In any relationship we are bound to have differences with our partner. This is all the more true when we’re in a close, committed relationship which means a great deal to us – so much is at stake. Given no two people are exactly alike, our goal should be to develop skills in the area […]

How do you usually respond when life just isn’t going the way you want it to? Maybe your spouse forgot your birthday, you got a flat tire on that day when you simply have to get to an important meeting, or you received a scary health diagnosis. What to do? Yes, you could yell at […]

“I never finish anything I start”. “He’s a complete loser.” “She always gets everything she wants.” At times, do you make extreme statements like these? Do you view things in all-or-nothing terms? If so, how does this habit affect your life? Do you have a hunch that it’s getting in the way of your happiness, […]

It’s usually pretty easy to feel good about ourselves when things are going our way, when we’ve been making significant progress on our personal and professional intentions, and when we’re in harmony with the important people in our lives. However, when we fall short of our own expectations, disappoint others, or fail to achieve a […]

Our minds are meaning-making machines. First and foremost, our minds try to protect us by figuring out how to avoid danger. Our minds are interpreters of our world and immediate circumstances. It’s a fact of nature – we are instinctively on high alert for danger, because first and foremost we want to survive.  After all, […]

It’s the beginning of July, and you may be wondering where all of those New Year’s resolutions went. You thought that you really meant it when you vowed to never again eat an entire chocolate cake at one sitting, drunk-dial your ex at 2 a.m., or fall behind on your credit card payments. Yet here […]

We can’t expect everyone to approve of us or our behavior at all times – it’s simply impossible, since different people prefer different things. Also, we are not in this world to live up to other people’s expectations. In addition, none of us are perfect. So, it’s inevitable that we’ll be on the receiving end […]

Into every life some rain must fall. As smug as this cliché may sound, it’s true. Even if we’ve been blessed with the “happy” gene, we cannot avoid feeling emotionally uncomfortable from time to time. We feel things for a reason. Our emotional pain carries a message. If someone close to us passes away, it’s […]

Do you consider yourself an “emotional” person? Or do you tend to rely more on your logic and intellect than on your feelings? What are your thoughts on the following concepts about emotions? We are primarily responsible for our emotions. There are certainly genetic components to how intensely we feel certain ways. Some people are […]

A 2010 study of over 2200 people found that about 47% of the time people are not thinking about what’s going on in the present. What’s more, the Harvard University researchers found that when our thoughts are focused in places other than the present moment, we are not as happy as when we’re in the […]