Shawn Smith Jr. in glasses and a trench coat, standing in a Dumbo street with the Manhattan Bridge behind him, in black and white

About

Shawn Smith Jr.

Founder of PonderOn. I build resilience and perspective through community, and I focus on people, not just systems.

Who I am

I'm the founder of PonderOn. My background is in healthcare operations and data, and I live in the Elmira-Corning area of New York. My work spans the United States and Japan, and I write in both English and Japanese.

What I write about

Leadership, workplace culture, and what happens to people when either goes wrong. I've written about the difference between being nice and being kind, about bullying that comes from the top, and about how perspective grows after plans stop going the way you expected.

PonderOn

PonderOn builds resilience and perspective through community, through events, sessions and writing. It is also building onHealth, which explains medical bills and insurance coverage in plain language.

What's coming

A podcast and merch are on the way. Sign up in the Podcast or Merch app to hear when each one opens.

Get in touch

Find me on LinkedIn.

  • Shawn in a camel trench coat and glasses on a Dumbo street, the Manhattan Bridge behind him
  • Shawn walking across the Brooklyn Bridge in a crowd, its stone tower and flag behind him
  • Shawn in profile on the Brooklyn Bridge, in black and white
  • Shawn in profile under the white ribs of the Oculus, in black and white
  • Looking straight up at a stone tower of the Brooklyn Bridge