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Well-being, self-compassion, beliefs, questions and curiosity, energy and flow, goals and progress, and meaning. 55 articles, newest first.
Featured
7 min read
For decades, researchers have known that how students regulate their own learning matters at least as much as what they study. Students who set goals, select effective strategies, monitor their progress, and reflect on o...
8 min read
I really want to use AI the right way. I want AI to be my success team. The team I could never manage to assemble (or afford). The team that frees me to do what I do best and pushes me to maximize my potential. I don't w
6 min read
In a fascinating RSA talk, author Daniel Pink presents research that challenges everything we thought we knew about motivation. The findings carry profound implications for healthcare, where burnout has reached crisis le
10 min read
After 25 Years of Success, Life Threw Me a Curveball. Here's What Actually Worked.
15 min read
Abstract: Research reveals a counterintuitive truth about stress management: focusing on helping others is more effective than focusing on yourself. The "tend and befriend" response, mediated by oxytocin, creates neurolo
9 min read
The Surprising Cultural Barrier to Self-Compassion
11 min read
"If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete." ~Jack Kornfield
5 min read
In previous posts, we explored how the quality of your questions, multiplied by the frequency you ask them, raised to the power of the integrity of your answers, determines the power of your outcomes. This formula applie...
18 min read
"Your World is Perfectly Arranged to Give You The Results You are Currently Getting"
8 min read
Physical therapy sits at a fascinating intersection. It's simultaneously a rigorous scientific discipline and a profoundly human art. When students enter PT education, they're not just learning to apply techniques. They'...
19 min read
In 2007, a group of Italian researchers led by Dr. Fabrizio Benedetti performed what seemed like a simple experiment. They gave morphine to patients recovering from thoracic surgery. Half received the painkiller from a d...
5 min read
Kuhn fundamentally challenged how we understand scientific progress. Rather than viewing science as a steady accumulation of facts building toward truth, he argued that science advances through revolutionary upheavals wh...
9 min read
When I lost over 200 pounds more than 20 years ago, I learned something fundamental about human motivation: engagement is an energy management problem. This insight, born from personal transformation rather than pedagogi...
5 min read
Do I belong? It's a question I've often contemplated, whether I realized it or not. Human beings are hardwired to seek social connections. In some cultures, the ultimate punishment is to be shunned. We long to belong, bu...
17 min read
I used to be a 420-pound junk food addict. Now I'm a 200-pound vegan.
17 min read
In the opening lines of the Dhammapada, the Buddha proclaimed: "We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world." Millennia later, Mahatma Gandhi would echo this wisdo...
17 min read
There's a passage in my Lose Weight for Good program that I've come close to deleting a hundred times. I ask people to stand naked in front of a mirror, close their eyes, and imagine their ideal body: healthy, vibrant, c...
10 min read
You've probably heard a thousand times that college is supposed to be "the best years of your life." But if you're like most students, you're also stressed, sleep-deprived, questioning your major, and wondering if you're...
9 min read
Have you ever been so absorbed in something that hours passed like minutes? Maybe you were coding, writing, playing music, having an incredible conversation, or even studying something that actually fascinated you. You l...
5 min read
In 1976, two Yale psychologists conducted a deceptively simple experiment that would challenge everything we thought we knew about aging and autonomy. The intervention? A houseplant. The results? Remarkable improvements ...
4 min read
🐾On September 26, 2025, I had the privilege of attending a very insightful and heart-centered professional development session at the FPTA conference in Orlando. It was a deep dive into Animal-Assisted Interventions (AA...
9 min read
Healthcare providers are burning out at unprecedented rates, and we have been misdiagnosing the cause. The exhaustion you feel after a day of patient care does not come from too much compassion. It comes from too much em
6 min read
Setting goals is one thing. Actually achieving them is another. After years of teaching, coaching, and personal transformation (including my own 200-pound weight loss journey), I've learned that the difference between go...
10 min read
One of the unfortunate things about being human is that, at one point or another, we all suffer.
8 min read
If you read this blog, you can probably figure out that I love a good matrix. In the blog post "Creating a Culture of Trust and Safety with Students," I discuss the "Is It Safe? Is It Worth It?" matrix from Stephen Shedl...
5 min read
I remember the smell. Even today, if I were to walk into an antiques store, that smell transports me back to some old barn in some rural town, collecting treasures for my mom's antiques store.
3 min read
The inquiry mindset is about asking questions that get below the surface, challenge assumptions, and lead to thoughtful decisions. Several tools embody this mindset, helping us think clearly and communicate with care. Le...
4 min read
Have you ever heard the adage, often attributed to Socrates, Buddha, or the Sufi tradition:
6 min read
Sit with this statement: “The power of your outcomes is determined by the quality of the questions that you ask yourself multiplied by the frequency that you ask, raised by the power of the integrity of your answers.”
4 min read
Have you ever wanted to make a lasting change in your life, but no matter how hard you tried, it just didn’t stick?
6 min read
Most of us have been taught to set SMART goals. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound).
5 min read
The Art of Exceptional Mentorship: Facilitating Flow, Balance, and Purpose
6 min read
From ancient Greece to today, questions have been recognized as one of the most powerful tools for intellectual growth and discovery. Throughout history, great thinkers have used questions not just as a means of obtainin...
5 min read
The key to unlocking the potential of today’s students lies not in empty promises of future success or short-term rewards but in offering them a clear sense of purpose.
4 min read
In education, a sense of belonging plays a crucial role in determining a student’s success and well-being. Greg Walton, a professor at Stanford University, has dedicated his research to understanding how belonging impact...
5 min read
Beliefs function like computer operating systems. Just as a computer's abilities and overall performance are dictated by its software, our actions and outcomes are influenced by our beliefs. This concept is central to th...
4 min read
An authentic question is one in which the asker genuinely does not know the answer and is open to learning from the respondent. This differs from rhetorical or leading questions, where the asker often assumes they alread...
4 min read
Vulnerability is often misunderstood as a weakness. However, high performers know that vulnerability is not about fragility; it's about courage. It’s about being open, admitting when something didn’t go as planned, and u...
6 min read
Energy Management: The True Key to Fulfillment
4 min read
In Curious?: Discover the Missing Ingredient to a Fulfilling Life, author Todd Kashdan explores the often overlooked but immensely powerful role that curiosity plays in leading a meaningful and fulfilling life. Kashdan a...
6 min read
In A Fearless Heart: How the Courage to Be Compassionate Can Transform Our Lives, Thupten Jinpa, a former monk and the principal English translator for the Dalai Lama, explores the profound impact of compassion on our li...
3 min read
Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself by Dr. Kristin Neff is a groundbreaking book that explores the concept of self-compassion, which involves treating oneself with the same kindness, care, and und...
2 min read
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey is a timeless classic that has transformed the lives of millions ( including my own) since its publication. The book presents a principle-centered approach ...
2 min read
Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl is a profound and moving memoir that explores the author’s experiences as a prisoner in Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Frankl, a psychiatrist and neurologist, d...
3 min read
"A More Beautiful Question" by Warren Berger explores the power of inquiry, emphasizing how asking the right questions can lead to innovation, personal growth, and deeper understanding. The book argues that cultivating t...
5 min read
Understanding the concept of "truth" is fundamental in our quest for knowledge. But our perception of the truth isn't always straightforward. Our truth is a collection of beliefs, and what we believe to be "truth" is, li...
6 min read
In my blog post from September 3, 2024, Understanding Truth: Navigating to Absolute Reality, I discussed the distinctions between personal, social, and objective truths. Neil deGrasse Tyson’s concept of objective truth—t...
3 min read
Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol S. Dweck is a transformative book that explores the profound impact of our beliefs about our abilities and potential. Dweck introduces two core concepts: the "fixed mindset...
5 min read
Molly Wright was a 7-year-old Grade 2 student from Queensland, Australia when she delivered this talk, making her one of the youngest TED speakers in history. She is an aspiring wildlife warrior, performer, and budding s...
3 min read
In Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise, Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool upend the myth that innate talent is the key driver of exceptional performance. Through decades of research, Ericsson introduces us to t...
6 min read
James Carse offers a deceptively simple distinction that becomes a lens for understanding everything from war to love, business to religion. There are two kinds of games: finite games, played to win, and infinite games, ...
6 min read
Pirsig weaves together a cross-country motorcycle journey with a philosophical inquiry into the nature of Quality. Part memoir, part philosophical treatise, part father-son road trip, the book uses motorcycle maintenance...
