Who do you trust? In Erik Erikson’s eight stages of human development, the first foundational one is about “basic trust.” He focused on trust and mistrust of the outer world (especially the people in it), and to be sure this is important. Yet often what looks like “the world is untrustworthy” is at bottom “I […]

You have so many opinions. And you suffer so much from them. Why not let them go?” Ajahn Chah We have been talking about mindfulness — what it means, why it is important, and how to achieve it. One of the ways to achieve it is to cultivate a “beginner’s mind”, also known as the […]

Patience is not passive waiting. Patience is active acceptance of the process required to attain your goals and dreams.” ~ Ray Davis      We need to have patience to learn something new. Learning how to be mindful is no different. Our minds want to think — constantly! They are designed to do that. We […]

Whether we do it consciously or unconsciously, we all make judgments of ourselves and others. But, if we do so often, it can become a habit, and there are ways in which we can all benefit by being less judgmental. Judgments are instilled in us practically from the day we are born. It is part […]

What is on your mind right now?  Are you thinking about something that happened yesterday or last week? Are you rehearsing for an important conversation you will have tomorrow? I took a course titled “Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction” (MBSR) twice – in 2007 and again in 2010. The Program was delivered over 8 weeks at […]

Einstein’s equation is simple. The understanding and application of it is what is complex. And simple is not the same as “easy”. If it were easy, there would be no suffering in the world, right? I am writing this article to bring some clarity to this conundrum. The Buddha taught that life is suffering, but […]

There are many explanations for WHY people get depressed. Those explanations can be helpful from a rational perspective, but depression isn’t rational, is it? In April 2017, I wrote an article titled, “Dealing With Depression”, and asserted the statement above. In that article, I listed some ways to deal with depression, but I didn’t tell […]

  Pause and celebrate your personal progress. Then set your sights on your next goal. ~  Sara Coughlin https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/author/sara-coughlin For many people this time of year is one of the busiest, and in the midst of that, our world has completed another cycle around the sun. Do you acknowledge or celebrate the Winter Solstice? What […]

The smallest change in perspective can transform a life. What tiny attitude adjustment might turn your world around? ~ Oprah Winfrey You have heard this all before, I’m sure, but it bears reminding ourselves from time to time that if we were just to change our perspective on a situation, we would change our actions and […]

I get nervous if I don’t have a plan. My ego starts freaking out. Does that happen to you? If it does, you and I both need to heed the words of Mandy Hale in the quote for this blog: You don’t always need a plan. Sometimes you just need to breathe, trust, let go, […]