Everyone wants to have a good life, right? Of course, we all want to be happy, but we have to do our part to create that good life. Of course, there are influences outside of our control, but we can improve our lives exponentially and overcome adversity by doing specific things. Do these simple, free things, and your life will change for the better!
We all know the bad news—That half of the foster kids aging out of the system are likely to become homeless. That homeless kids are approached by traffickers (formerly known as pimps) typically within 48 hours of becoming homeless. That a high percentage of incarcerated felons report having been abused as kids.That the cycle of abuse is often repeated generation after... [read more]
Having success in relationships and overcoming hurts are inextricably tied to one’s sense of belonging and connectedness to others. People who feel disconnected from others and as though they do not belong anywhere can easily slip into depression and feel despair, which can lead ultimately to suicide. I realize that sounds extreme, but whether it’s a vague sense of... [read more]
Knowing who you can trust is the key to helping you overcome hurts of the past and succeeding in building good relationships. But how can you know who is trustworthy? This is a question that troubled me for years. Many times people whom I thought I could trust would walk away from me, betray a confidence, steal from me, talk about me behind my back, or do some other thing... [read more]
It sounds so simplistic when I say that bad relationships damage us, and good relationships heal us. But that is the simple truth.
Imagine a picture of a little girl. The picture I’m thinking of is one of me when I was 6 years old standing out in the yard on a bright sunny day. I had a big black eye. Knowing that the social worker was coming, the people who raised me... [read more]
One of the most important things we can do is to learn how to best communicate with those around us. Good communication improves our life. Bad communication can destroy it. It’s that simple. Everyone can improve their communication. Here are some simple tips to get started.
Communication 101.1: Be careful about the use of “code words” in... [read more]
The way we communicate has changed so much in just the past few years. From my perspective, these changes are doing damage to personal relationships.
With Internet pop-up advertisements and the popularity of social networking, particularly Twitter and Facebook postings with their character limitations, it seems that our brains have been “trained” to assess... [read more]
I talk a lot about success. Many people have a tendency to immediately think that success equates to money, and lots of it. But QUALITY RELATIONSHIPS are the core of a successful life, so in this blog we’re going to focus on HOW to build good relationships.
Relationships 101.1: Don’t take loved ones for granted. When you don’t have... [read more]
YOU are the only one who can succeed for you. This is your responsibility. No one can do this for you. No one can make you happy. No one human can meet all your needs. Your peace, joy, and financial stability are your responsibility. Give yourself permission to use your imagination (you know, the one that’s been packed away since you were a child), and use that... [read more]
Most people have no idea what a power-packed little phrase, “God bless you” can be. If they did, they would say it with feeling to everyone they meet! We have no problem saying this to people who are kind and generous and deserve to be blessed, but we should be saying this to people who have hurt us, to people who cut us off in traffic, and to people in our lives who just... [read more]