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

For many people, holidays bring up a wide range of old and new emotional pain.  One client of mine is spending time with a relative in active addiction; another is facing a belligerent parent.   It can be helpful to have some tools at-the-ready when dealing with our most difficult family members.  Rather than avoid, attack...Read More

“What you seem to be, be really. ― Ben Franklin, 1744 1. Buy candy you hate. 2. Place all consumed wrappers in a glass bowl 3. Give out non-candy items  such as  cowbells/whistles/play dough/tattoo/stickers/Glowsticks etc 4. Remind self that fun size is adult size after 3 of them. 5. Decide to become the kind of...Read More

Friendship is one of life’s most important healthy pleasures, and one too often taken for granted. A Harvard study found that having no friends (or feeling lonely) is as deadly as smoking, suggesting we ought to pay more attention to who we surround ourselves with. The theory of Dunbar’s Number posits that 150 is the number of perpetually changing...Read More