Where do we draw the line in terms of who's responsible for protection? Do we expect the government to protect us from everything?  Life is risky, and to an extent, each person is responsible for the risks they choose to subject themselves to. This brings up the question that at what point is the government overstepping or overreaching their authority in the name of “protecting the public.” In today's episode, Virginia and I talk through the concerns I have with the status of the stock market, interest rates, inflation, and general economic climate of the US right now. It’s all accumulati ..read more

You probably know someone who’s always showing off their latest purchase- maybe it’s gourmet lunch, a new car, the latest tech - you name it. When someone buys goods or services in an attempt to show their success, they are participating in conspicuous consumption.    These days, everyone posts on social media doing “humble brags” about their life, and even if they don’t intend to showboat their status, that’s exactly what’s happening. Even something so seemingly innocent as vacation pics can be revealing of your status.    No matter what you share, there’s always someone r ..read more

There comes a point in life when traditional measures of “success” aren’t as fulfilling as expected and, instead, leave us feeling empty and anxious. We absorb early on that each occurrence has a negative or positive connotation when each event is actually neutral. Life is a journey of awareness and an opportunity to question what we believe, how we respond to people or events, and why. Desc: Original Music by Spybaby at www.spybabyband.com More at www.faconfessions.com   ..read more

Success seems like this glamorous goal, but nobody talks about the dangers that can accompany being successful. When someone wins at a high level consistently, they can get an inflated perception of their skills, innate talent, or self-image. This is exhibited by the “behind the scenes” footage we often see of former rock stars’ lives. The worst thing that can happen to a gambler is that he wins and feeds the flame.   Original Music by Spybaby at www.spybabyband.com More at www.faconfessions.com ..read more

We face risks daily in areas of money, health, kids, family, education, career, etc. Some risk has to do with the decisions we make while other risk lies in not making a move. In what areas of your life do you think you’re conjuring up risk that doesn’t really exist or that’s holding you back? As with many things, our personal risk assessment begins with what we learned in childhood. In some ways, we want to continue what our parents did, but in other ways, we’ll have to make a conscious effort to unlearn the risks that they did or didn’t take.  What proportion of our perceived risk is no ..read more

Isn’t it funny (not in the moment maybe, but eventually) how basically anyone can find research to prove their point no matter how extreme it may seem? The truth is, any “study” can be manipulated to include or exclude certain test controls, age groups, or other potential data points to prove their own bias.  These days, the media just fuels that fire by taking issues that a small subset of the population is facing and blasts it on all channels until we’re all nearly convinced those events are happening in our own backyard.  In this episode, we run through all sorts of hot topics inc ..read more

As with any awful life experience, we wade through the wide range of emotions - blame, guilt, insecurity, anger, hurt - as I did during my divorce. In the time since, I’ve examined my personal, emotional response to tension. We all have default tendencies, but once we realize they aren’t benefitting us, can they be stopped? A simple change in our internal stories may be the key. Original Music by Spybaby at www.spybabyband.com More at www.faconfessions.com ..read more

Comparison creates competition because without comparison, who are you competing with? Progress without competition is collaboration, the idea that we can all move forward together, in a helpful, supportive way. I’m so sick of the cut-throat, clinical, desperate environment competition creates. Where do we stand in the world though, if we’re not competing with anyone? Is some level of comparison absolutely necessary? Original Music by Spybaby at www.spybabyband.com More at www.faconfessions.com ..read more

How should we actually react to everything that is going on in the world and the always-changing events; COVID vaccinations, anti-bullying, everyone wins, gender pronouns, and whatever else is to come? Perhaps we should accept that everyone will have an opinion on each of these issues. While remaining respectable adults, we need to have talks in addition to understanding what others think and grasp what’s going on.  How can we know if the vaccine information we’ve gathered is accurate? Sometimes the media and big voices out there distort the facts by combining them with their own opinions ..read more

Life takes you through a constant roller coaster ride full of beginnings and endings, but it’s how well you navigate the space in between those events that counts. In this episode, we both share about a transition we’re experiencing and that neither of us are really sure what to do with this time, whether or not to make a definitive move, or what that move would even be. Al’s chat with a coach recently helped him discover a book called Transitions, by William Bridges that he's now read through twice because it’s so full of helpful ideas and angles. It’s time we both just take a step back and n ..read more