You would think it would be a good thing that we live in a world of comfort, where our most basic needs are readily met (food, warmth, shelter). On top of this, many of our “wants” are only a click away; entertainment, shopping, news and more. But, if you ever find yourself wanting to eat something, even though you’re not really hungry, or check your phone, even though you just started to focus on work, you are noticing a consequence of having too much comfort.   What’s Going On?   In a word - dopamine. For our ancient ancestors, dopamine was important to help them survive in a world ..read more

Witold Pilecki is probably one of the craziest, bravest (and ultimately hopeful) war heroes you have never heard of. After invading Poland in the fall of 1939, the Germans began building a massive prison complex in the spring of 1940 – yes, that would be Auschwitz. By the summer of that year, thousands of military officers and leaders were disappearing from western Poland, presumably being taken to Auschwitz. Already a decorated war hero from the Polish-Soviet War of 1918, Pilecki volunteered to “sneak into Auschwitz” by letting himself be captured by the Nazis. Over a period of two years ins ..read more

As you throw open the curtains and see the morning sun stream in, you think “Today is going to be a great day!” In anticipation, your mind plays out the day ahead, with all the tasks accomplished, productive meetings, and perhaps an after dinner walk as you enjoy the long days.    But your buoyant and positive outlook is quickly shaken as you realize you are out of coffee. And then traffic is worse today than expected. And then the big task you meant to finish in the morning gets bumped for an urgent meeting. IT challenges disrupt your afternoon and by the end of the day, you find yo ..read more

“The client is upset about a mistake we made.” Fact. “They are going dump us for another firm, I could even get fired over this.” Conjecture. “That pain in my abdomen has been there for two days.” Fact. “What if I have cancer and am going to die?” Catastrophizing. Our minds tend to do this kind of exaggerated thinking all too easily. It colours our mood, robs our energy, creates stress, and holds us back from performing at our best. But what can we do about it? The Problem When our ancient ancestors focused on surviving one day to the next, their minds had to watch out for things that could ki ..read more

Have you ever known you need to leave for a meeting at a certain time, and yet thought there was enough time to send one more email, only to now find yourself running late? Or have you ever ran out the door now that you are late, and forgot to bring something important like your phone? We all do this at times. We know better than to squeeze in one more email, and yet we forget this. My 13-year old often says “But Dad, I can’t remember to remember” when she forgets something she knows she needs to do. The irony is that, as I get frustrated that she forgets things and I lose my patience with ..read more

What if You Could "Own Your Day"? You know that amazing feeling you get when you wake up in the morning when you are on vacation, you feel rested, and you have that sense that the whole day is stretched out in front of you waiting to be experienced?  You aren't tied to other people's demands and the day is yours.  Wow - what a feeling! What if we could create that exact same feeling of "owning our day", even when we’re not on vacation?   The Challenge A lot can get in the way of us owning our day when it comes to the usual grind. Busy mornings, doddling kid ..read more

You don’t have to listen hard to hear it.  Behind the resignations, the overwhelm, stress and mental health, and behind the numbing out, there is a common under current.  After two years of pandemic restrictions, uncertainty, change, societal change and climate angst there is a background feeling of “a lack of control”.   As a result, people are looking to regain control in their lives in some way, which is part of the increase in career change, relationship change, and numbing out.  It also includes anger, frustration and resistance, as this too gives p ..read more

I hope you had a wonderful break over the Holidays and feel ready for 2022!  The New Year is a time where people often pause to reflect: "How am I doing?", and "I'd like to do more, or be more _____ this coming year." Which often starts to look like goals for the year.   While setting goals works for some people, for most people their New Year's goals tend to dim quickly as they return to the normal bustle of life, defaulting back to their old ways before the end of January.  Myself included. Daily Intent Versus Yearl ..read more

Image Source: Sylvain Mauroux, Unsplash How’s your motivation these days?  Checking in with organizations, it is still common to hear that many people are tired, stressed, overwhelmed and unmotivated.  This is easy to understand, given that there are many factors at play that make it hard for people.  November is by its nature a harder month (darker, colder and greyer).  While we have more freedom than in the past, we continue to feel the drag of the pandemic.  Many organizations are struggling with higher turnover, and this creates more work f ..read more

Email. Meetings. Tasks. Conversations. Zoom. Teams. Appointments. Commuting. Problem solving.  If this sounds like your day, you are not alone.  Not that any of that is necessarily a bad thing. The problem is when it piles up on top of itself, like ice on the river in Spring break up, to the point where it feels constricting, constraining and well, overwhelming.   What's missing in days like this is some form of stillness to balance the busyness.  The space between the notes, if your day was a piece of music.  When music has note upon no ..read more