A fresh look at Abraham Maslow’s ‘hierarchy of needs’ offers wise guidance in these tumultuous times. It turns out that the pyramid of needs(below) was only created after Maslow’s death. He never imagined a ladder of needs that one climbs, but rather that our basic food, safety and belonging needs (and can we add strong WiFi?)...Read More
Take a rest. A field that is rested gives a beautiful crop OVID For these past few months, I’ve heard many complaints about how draining it is to work via video chat all day. Why is this so? It may be that it is harder to focus when looking at multiple people on a...Read More
“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.” — Carl Jung As we slog through the dog days of summer in the Northern Hemisphere, most of us are growing weary of living in a pandemic and our shaky, unknown future, with no solutions or end in...Read More
There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living. Nelson Mandela In January 2017, I met my brother John in California for a “Weekend with David Whyte.” As a...Read More
….what else matters besides being kind to ourselves and kind to others? As we mourn the violent murder of George Floyd and so many other innocent people of color, amidst a pandemic that is hitting black and brown communities hardest, we descend into an economic depression. Rage naturally erupts from these wretched injustices and lack...Read More
Many of us have experienced loss, grief, guilt, overwhelm, distress, and confusion in recent weeks. No two people are in the same situation and our world has become difficult, unpredictable and extreme. Some have more downtime; others are working more than they ever have. Here are two strategies to help us be our higher selves...Read More
The enormity of this global moment hits when we learn that in Jerusalem, the church of the Holy Sepulchre (above) had to close its doors due to a pandemic for the second time ever this week. The first time it was locked for this reason – using the same key – was in 1349, during...Read More
Our Life is What our Thoughts Make It Marcus Aurelius, 121AD- 180AD I recently began practicing stoicism—not to become an emotionless person, but to minimize negative emotions. Its antifragile or toughness-training. Even though the Stoics wrote their philosophy over 2,000 years ago–their wisdom is so relevant to our modern life. Who among us does...Read More
I have to let winter be winter. I recently learned that my cousin ended his own life. This brought on a wide range of difficult and conflicting feelings all in the same hour: bewilderment, guilt, anger, grief, powerlessness, nostalgia, blame. I am guessing he was at first reluctant to be here, then decisive–he could not...Read More
1. The Pile-On Is Too Hard: What we know about habit formation science is we can be most successful if we isolate one thing at a time. Getting fit and losing weight are entirely different domains. Best to start with one area and master it. Get the eating plan underway and laser focus on that...Read More
