Dear Friends,

My daughter, Jackie, and I were in a recent conversation about her work and that conversation inspired today’s Monday Morning Mojo.

I have always believed, in working and managing many different types of people, there are not good and bad staff. Throughout the years I emphasized to my leadership team it was the role of a manager to help find the right fit for their team members, roles that played to the employee’s strengths. No one colleague was great at everything and spending time on the “right fit” was an important managerial task.

I’m sharing this because there could be no better role for my daughter than working in television. The fact that she gets to work in, and around, television could not be a better fit. She was describing two of the shows she does publicity for and her love for what she does warmed my heart. I have always preached to my kids “If you do something you love, you will never work a day in your life,” and I believe my children have taken that to heart.

The conversation with Jackie encouraged me to share ten television series favorites from me and people in my circle.

My favorite television show in the past year I watched regularly was “This Is Us.” I loved the focus on family, the writing and all the characters. If you have brothers and sisters, and family is important to you, this is a great watch.

My wife, Lisa, loved Jackal, the story about an elite sniper, a master of disguise and a highly trained killer. The Jackal is an assassin, coldly carrying out hits for a fee. Following an attack on a high-profile and notorious politician, he’s offered his riskiest job yet, one that could pay him enough to leave this life for good. Lisa loved the mystery and action this series provided. Should I be worried?

I should mention Lisa and Jackie are now watching and enjoying Ben Stiller’s Severance, a science fiction thriller about office workers whose memories of their personal and work lives have been surgically separated.

Outside of her work, Jackie prefers Superstore, an American sitcom that ran on NBC from 2015 to 2021, that follows employees at a fictional big-box store in St. Louis, Missouri. Jackie said she loves the humor in this show, and how it depicts real people in real-life circumstances. She also loved “Nobody Wants This,” a show about an agnostic sex podcaster and a newly single rabbi who fall in love; discovering if their relationship survives their wildly different lives and meddling families.

Samuel, my son, chose Shōgun as his recommendation. Shōgun is a historical fiction television series about the collision of worlds in 1600 Japan. Samuel says he liked this because of its acting, the writing and the history lessons embedded in the show.

Dana, my sister, has been raving about Lioness, a show she is watching with her husband. Lioness is a TV series on Paramount+ about a CIA operative who works in the war on terror. The show stars Zoe Saldana as Joe, a female undercover operative who befriends the wives and daughters of targets. Dana said she loves the action and how the show features “badass” women.

My neighborhood friend, Josh Huang, who is my dog-walking partner, liked White Lotus. In its second season, White Lotus is an American black comedy drama anthology television series created by HBO. The series follows the exploits of the guests and staff during a week spent at a beautiful, luxury global resort hotel chain in Koh Samui, Thailand. Josh said he liked this because of its drama, and it exposes both the good and bad parts of humanity in an interesting way.

My good friend, Christian Olsen, a renowned expert in the art of television binge-watching, highly recommends Man on the Inside for those in search of classic, feel-good entertainment. If you’re in the mood for something more serious, like Samuel, Lisa and Jackie, he suggests Shōgun and Severance. And, similar to Josh, he is now eagerly anticipating White Lotus Season 3, but, he says he will wait until more episodes are available. After all, advises Christian, “why sip when you can binge?”

And, number 10, if you have the time: Shrinking.

Lisa and I just finished two seasons of Shrinking, which follows a grieving therapist who starts to break the rules and tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge, tumultuous changes to people’s lives … including his own. This show evokes many emotions, and the writing is great.

Author Note: We do a lot more than watch TV in the Kronick household :-). However, television has been a source of inspiration for us and I wanted to share with you some of our favorites.

Finally, if you are really bored, I had the great honor of speaking about my career in China on a friend’s podcast. This is lengthy and way too much about me, but it was a fun experience and for those who shared similar China experiences, this may be a good way to put you to sleep at night. That Podcast is here and thanks Ryan Pyle for the invitation.

Have a great month ahead and thanks for being part of this community.