Have you ever been in a situation where another person's behavior really set you off? Perhaps your co-worker took credit for one of your ideas, or your spouse talked over you and quickly dismissed your feelings, or maybe a good friend betrayed your confidence. You can’t contain your emotional reaction and feel justified in lashing out because of what someone else did.

Life appears to happen to us. It’s easy to feel like our quality of life is determined by things out of our control. But what if that's not true? What if the things that happen to us, and how we react to them, are simply a [...]

People-pleasing is a way of life for many. Yet, a happy life depends on healthy boundaries and being true to ourselves. One of the greatest skills anyone can learn is how to set healthy boundaries but for a people pleaser, the thought of setting a boundary can be scary and feel threatening.

A few months ago, a new client told me that she had a bad habit of saying “yes” when she really wanted to say “no.” At the end of the day, she felt exhausted and resentful because there was never any energy or time left over for what was important to her. Even when she was maxed to the hilt, she'd take on [...]

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about minimalism and how to live minimally. As my client base gets fuller and my life and relationships more precious, I find myself pining for simplicity and time in the mountains.

However, what has always puzzled me about minimalism is the immense abundance of nature. As I strive to make a dent in my positive impact on the environment by recycling or being mindful of purchases, a part of me simultaneously seeks MORE... more mastery, more health, more fun, and lavish abundance. Did you know that our brains are wired for more?

Have you ever had a friend or co-worker fill the air with complaints? Do you catch yourself complaining too much and wonder if you can ever stop complaining and be happy? Has negative thinking become a bad habit?

Life can feel like we're scrambling to escape an avalanche of demands and endless to-do lists. When we're stressed, it's easy to find fault or pinpoint what's wrong, but if we get in the habit of complaining, it starts to create a dark cloud around us and our lives. So how do we give ourselves an emotional reset?

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes

A relationship is sometimes like a tangled necklace; we have difficulty understanding our partner or their perspective. Although in marriage, we commit to one another for better or for worse, we don't always know how to unravel the tangles we find ourselves in or the conflicts that confront us. Conflict resolution is uncomfortable and we can be all tied up in knots inside and unable to build a bridge between us.

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

Valentine's Day is a perfect opportunity to revel in our love for one another. The day set aside and the celebration itself can rekindle the fires of loving our partner. Although, wonder if we could keep our loving attentiveness going every day?

You owe it to yourself to flex the muscles required to create lasting happiness. Strengthening your relationship by applying love's keys is just as important as planning your wedding. Your honeymoon doesn’t have to last only for a season!

All of us have habits. We speak of healthy habits and unhealthy habits, but most often we associate habits with something negative or trying to overcome a pattern. (Think of smoking, watching too much TV, unhealthy snacking between meals, yelling at the kids...) The truth is that anything we do repeatedly—whether negative or positive, unhealthy or healthy—becomes a habit. Isn't it time to use positive, healthy habits to create the life you want? But how long does it take to break a habit? Is there a way to reset the brain?

When my son was only two, I discovered the power of resiliency! He and I had just picked up a vanilla sponge cake from the bakery, a special order for a friend’s surprise birthday party. I carefully tucked the square white box on the floor between the two front seats of our family minivan. Parking in our driveway, I unhooked the quick-release on my son’s car seat so he could climb down, and I got out of the van to help him out. You won't believe what I found next!

Estimated reading time: 4 minutes