I recently had a profound realization that I now understand is a reflection of how far I’ve come in the past five years. When I was younger, back before I got sober, back when I was depressed, I used to get angry a lot. I really didn’t like my life situation, and I felt powerless to change it. In response to feeling powerless, I got angry. I got angry at… Read More »8 Unconventional Anger-Management Strategies
A couple of years ago, my friend Joel began to lose his eyesight. It was really minor at first, and the vision-loss was gradual. For the first couple of months, his eyesight was not much worse than yours or mine, so it was perfectly safe for him to keep driving. But as his eyesight continued to diminish, it became clear that someday soon he’d have to give up driving for… Read More »The Principle of Two Errors
Most of us are checking the news way more often than we normally do. It’s important to stay up to date on the coronavirus pandemic and know what you’re supposed to be doing, so checking more makes sense. But if you’re anything like me, you’re probably checking too often. Even at a moment in history when staying informed is critical, doing is still greater than watching. And most of us… Read More »Meaningful Alternatives to Checking the News
Learning to think better is an essential part of becoming better. It makes you happier and more productive. It leads to better relationships with other people and a better relationship with yourself. But learning to think better is tough. We have to overcome automatic negative thoughts, the tendency to self-identify with our thoughts, and the habitual ways we interpret reality. Plus, via human nature, we have inherited a host of… Read More »The 3 M’s and the 3 P’s: Six Shortcuts to Better Thinking