liked the idea of lifting because it was quieter, frictionless, and more controlled.

I did it his way.

Afterwards, I thought about it. For me, this was a one-time event. I was excited about the arrival of a tool, and I wouldn’t mind some heavy lifting to get the thing through the door.

For the driver, it was different. He had a half-dozen deliveries that day … like every day. Lifting — even for just a few feet — is risky. Lifting is harder. Lifting isn’t a long-term strategy. For him, sliding works better. It’s a sustainable method.

This delivery was a good lesson in seeing one of the many differences between, “I’m doing this today,” and, “I do this every day for a living.”

Over-and-over will often call for a different approach than once-and-done.