When I was growing up, it was not uncommon if teachers or parents saw us sort of slouching down in our chair to say, “Sit up straight!” And I’m not exactly sure what they wanted more than making sure that we had good posture, but they may have been more right than they realized. There […]
advice, brain, posture, sit up straight
When you mention daily routines to most people, you’ll likely get reactions that are polar opposite. There are people who love routines because they enjoy being organized and structured, and there are people who don’t like routines because they feel like it is inhibiting their freedom. I am more on the enjoying routines side of […]
advice, brain, ideas, oranization, routines
Years ago, I saw a wonderful James Thurber cartoon that shows a man holding a phone and yelling into it,” Well if I called the wrong number, why did you answer the phone?” And it captures so well when something bad happens that’s our fault, we can at times immediately blame the other person. I […]
advice, mindset, perspective, perspectives
In baseball, when a runner arrives at the bag at the same time as the ball, people in the stands will often yell,” The tie goes to the runner!” Meaning the runner should be safe… however, there is no such formal rule in baseball, and it’s the umpire’s job to decide if the runner is […]
advice, baseball, runner, tie
The mother of a friend of mine passed away recently and while making some arrangements, my friend was lamenting that she and her three siblings had drifted apart over the years. There wasn’t anything specific that happened, but due to the geography, and growing families, and work obligations, they rarely talked. My friend’s mother was […]
advice, cheesecake, connection, family
A riptide or rip current is a strong current moving away from the beach that can trap swimmers who are trying to swim to shore. In that situation, people often panic and try harder to swim against the tide. Lifeguards recommend that in that situation, what swimmers should do, is start swimming parallel to the […]
advice, lifeguard, riptide, tide
An article in a recent issue of Psychology Today noted that although we know the benefits of receiving a compliment, people are often reluctant to give one. The reason is people tend to underestimate the positive impact of the person we’re paying the compliment to. And people tend to overestimate that the person will be […]
advice, kind, kindness, sincerity
In Gabriel Garcia Marquez book “Love In the Time of Cholera”, the main character is frustrated in trying to give a box of chocolates to a love interest. He tries for months every day, and frustrated at his failure, he hands them to a complete stranger and says, “this is for a love going all […]
advice, book, love, no love wasted, quote
One of the most common questions people ask someone they are meeting for the first time is,” What do you do for work?” I suppose they ask because it’s sort of a safe question, isn’t considered intrusive, or too personal. If you think about the closest relationships you have in life though, it’s likely you […]
advice, connections, getting to know someone, questions
One of the amazing things about life is that if we want to make a change that will make us happier, we are the architects of change. We can change anything we wish, we’re fully in control of that. However, we all know that change can be difficult to achieve and maintain… and a friend […]
advice, Change, small change