Similar to most descriptions of human potential such as intelligence, productivity, academic potential and financial success, we place psychological wellness within a framework of the mentally ill vs. the mentally well. This hierarchal perspective tends to either keep folks trapped under the weight of pathological labels, or has us enduring the distress created by denial.…
Read MoreWe live in a society offering ongoing homage to images of heroism. Is our fascination with heroic gestures reflective of a desire to be victorious over death? Is it symbolic of our investment in winning? Do we actually believe that our goal is to conquer life? A propensity for being heroic typically denies personal limits,…
Read MoreWe easily translate our experience of security from feeling secure to being secure, when in fact they are quite different. Feeling secure is a fleeting sentiment guaranteeing very little, while being secure suggests something substantial and enduring. However, confusing the two tends to leave us feeling quite insecure. The things and events allegedly empowered with the ability to have us being…
Read MoreIf we think of beauty as the heart rejoicing in what it senses and feels, then there can be a vast amount of beauty in our experience of authentic belonging. We relinquish an opportunity for an experience of sublime belonging when we take refuge in anonymity. The challenge is to interrupt anonymity as an…
Read MoreAn old definition of the word belong is nearby. One implication is that we are motivated to bring our bodies, minds and hearts closer to a place, person or group when we experience belonging. Authentic belonging is accompanied by a comfort to reveal who we are. There is buoyancy to our experience of belonging when what we reveal…
Read MoreWe have come to believe that leadership is ultimately and mostly something that happens between people. It is a way we manage people. Beginning with such an exterior focus of leadership may be misleading. It may be that what we witness as leadership is implemented as an outcome of something more hidden and more interior.…
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Living in the present or the here and now has been an extremely popular axiom from nearly every spiritual tradition. Said this way, the present is a noun, a measure of time that we are better off living in. However, since each moment is so easily eclipsed by the next, it leaves us with some…
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The above quote by the 19th century Danish Philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard, was a reaction to his own times, likely, unaware of how prophetic the statement was. We are all aware of the popularity of a myriad of sedative substances, including alcohol, street drugs and pharmaceuticals. We may not have realized how fashionable it is to…
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Some Insight Into Integrity Describing someone as having integrity typically suggests that person exemplifies a life of decency and righteousness. The emotional component to our descriptions of someone as upright might simply be that we approve of that person’s actions. It may be helpful to deepen our understanding of integrity beyond a declaration of what…
Read MoreMoney competes quite well with sex for the position of the number one no-talk topic in our society. Friends, relatives and significant others typically do not speak openly about money. We can begin to understand the taboo attributed to money-talk by asking several relevant questions. What is money? What emotions does having a relationship with…
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