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“If you are scared to lose, then that’s where things fall apart” – Taylor Fritz
Yesterday I posted about overcoming the fear of failure. Later in the day, while watching the docuseries Break Point, I heard American tennis pro Taylor Fritz comment about his early loss at the 2022 U.S. Open, “I’m playing too much not to lose. Not playing enough to win. If you are scared to lose, then…
Read MoreSeeking your next big move? Meander a bit.
My goal as a coach is to meet you exactly where you are, which includes the moments when you don’t know where you are. In my coach training, life was compared to a game of cards. When you know what you want, you are playing your hand. But this state of play is preceded by…
Read MoreTrauma, loss, healing and growth
In several recent group sessions, I have presented about the idea of post-traumatic growth, pioneered by psychologists Richard Tedeschi and Lawrence Calhoun in the 1990’s. Post-traumatic growth is an alternative response to post-traumatic stress disorder: after an individual has experienced a severely painful life event or loss, he or she comes out the other side…
Read MoreGratitude as an antidote for negative mood
Two months ago I started a daily gratitude practice. I made this commitment because thinking intentionally about gratitude has not come naturally to me. Growing up I did not really learn to be thankful for what I had, and whether that lesson was not taught well or I missed it is up for debate. But…
Read MoreRemember to breathe
The most readily-available treatment for anxiety is our breath. It is also the least expensive intervention and has no adverse side effects. So why is it so hard to utilize this natural tool? Personally, I am not an expert breather. In fact, I often breathe shallowly and sometimes hold my breath without realizing it. Over…
Read MoreFinding calm and freedom within
I have had two ah-hah moments practicing yoga that I am inspired to share with you today. I grew up dancing, spending hours each week in the local ballet studio of my hometown, so it was not a great stretch for me to take an interest in yoga as an adult. I have dabbled with…
Read MoreWhat is the role of positive psychology today?
In the wake of the tragedy of George Floyd’s murder and the national and international outcry about his death and so many other grave injustices stemming from racism, I am humbled and contemplative about how practitioners of positive psychology, myself included, can participate in this dialogue in a voice that sounds anything but trite or…
Read MoreWhat are your personal character strengths? It’s an easy lift to find out.
Most of us, at some point in our upbringing, learned about the importance of individual character. By and large, we learned that someone either has character or they don’t, or that someone is of good or bad character. And there is a hypothetical bar that is set, hard to discern, about who has this good…
Read MoreSo You Have a Character Strength Profile. Now What?
If you visited the VIA Character Institute website (www.VIAcharacter.org) and took the free survey, you now have a personal profile of your character strengths. So what is it good for? You can now use this knowledge about yourself to improve your wellbeing and to become more resilient to life’s challenges. According to Dr. Ryan Niemiec…
Read MoreDelving into Character Strengths: Love of Learning
In my two previous blogs, I discussed how using our Signature Strengths (our top five character strengths) is easy, energizing and essential for us, and helps us to shift into positive emotion and build resilience. I hope that you have begun to practice with your Signature Strengths to discover how helpful they can be in…
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