The OptimalWork Podcast

#323: Two people can do equally excellent work—and be changed by it in completely different ways. What makes the difference? Kevin and Sharif explore how bringing love into a task transforms more than its outcome: it shapes the person doing it. Drawing on Aquinas’s account of prudence, they reveal why order means far more than organizing your desk or checking off tasks. A simple question—“Who is this for?”—can turn ordinary work into a daily practice of love, strengthening your capacity to serve others both at work and at home.Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

#322: A great plan can end with nothing changing. Kevin and Sharif explore the missing link between knowing what to do and actually doing it: command, the culminating act of prudence. Drawing on Aquinas, they distinguish three ways good intentions break down—never truly deciding, failing to start, and retreating when difficulties arise. They show how three questions can strengthen follow-through: Who will this benefit? What would excellence look like? What’s the hardest part? Along the way, they explain why love produces readiness to act—and how coaches can encourage growth without taking over.Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

#321: AI can produce better work in seconds—but what happens to the person doing the work? Kevin and Sharif explore the hidden cost of outsourcing challenges that build skill, judgment, and character. Drawing on Aquinas’s distinction between making and doing, they examine what separates AI assistance that supports growth from shortcuts that bypass it. From student essays to professional work, they show how AI can help people reflect, weigh options, and engage difficult tasks while preserving the thinking, choices, and effort through which they grow.Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

#320: What turns “I have to do this” into “I want to do this”—especially when the task is difficult? Kevin and Sharif explore how deeper judgment transforms an apparent loss into a worthwhile cost, and then into an opportunity to grow and serve others. From the pull of doomscrolling to the awkwardness of a difficult conversation, they show how urgency can bypass thoughtful decisions—and how reframing helps us see something worth choosing. Drawing on Aquinas’s account of prudence, they explain how to bring our highest ideals into everyday work, making the best path more attractive.Find more at https://OptimalWork.com

#319: Fear can make a difficulty seem insurmountable; desire can make getting what we want seem like all that matters. Kevin and Sharif explore how both can distort understanding and turn careful reasoning into rationalization. Drawing on Aquinas’s account of prudence, they connect everyday choices—from buying a car to putting off important work—to three questions that help restore perspective: Whose good is being served? What’s the hardest part? And what would real excellence look like here?Find more at https://OptimalWork.com