At this time of year, we tend to think of what we’re thankful for in terms of the basic human needs – the ones that lie along the bottom three tiers of Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.Those are survival, safety, and belonging. Our images of Thanksgiving center around harvest, food, gathering together, and celebrating togetherness.… Continue Reading Thanksgiving – “Grateful for” and “Grateful to”
On the fourth of my trips to Adler’s Vancouver campus last fall, I came before the Canadian border officer, as I had each time before. I was ready for the questions about why I was coming to Canada, and gave the same explanation as previously – that I had been asked to teach a class… Continue Reading Let’s Try Saying “Americans” Instead of “America” – A Lesson from Canadians
It’s hard to say anything calming or therapeutic since the election in November. Many people are feeling vindicated and many others are feeling betrayed, fearful, and even traumatized. But a major factor in the anxiety many of us are feeling is the sense that we cannot believe what we hear any longer. We’re subjected to… Continue Reading Ethics, Truth, and Our Political World of 2016
In May, I presented at the North American Society of Adlerian Psychology’s annual conference in Minnesota, along with colleagues from Adler University’s Chicago Campus. Our panel discussion was on encouragement, and we spoke about the different ways we have experienced encouragement in our lives and tried to pass it along to others. In my discussion,… Continue Reading Encouragement, Pain, and Survival
An article was published by US News and World Report yesterday, and it has mixed news about the Affordable Care Act and mental health treatment: the number of people with mental health conditions who are uninsured decreased in 2015, but the number of people who received mental health services using insurance plans obtained on the… Continue Reading Obamacare and Mental Health: Good News and Bad News
For the new year, I thought I’d try a new theme for my website… and it’s called, appropriately enough, “Twenty-Sixteen.” Yes, I know it’s a standard theme that WordPress puts out there and revises every year, but sometimes simple is best. I’ve been experimenting with some others and didn’t like them too much. So what’s… Continue Reading Happy Twenty Sixteen!
The recent tragedy involving the murders of a news reporter and camera operator on the air in Roanoke, Virginia is a reminder that workplace grievances and grudges can erupt into violence very easily, and that terminating a person’s employment can be the trigger that causes a marginally disturbed person to become violent. Taking away a… Continue Reading Predicting and Preventing Workplace Violence: An EAP’s Worst Nightmare
You may notice that each page on my website now has a little green doohickey near the bottom with an elephant’s head and the word “Clip.” If you are a user of the app called Evernote, you’ll know what this is already. If not, let me say a little bit about it.
A couple weeks ago I received an e-mail from a person representing a drug and alcohol treatment center out in the rural South. He wanted me to put a link to his program on my website. I thought I’d share part of the request and explain why I would not agree to do that (for… Continue Reading How Are Things Down on the Ranch?
McDonald’s has come under fire in recent weeks for a series of posts on an employee web portal (now deleted) which struck many people as insensitive at best and hypocritical at worst. The “tip sheets” included a health page from a university-based group of authors that cautioned readers to limit their consumption of fast foods. Other… Continue Reading Concern about Employees Means More than “Canned” Tips on a Website