Try "what are you feeling." A feeling isn't really a how anyway. By changing one word - it feels weird at first - you invite whomever you're talking to to recognize what they are feeling in that moment rather than just going through the social norm of how-are-you-I'm-fine-how-are-you.

(H/T to my dear friend Jared Cohen for this one.)

Then there was that time when I missed a week of writing.

I did not intend for this to happen.

But like a lot of stuff, one day turns into two days, and the next thing you know, you're completely off course.
I have been feeling somewhat like my brain is a washing machine. Like my mind is in a constant spin cycle.

I missed my daily posts. I missed the process of writing. I don't have any expectations over here other than to show up. Show up regularly and do the work. And the work, in this case, is getting into the habit of writing.

Cal Newport mentioned how he struggles to write at night because his brain is exhausted. Writing at night had been what I was been doing. I wouldn't call it an afterthought, but that got me thinking, "Maybe I should write in the daylight hours too." And today I am, but I think for now, for me, sitting down to write is the important piece of this puzzle.

So I'm going to pick up where I left off. Sharing whatever ideas and stories and whatnot that I think are worth sharing. Not all my thoughts are diamonds. But the ones that spark something in me might spark something in you, and that's what I'm looking to do here.

Onward.