Recently I attended an extensive training on the use of foods to improve mental health. It turns out that our gut health has a direct effect on our mental health, as there is a neuro-pathway directly connecting them. This explains why we feel queasy when we are very stressed, and also why our organs hurt or begin to be diseased …
Are you discouraged about the news and state of the world? Neuroscience has explained our brains automatically focus on negative information that could threaten our survival. I recently found an antidote to this autonomic response; I read the 2018 Steven Pinker book called “Enlightenment Now.” This well-researched book shows humans are successfully adapting and are definitely better off than at …
Do you have the “grit” this Winter to keep your hope and drive alive through the challenges you are facing? Knowing more about the kind of “grit” that is not salty, nor sticks to your feet, may help you to thrive. In her book “Grit” (2016), Angela Duckworth shares research that success is more likely with “grit” than with talent! …
Haven’t we all had the dilemma of trying to decide whether to stay or go from a job, a career, a lifestyle, or a relationship? Our emotions are in turmoil, and our ability to be loving and productive crumbles. We suffer. We know down deep that we need a change. As Christine Caine points out, “Sometimes when you are in …
Do you remember having a passion for a cause and the “heat” to contribute something meaningful to the world before you died? Do you still feel the burn, or have you lost it to fill the emptiness with busyness? Many Boomers have found their dreams eclipsed. They feel stuck in the darkness of endless obligations to children, houses, lifestyles, poor …
I used to sail a 12 foot Laser sailboat. It gave me challenges at times on local Kansas lakes when it got windy or choppy. Once it “turtled”; three young children and I were overboard far from shore with a boat upside down. We had to scramble but survived unhurt. Even a happy day at the lake can sometimes be …
It is nearly Spring and many of you in the Northern Hemisphere are about to encounter a host of small flourishing things! Dandelions are amazingly strong plants that thrive even when challenged by drought and soil starvation. Unless you are a lawn perfectionist, they bring joy and splashes of color to life. If you want only the green in your lawn, …
Will you or your partner have a transition to fewer work hours in 2017? It could be due to a move, having a child, easing toward retirement, increasing care to a child or adult, or coping with an illness. I have two friends who stand out as role models of powerful transitions. Both have chosen to gradually ease back on …
We will all face the question of how to introduce ourselves after retirement. Are we more than the sum of a long professional reputation? The Baby Boomers are the first generation to face this test, as we will live longer and most women had careers. If we have twenty years or more to live after “retiring”, how will we define …
Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could measure the connections between productivity, a positive culture, and the sense of well being in our workplaces and communities? The Canadian Wayne Clancy owns the site www.mindsuitemetrics.com and is one researcher intrigued by this question. I hope you go to his site, and take the brief Arizona State University Humanities Project assessment as a way to …