Author Anthony Panariello

Leaders Eat Last

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 Simon Sinek’s “Leaders Eat Last” is about how good leaders prioritize the well-being of their team. He uses the metaphor of a tribe, where leaders historically made sure everyone got fed before they did. This idea applies to today’s workplaces, where great leaders create a safe and supportive environment, looking out for their team’s needs first. It’s not just about giving orders but fostering a sense of trust and loyalty that boosts productivity and morale.

Here are the key takeaways from Simon Sinek’s “Leaders Eat Last”:

  • Create a Circle of Safety: Leaders should prioritize creating a safe and trusting environment where team members feel secure and supported.
  • Serve Others: True leadership involves serving the needs of others, ensuring their well-being and growth come first.
  • Build Trust: Trust is foundational. Leaders who build trust foster stronger relationships and higher performance.
  • Embrace Empathy: Understand and care about the personal challenges and aspirations of your team members.
  • Lead with Integrity: Act consistently with your values and principles, setting a positive example for others.
  • Encourage Growth: Foster an environment where individuals can develop and contribute their best talents.
  • Promote a Sense of Belonging: Cultivate a culture where everyone feels valued and included, enhancing collaboration and morale.
  • Focus on the Long Term: Successful leadership looks beyond short-term gains to sustainably achieve goals and create lasting impact.

These principles emphasize the importance of putting people first and nurturing a supportive workplace culture for long-term success.

(summary created with the help of AI)

I picked this book because I was promoted into a leadership role and I wanted to read as many leadership books as I could to help me develop my ‘style’ of leadership. I understand that there will be trial and error – especially with some of the against the grain recommendations Sinek makes in this book. I’m actually a pretty big fan of his – his TED talk ‘start with why’ really resonated with me and helped me pivot my career so I was excited to take on some of his books to see if he had any other insights I could leverage.

The ideas of this book are pretty simple – treat your employees like people – not resources on a spreadsheet. That intrinsic motivation will generate better results that authoritarian management. This resonated with me as I’ve had great managers and really BAD managers in my career so I was determined that if I ever led people I would strive to be a great manager. I’m just starting out but applying some of these methods has resulted in amazing productivity and my staff seems very happy to work on my team.

There’s a few more of Sinek’s books that I want to work through – but this is a good start and I heartily recommend it to anyone looking to up their management skills.

City Lights

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Category: Silent Film, Comedy

Starring: Charlie Chaplin

Another Chaplin movie (a lot of his seem to make most ‘best movie’ lists and I can start to see why.  In this particular one he reprise the role of the tramp and the movie opens with him taking a nap under a tarp that is later revealed to be a statue that is having a big unveiling.  The usual slapstick shenanigans happen and he eventually escapes the authorities. He then meets a flower girl who is selling flowers and is instantly smitten.

As he’s leaving the flower girl hears a fancy car with a chauffeur and thinks it’s the tramp. Later that night the tramp is down by the water and he sees someone trying to kill themselves. He saves them from the attempt and it turns out the guy’s a millionaire and he takes the tramp back to his house to keep the party going. The guy’s a complete lush and when the tramp asks him for money to buy more flowers from the flower girl he peels off a few from a fat stack and sends him on the way telling him to take his car – a very nice Rolls Royce.

The thing is – the millionaire only really remembers the tramp when he’s hammered – once he’s sober he is a cruel and abrupt stereotype of a 1920’s tycoon.  It’s something that is repeated a few times with the millionaire who always seems to find the tramp when he’s sauced out of his mind.

Meanwhile the tramp keeps visiting his blind girl and one day she isn’t at her usual street corner. He eventually tracks her down and finds out that she is ill, so he keeps her company by reading her a newspaper. One of the articles is about a doctor who has a procedure to restore sight – the girl smiles and said it’d be wonderful because then she can see him. The tramp knowing he’s pretending to be rich and is aware of his looks isn’t enthused with this idea. However, as he’s leaving he finds an eviction notice and realizes her family is getting kicked out of the apartment.   Determined to help her he decides to get the money to pay her back rent.

The problem is he’s visited the blind girl too many times and the foreman fires him. One of his buddies ropes him into a fixed fight to make some cash but the crooked boxer takes off because the police are coming the his replacement is a giant of a man with murder in his eyes.  A comical drawn out boxing match happens which includes the tramp hitting the boxer with a shovel, the boxer punching the police, and general mayhem. However, the boxer eventually beats the tramp and he goes away without the money needed for the girl.

It’s at this time that the millionaire rolls up on the tramp, three sheets to the wind, and invites him to party (again). They have a good time and the tramp asks if he can give him the money for the girl. The rich guy says sure – and all seems to be solved, except that at that moment burglars break into the house and rob it – with the tramp making his getaway by running from the police (something he does quite frequently, to be honest)

Knowing that it’s a matter of time he runs to the girl and gives her the money – telling her that he’ll see her “in a while” shortly after the police find and arrest him. A while later he gets out of prison and goes to her street corner, only to find her gone.  One day as he’s walking down the street he looks in a store window and there she is! She runs a florist shop now and her sight has been restored! He nervously starts to approach but some newsboys who have taken a dislike to him start harassing him and she sees it through the window. She offers him a coin and a flower and when she touches his hand she realizes who he is and they share a smile.

4/5 – At this point the whole tramp gets the girl thing seems to have been done this is just another angle on it. The deranged millionaire was pretty funny and the slapstick bits are pretty consistent and humorous. Chaplin’s ability to express emotion without words is without peer and I can see why he dominated the silent film industry and his fame endures to this day.

NJ Devils vs Tampa Lightning

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Final Score: Lightning 4, Devils 1

Great seats by the glass gave us a great view – but unfortunately the Devils seemed listless and uninspired – the goals that the Lightning scored were pretty straightforward – right through the defense (well, including one open net goal in the waning minutes).  I always like the vibe in the Prudential center – the crowds are always into the game and there’s lots of things going on when there’s breaks (like contests, t-shir cannons, etc.)  and since I had the kids with me that was important as they were starting lose interest in the game (to be honest, so was I)

The food was pretty good as well – plenty of options for the kids (chicken fingers for the win!) and the drinks are reasonably priced. However – when compared to MSG (which I visited shortly after) the Prudential came across as sparse – lots of empty space and the food options were pretty much the same at each station (I think they funnel almost everyone into the Fire and Ice Lounges). Most of the concession stands were closed which made for an odd dissonance between the raucous full arena and all the areas right outside. It’s a shame as there’s plenty of opportunity to do something like MSG where restaurants rent the space in the arena and provide a diverse selection of food and drinks. 

Overall it was a positive experience – the kids first pro hockey game they seemed to have an enjoyable time. The traffic and parking was not overly bad – it’s a shame they couldn’t bring us a win. They finished next to last in the division even with some promising stars on the roster (Hughes) – here’s hoping they get it straightened out for next season!

Citizen Kane

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Category: Drama
Starring: Orson Welles

Widely considered one of the greatest movies of all time it was hard to go into this fresh as the move has entered and somehow stayed in the zeitgeist (Rosebud is a classic example) and I have seen this movie before a very very long time ago, so it wasn’t like I was going into it blind. That being said – Welle’s acting is magnetic and draws you into whatever character he’s playing – and the film, even with it’s 1930’s sensibilities, is eminently watchable.

The movie starts with Kane as an old man on his deathbed in a palatial estate called Xanadu – he’s holding a snow globe and as he shuffles off this mortal coil he mutters a single last word “Rosebud” – setting up the mystery of why this great man would choose that as his last words. It’s such a mystery that a newspaper assigns an investigative reporter to do a story on Kane which sets up the framework of the movie.

The reporter (Thompson) tries to talk to Kane’s ex wife – a bitter alcoholic who refuses to speak to anyone about him. He then investigates Kane’s business manager’s office and reads some old records showing how Kane came into his fortune and how he squandered it.

It starts with Kane as a child. His parents have a mining claim that is producing and they arrange for him to go to a boarding school and have his money managed by the aforementioned business manager. When they went to send him off to boarding school – he hits them with the sled he was happily riding before the family broke apart.

When Kane turned 25 he got access to the money and responsibly and sensibly invested it using sound strategies to grow his portfol.. Ahh who are we kidding he wasted almost the entire fortune with poor decisions on booze, news, and flooze(ies).  He buys a newspaper and immediately goes full Murdoch – building influence and power through the press. He marries the niece of the president and seems like he’s riding high.

He decides to run for political office (well that sounds familiar) and during his run he meets a woman (Susan) and begins a torrid affair. He is discovered and because this isn’t 2024 the affair ruins his political career (and marriage). Kane, determined to prove his choice to have an affair was a good one, pushes poor lounge singer Susan into singing opera.  She.. Doesn’t have the vocal range for opera and even though she tells him this he blithely ignores here and builds an entire opera house for her debut – which was as awful as you imagine it was.  Kane’s best friend Leland who runs the arts column for their paper, writes a scathing review of Susan and the opera and Kane finds the review before print and fires Leland but then for some reason publishes the poor review

The reported manages to convince Susan to speak to him and she tells him that she begged him not to have to continue, but Kane makes her and eventually they have a big enough argument that Kane strikes Susan and she leaves him. He’s finally all alone – having driven away everyone who cared for him.

Thompson speaks to the butler who confirms the incident and say Kane went into a rage and only calmed down when he grabbed a snow globe.. At which point he whispers ‘rosebud’

Then the famous ending – where they’re going through his things and burning some of it (I’m not really sure why) and as the camera pans the pile of detritus you see a sled with the name ‘rosebud’ on it.

5/5 – great movie.. Deserves it’s flowers. Welle’s acting is superb and the story (apparently loosely based on Randolph Hurst) is compelling and keeps you interested. I liked the bittersweet ending where you can’t help but feel that Kane is longing for the time in his life when he was truly happy – riding that sled in the snow before his parents sent him away.

Pan Pizza (Pizza Hut Clone)

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I’ve always had a special place in my stomach for Pizza Hut Pizza. It was a focal part of my childhood. We’d go a couple of time a month to the one the next town over and get some delicious bread sticks and pizzas with the family and it was always a great time full of laughter and great pizza (I swear to you, in the 80’s the pizza there was fire). Sometimes if there was a wait my brother and I would drop a quarter or two into the ninja turtles game in the lobby until our table is ready. It’s a core memory from my childhood and one I’d like to replicate (food wise at least – I have the ninja turtles game in my arcade cabinet so I can play that whenever I want!)

The problem is Pizza Hut has gone downhill. The last few times I tried the pizza there is was a pan full of disappointment. They changed the dough recipe and the sauce and are using some weird cheese and the entire texture and taste is way off from what it used to be. So that’s why I’m determined to crack the code on replicating that 80’s Pizza Hut pie.

All that being said – this wasn’t it. I mean.. it was still a good pizza and the dough was flaky and buttery but the sauce and cheese just didn’t hit like I expected. Time to go back to the drawing board – one day I’ll recreate that 80’s nostalgia bomb – and when I do I’ll fire up a game of ninja turtles first to complete the experience.

DOC Margherita Pizza

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The first thing I did when I got back from Italy was try to recreate the pizzas I had when I was in Naples. It was amazing. Crispy crust that was soft inside with fresh vibrant tomato sauce and buffalo mozzarella, topped with basil, olive oil and fired in a 900 degree oven. I had three pizzas in three different popular spots and they all were delicious but the one I had the first night was cooked perfectly and really set the tone for my pizza tour of the greater Naples area.

I got some authentic 00 pizza flour, imported San Marzano tomatoes, and buffalo mozzarella and set to work. I mixed the dough entirely by hand (gentleness is key) and then let it sit for 48 hours in the fridge to let the yeast to their work. Once it came to room temp it opened up like a dream and I quickly dressed the pie and threw it in a piping hot Ooni Koda 16. 90 seconds later I pulled out this beauty and threw on a few more basil leaves and let it sit on a rack for a minute or two (to let the steam escape so it doesn’t get soggy)

It was.. just like I remembered from Italy. Sweet tomato base, tangy cheese and a perfect char on the pie. I tore into it and I say this without shame.. I ate the entire thing.

Hiking Mount Vesuvius

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This was a bucket list item for me. My family is from Torre Del Greco, a small town near Naples and the Volcano is ever present and I’m fascinated by the history of Pompeii and Herculaneum (well the Roman empire in general – yes, I do think of them several times a day!) and I’ve always wanted to climb the volcano and look over the bay of Naples.

This year I finally got my family aligned to go for a visit and it was an amazing week (to be told in another post) but the volcano itself really is omnipresent. Everywhere you look there’s lava rock and the rich volcanic soil that generate the famous San Marzano tomatoes.

We drove up to the summit and found out that you actually need a reservation to hike to the very top. Very disappointing. We tried to get some of the day-of spots but they sold out instantly once they dropped every 10 minutes. After two days of trying to score a ticket to the summit we pivoted and decided to hike the ‘River of Lava’ a trail created when the volcano last erupted. It was a winding trail that climbed up the side of the mountain with so many wildflowers and butterflies that it was like were were in another world.

At the end of the hike through the forest the trail opened up to the river of lava itself – a vast swath of black lava rock that showed the devastation the volcano brought when it erupted in the 1940s. As I walked along the lava rocks I was surrounded by so many wildflowers it was like out of a painting. I stood at the top of the trail on an outcropping of rock and overlooked the bay of Naples – and it was one of the most beautiful natural vistas I’ve ever seen.

So while I didn’t get to summit the volcano (next time – its easier if you reserve in advance and I bet my kids would love it) I still got to hike up the side of this historic volcano and hold 2000 year old lava rocks in my hands and achieve a dream I had for a very long time.

Grain Free – not the life for me.

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But Tony, you’re Italian! What are you doing? What about the pizza? The Pasta? The Bread?! There’s no way you can pull this off!

That’s what I thought when I started. Just two weeks, I told myself. You can do this! The first few days were absolute torture but I persevered and about four days in it was.. fine. It was compounded by my not eating sugar either so my dietary choices were somewhat limited as I don’t like seafood so I ate a lot of chicken, eggs, and beef. The funny thing about eating like a supposed ‘carnivore’ was that it was very filling and I found that my appetite was basically zeroed out and I had to force myself to eat sometimes as I just wasn’t hungry.

In fact the lack of variety ended up being a benefit as I just ate the same few things over and over making it easy to prepare and plan for – lots of scrambled eggs, burgers on almond buns, and sausage and peppers. In fact I went a bit stricter than what was called for as I also didn’t eat fruit to keep the sugars (even natural ones) low. It ended up being a low carb situation which is fine for managing hunger but it’s a real pain in the energy department. I tried playing basketball or hitting the gym and it was brutal. Since low carb means you shed water I ended up parched during workouts and guzzling water like a man who was lost in the desert for a week.

What did work? The weight loss. Now, I realize 50% of it was probably water but it still was pretty effective. So much so that I ended up doing it for 21 days preparing for my trip to Italy. That’s right baby I went low carb right before heading to the motherland of carbs.

So yeah,I gained 1/2 the weight back during my week in Italy but hey – la dolce vita, si? That being said, I really wasn’t doing it for weight loss only I wanted to see how I felt without grain in my diet and I will say that the biggest thing I noticed was my focus improved substantially. I was able to keep on task and keep things in my short term memory longer than before.

So overall I saw some benefits, but not enough to give up three of my favorite food groups (Pizzas, Pastas, Sandwiches). It was an interesting experiment and I’m glad I tried it but it’s really not something that is sustainable for me.

Butternut Squash and Manchego Pizza

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This pizza has been in my rotation for a few years. The genesis of it was a bunch of leftover butternut squash mash I made for the baby. I looked at it and said ‘wait, I bet this would be good on a pizza’. Due to the inherent sweetness of the squash I know I needed a bold salty cheese to punch through and balance it out. I had a block of manchego cheese in the fridge – grated it on the squash threw it in the oven and pulled out an amazing pie. Finish it with a drizzle of hot honey and you’ve got Tony’s squash pizza.

The Kid – 1921

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Charlie Chaplin

Silent Movie / Comedy – 1921

3/5 stars

This one starts with an ingénue who has a baby but the father isn’t interested (doesn’t believe it’s his? Who knows with silent movies) so she is desperate to keep her career so she does the unthinkable and abandons the baby in a rich person’s car hoping he can have a better life (leaving a note asking for someone to care for this orphan child).However – the car is promptly stolen by two thugs who race off in the car only to pull over when the baby starts crying – one thug waves the gun at the baby and suggests (via body language) maybe we should you know.. Shoot it? The other thug who isn’t a complete sociopath decides to leave the baby in an alley (arguably an equally poor solution) where Chaplin’s tramp happens to live.

Chaplin stumbles across the baby and tries to leave it but his conscious won’t let him neither will the police officer who patrols the slums. He tries to put the baby in passing mother’s carriage but that backfires as she catches him in the act and Chaplin goes back into his hovel unsure what to do.

5 years pass and they’ve fallen into a  poverty riddled routine where the kids breaks a window with a rock and Chaplin walks around as a window repairman  and they scrape together enough to maybe buy some food (although seeing a coin operated gas meter was illuminating) – all during this time the mother becomes a famous wealthy actress who tries to atone for her guilt by running a charity for children where she unwittingly interacts with her own child – and she gives him a small toy to cheer him up.

The trouble began when a local bully stole the toy and the kid wasn’t taking that shit and threw down like a champion. They got into a proper brawl and the whole hood showed up for the show (not much else going on tbh) – the kid is whopping the bully’s ass but then the bully’s gigantic dad shows up and tells Chaplin if he kid loses he’s going to curb stomp him so Chaplin tries to throw the fight and pronounce the bully the winner but the kid has the heart of a lion and drops the bully with a tyson-esque combo (in reality he looked like Yoda fighting during the clone was) then Gigantor comes for Chaplin but he manages to avoid his punches for a while until he grabs a brick and starts going full mason on the bully’s dad’s forehead.. Eventually goliath falls and they escape back to their hovel.

Shortly afterward the kid gets sick and his mother (still unknowingly) arranges for a doctor to visit – where Chaplin explains that the kid isn’t his and shows the doctor the note. The doctor arranges for an orphanage to kidnap the kid forcefully which honestly is a traumatic scene to watch as a father which sets off a wacky rooftop chase scene where Chaplin rescues the kid and they hide out in a flophouse to figure out what to do. However, during this the mom met with the Dr. who showed her the note Chaplin had and she realizes that the kid is hers! What are the odds! She puts out a 1,000 dollar reward for his return

The owner of the flophouse sees the reward in the paper and grabs the kid to turn him in for the money and when Chaplin wakes up the kid is gone (again, nightmare fuel for dads) and he frantically searches for him before giving up and falling asleep at the door of his hovel which kicks off an LSD fueled fever dream where the people in his neighborhood are devils and angels and he’s flying around doing.. uhh.. I’m not sure. He’s awaken by the police and he thinks he’s going to jail but he’s actually brought to the mansion of the mother who then lets him in (presumably to reunite with the kid)

Fun fact: The actor who played the kid was uncle Fester in the Addams Family TV series!

Not Fun fact: This movie was written shortly after lost a son in childbirth – making is especially poignant.

Really not fun fact: The kid was conceived on a very young actress and Chaplin married her to avoid the scandal and was divorced shortly after – then he did it AGAIN with the girl who played the angel in THIS movie knocking her up at 16. Yikes.