Great to welcome you all back for another round of Uncommon Sense! And a hearty welcome to all of the new subscribers! Here is what we have in store for you with this issue.

Some months ago a Fortune 100 firm invited several of their star performers and a few of their consultants to deliver a TED Talk to their employees. As a consultant to this firm, I was honored to be one of the six so invited. That talk, titled “Helping Others Succeed,” was very well received, and I am happy to reprint it here in the Self-Development column for your edification.

We’ve had some very interesting news recently following Donald Trump’s ascent to the White House. After recruiting Elon Musk and his team of young wizards with unfathomable mastery of algorithms, this DOGE team has set out to see what’s under the hood in terms of how our government leaders in the recent past have been handling spending – and it’s not just eye-opening but mind-blowing. The Elephant in the Room column will share just a small fraction of the recent revelations unearthed by the DOGE team.

Although my talk titled “Helping Others Succeed” described above suggests a certain measure of generosity, sometimes such generosity comes with some challenges. The From Ara’s Journal column will explain.

And closing out the show is The World of Words column. Grab hold of the word therein, adapt it, use it, and come across as a man or woman of elegance while others admire your power of expression.

OK, let’s get started.

Ara Norwood