General

What makes someone become an entrepreneur?  For me, one of the greatest influences I had growing up was my dad. My dad was, and still is, self-employed. This career choice had both pros and cons for us as a family, but as a kid, I saw a lot more of the pros than the cons.…

When Satchel Paige was younger, he was so good that he could throw a fastball and knock out a lit cigarette from a man’s mouth without knocking his head off. He was clocked throwing the ball at 103 mph. He guaranteed teams that paid him that he would strike out the first nine batters or…

Dear Oliver,   It was one year ago today that you and I both completed the Ironman 70.3 in Hawaii. Even though I was initially fearful and reluctant, you encouraged me that we could do it together. You believed in me even more than I believed in myself. In the end, it was a defining…

The Real Life Importance of Making Your Bed  Routine, routine, routine, creates reinforcement, reinforcement, reinforcement! At this point, I’ll stop being this ridiculously redundant for the rest of this section and trust that you get the point, but seriously… This is why fad diets don’t work, gym participation tapers off in February, and relapses most…

The Power of “Positive Expectancy”  The key to achieving Big Dreams is to never lose faith in oneself. One can do this by using and leveraging the self-fulfilling prophecy to challenge oneself to live up to their own, self-appointed reputation.   For example, take the story of the teacher and the locker numbers. The story…

I’m part of a Facebook group for Therapists in Private Practice. For the most part, I enjoy the group and its conversations. There are times, however, when someone posts something that stings me to my core. The following is an example of just such post…   Unnamed Clinician: “So, after having an invigorating conversation with…

Be Complementary, Not Adversarial   No long-term relationship is without conflict. Conflict in a relationship, however, is not necessarily always a bad thing. Indeed, you don’t have to agree on everything to have a healthy, happy relationship. This is particularly true if the disagreeing viewpoints complement or challenge each other and lead to greater levels…

Having the same standards is tough sometimes. For example, if you can go out for drinks with friends and stay out as late as you want, you better be willing to feel comfortable with your partner doing the same. If, however, you’d want your spouse at home with you each night and checking in periodically,…

In 1986, Gottman performed a study that was later dubbed, “The Seattle Love Lab Study.” In this study, observed and interviewed various newlywed couples and then put them into two categories: The Masters – who he predicted would make it, and the Disasters – whose marriages he predicted would likely fail.   In making his…

Let’s say your spouse is running late for dinner. You made the reservations and showed up on time. You’ve been sitting along for the better part of 20 minutes, and you notice yourself starting to feel irritated. In fact, you’re starting to stew. After sitting alone for 25 minutes, your spouse comes in looking flustered.…