Open for Media Monday Media Monday is a series where I focus on something that I have created in another form of media. Be sure to check back every Monday for more posts. Improve every conversation by focusing on controlling what you say. Continue reading

What are warning signs of a toxic relationship? Maybe we should kill "promposals" and treat the Eneagram as a tool not an end all to understanding ourselves. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

If I asked you how a person came to feelings, you would probably believe that the following steps are the process for how we go from an event to a feeling is something like this: Something happens I have a belief about what happened. I have an emotional reaction (a feeling or emotion) to what happened. But there is an inherent problem in this idea. If this is actually the way that we get to an emotion, the only way we can change our emotions is to change what happened. This is problematic because often the things that happen in our life are often on our square and not on our circle. The process actually goes something more like this: Something happens. I have a belief about what happened. I have an emotional reaction to what I believe about what happened. In order to change our emotions, we have to change what we believe about what happened. The beauty of this is that we 100% control our beliefs because beliefs are a result of our thinking. For more on that, see my post regarding the circle and the square here. So often we under value the impact our beliefs about a situation have on our feelings and emotions. Albert Ellis is, of course, famous for his thoughts and writings on these types of issues. Think of the young mother who is yelling at her children. If asked almost immediately after the event, she will tell you that she didn't mean... Continue reading

Maybe the behaviors you see in other people that looks like something you don't like is actually depression. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

We lose approximately 800,000 people each year to suicide. Someone you know is depressed and at risk for attempting suicide because of it. There is help. There is hope. Continue reading

Who are you? Who are you? Take a few moments and compose your answer. What did you say? Did you talk about your job? Your children, your spouse? How much of it revolved around what you do? How much ran through your mind that you didn’t actually say or put down? Did you think something and then think you needed Continue reading

What happens when your family vacation actually drains you? What do you do if your mom and a few friends don't think what you're doing with your life is meaningful? Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Sports are a tool. How we use them is what matters. Our response to Andrew Luck's retirement might show that too many of us have lost our minds. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Work is good for us. Doing hard work is especially good for us. Let's explore what it means to do the work. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Back to school is a great time to do little check in on how our goals are going. And to find some space to grieve. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

One of the hardest places to be in life is the in the space between. The space between where you are at and whatever is next. This episode presents a process that you may find helpful in determining what you do next. Download it in your favorite podcast player or... Continue reading

Habits tend to get a bad rap in my opinion. What if they could unlock your potential to change? I believe they are your best chance at the life you want. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

To love anything is to invite pain. This quote from a friend of mine sums up the inevitable pain in relationships. This episode deals with five foundations for healthy relationships of the every day variety. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

What happens if you don't like your extended family (or your spouse's) but you want your children to have a relationship with them? What happens if your parents want you to play sports but you don't want to play? This week's episode attempts to answer these listener questions. Download it... Continue reading

How do you know if you made a good decision? A lot of people look at outcomes to decide but what if that way is flawed? This episode looks at how to determine if a decision was good or bad. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on... Continue reading

It is probably actually healthy if you do not like everyone. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

What if a healthy relationship is actually on the other side of distress? What if a major skill you need for your relationship is actually the ability to tolerate distress? This episode explores the need to be able to tolerate stress inter personally and gives some practical ideas on how... Continue reading

A friend from college drops by (virtually)and we talk about how the story in your head impacts almost everything in our life. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

What if the answer to three simple questions could improve your relationship with your spouse? Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Parenting. Summer Break. The NFL. An under performing team. Frustrated parents. What do these all have in common? Listen and learn, my friend. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Have you ever looked at your kids and wondered if they were aliens? Do you feel like what you are currently doing is not working? Then, this episode is for you. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

We all experience hurt. We have to process it. When we don't the results are often devastating for us and those we love. There is another way though. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading

Do you want to tell a compelling story with your life? We are all telling a story with out lives. What is the type of story you are telling? This episode gives you five questions to ask about the story you are telling and gives you tools to tell a... Continue reading

If your self love causes you to treat others poorly, you're doing it wrong. I posted that this week to my Facebook and the response was overwhelming. Emails, private Facebook messages; the whole gambit. Maybe our anxiety epidemic is rooted in our obsession with self love. Download it in your... Continue reading

It's probably not what you're thinking. It's time to end the shaming idea and resurrect it as something that is actually helpful. Download it in your favorite podcast player or click on the Sound Cloud link above. Continue reading