James and Friends
How a pizza party led to Tiago Forte’s 2025 Annual Review
To hear the related 5-minute audio file that I uploaded today as my Morning Journal flash briefing for Alexa devices, please click on the play button:
Bates Buddies Give Me Hope for the Future
My grandson James, a freshman at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine, brought four friends home yesterday. I got an invite to the gathering, at my daughter Sarah’s and her husband Josh’s condo in Old Orchard Beach.
James’s friends are from all over—Iffat from India, Nokue from Zimbabwe, Evangeline from Ghana, and Marcel from Hungary. They are all wicked smart, as we say in Maine.
They talked about the Bates debate society, which James and Marcel are members of, the war in Gaza, the mixed legacy of Nelson Mandela, how the Lewiston Police gave James a ride back to the dorm after a long drive from a debate in New York City, and what they plan to major in.
What I recall most about the evening is the energy and optimism I saw in these five undergraduates. It lifted my spirits about the future.
In that mode, I decided this morning to register for an online workshop with Tiago Forte. It’s called the 2025 Annual Review, five sessions over six weeks in December and January.
I attended this event last year and got a lot out of it. Tiago helped us look back at the previous year to find themes and values to carry forward.
Today was the first day for registration, and Tiago is offering a discount of 50 percent for those who sign up by November 29. Even at half off, it’s pricey—$997 for the entire course.
As I write this, I am on my JetBlue return flight to Florida. I’m tired and not feeling as exuberant as I did when I recorded today’s Morning Journal. But I know the dose of energy I experienced having pizza with the Bates Buddies will last.
By the time they reach their 70s, a lot of the problems that are staring us in the face will have been solved or not.
I’m betting on the Class of 2029 to surprise us all.