I’m tired of leaders who confuse outrage for strength.I’m tired of politics as performance art.I’m tired of applause lines that fix nothing.I’m tired of slogans that substitute for substance. I’m tired of everything being “unprecedented.”I’m tired of “breaking news” that only breaks our trust.I’m tired of people more loyal to tribes than to truth.I’m tired... Continue Reading →
Even accurate, thoughtful feedback can fall flat if it sounds defensive or self-protective. The tone of your message often matters more than the content. When you stay grounded, open, and curious, people actually hear you instead of reacting to your tone. In counseling, supervision, or leadership, mastering the art of non-defensive feedback is a small... Continue Reading →
The Kentucky House of Representatives recently passed House Bill 495. As I understand it, the bill as originally proposed by David Hale sought to protect counselors, pastors, and therapists providing therapy to minors from discrimination by the government. An amendment added to the bill ended up containing language that invalidated an executive order by Governor... Continue Reading →
We can be passionate about our political views. We can treat our preferred political parties and candidates like the sports teams we root for. We can fall victim to heated political debate in which we speak and write in ways we typically wouldn’t do with others. We can go down online rabbit holes and convince... Continue Reading →
Introduction It seems you can’t read a paper, watch the news, or scroll online without seeing comments and reactions to the efforts of Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency to cut government spending. I take no issue with the existence of DOGE. I suspect it is something that was long overdue. I am... Continue Reading →
I have been following the reactions to the executive order signed by President Trump that renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Some have laughed, some have proudly posted new maps, but many have said "Wait, he did what? Can he do that?" As I understand it, this order means that in... Continue Reading →
Snow has been on the ground and our constant companion for going on a couple of weeks now and they say more may be on the way. Last week we were snowed in at our house for about 3 days before we could get one of our vehicles dug out and cleared enough to venture... Continue Reading →
I am preparing to teach a class on ethics to students starting their education in human services. In putting together one of the weekly quizzes I included a question on empathy fatigue. In a nutshell, empathy fatigue is being desensitized to things you would normally care about (empathize about) due to repeated exposure to stressful,... Continue Reading →
I’m not one for making resolutions but I do take a few moments at the start of each year to remind myself of the things I’ve committed to trying to do each day (learn something new, lead a life to be followed, live like there is no tomorrow, & love extravagantly) and determine if there... Continue Reading →
I was told by someone recently (almost proudly it seemed) that they get their news from Tik Tok. In full disclosure, I am not a user of Tik Tok so I am going only on my assumptions here, but this claim did not inspire confidence in me as to this person’s news literacy. I am... Continue Reading →
I have only the vaguest concept of what day it is. It is that weird time between Christmas and New Year’s Day when you already don’t have any sense of normalcy or schedule. Add on top of that not having a traditional work schedule as a retiree who now works freelance and Cathie having some... Continue Reading →
One of the simple pleasures I enjoy when traveling is tracking state license plates on my phone. There are several apps available that allow you to track license plates as you encounter them in your travels. I have been tracking state license plates over the last year and I am proud to report that there... Continue Reading →
Since retiring about a year ago, I have taken on much of the shopping for our household. I actually don’t mind it at all. It gets me out, helps me get my steps in, and allows me to socialize a bit with the natives. As a trained observer of human nature, I have also made... Continue Reading →
As I watched the Summer Olympics that took place in France earlier this year, I was taken with the parade of nations which by report consisted of 206 nations. There are countries you hear about regularly, some that you don’t think about very often, some old countries with new names, and some countries that you... Continue Reading →
I've been playing around with NotebookLM by Google. NotebookLM is a Google AI-powered research assistant and note-taking tool that uses generative AI to help users organize, analyze, and synthesize information. NotebookLM can become an expert in your documents and generate a personalized guide based on the sources you select. So I decided to feed it... Continue Reading →
I’ve spent the last few weeks burrowing in an online rabbit hole. In an effort to find a method that would allow me to better collect notes and random bits of information I come across in daily life, I began exploring possible solutions. For years I have used some form of a paper notebook or... Continue Reading →
For several years now I have had a number of odd, ruminative thoughts about colors. How did we get the names of the colors we use each and every day? Was it a single person that named all the colors? Was it Adam and Eve? Was it a committee? Was it put to a vote?... Continue Reading →
I’m reading Jonathan Haidt’s The Anxious Generation: How The Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness. The book is about the effects of the modern age of technology on the mental health of children and adolescents. After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged... Continue Reading →
If you have spent any time online over the last few years, you have seen firsthand both the wonders and the horrors of even a minimal online presence. The internet and social media have given us access and platforms that were historically reserved for a very select few or those with the resources to push... Continue Reading →
Why is no one talking about the fact that baserunners in baseball now wear an oven mitt on their hand. How did this happen? Are they fitted for oven mitts in Spring Training? Jose, you look like you would be a size medium. Let’s get your measurements to be sure. Do employers and families have... Continue Reading →
The Stories We Tell Ourselves As a clinical psychologist, I am often asked to identify what is wrong with someone. While this can be valuable in certain circumstances, it may actually be more valuable to be able to say what is right with someone. One of the things that has always intrigued me in the... Continue Reading →
Free Joey Chestnut. I’ve seen many pundits and commentators saying that the Presidential immunity ruling yesterday takes us perilously close to US Presidents having King-like power. If even only partly true, that is a bold move for the Supreme Court to announce this ruling three days before we celebrate our country throwing off the rule... Continue Reading →
In a previous essay, I wrote about Bias as being a Tale of Two Systems, one of which thinks fast and one of which thinks slow. System 1 forms “first impressions” and often is the reason why we jump to conclusions. This is the Thinking Fast system. System 2 is the analytical, “critical thinking” way... Continue Reading →
Retiree Report: Lot Adventures Cathie’s mom used to say when something notable happened (typically something negative) that things happened in multiples of threes. I guess you see what you look for but as a family we have had three unfortunate events over the last couple of weeks. Surprisingly, each of these three unfortunate events has... Continue Reading →
Bias: A Tale of Two Systems. Thinking Fast and Slow Shortly before the pandemic hit, I was asked by an organization to conduct training on bias for their staff. I suspect they had something else in mind when they asked me to put together this training, but I ended up putting together a training that... Continue Reading →
certifiable 