And not being able to take that advice can make you feel worse — The well-intentioned Brad Stulberg, a performance coach and author, has recently written some pieces on “Behavioral Activation,” a premise revolving around the idea that motivation and energy follow action. Don’t wait until you feel like doing something, he says — just do it. The old adage “Move a muscle, change…

Stress is cumulative; depression and anxiety follow — I have a new theory that there are now two kinds of people in the world: Those who have been dealing with significant mental health challenges during the pandemic Liars The answer to the ages-old question “genes or the environment?” is always both: the environment pushes us over the edge…

It Can Take a While, But There’s Always a Way — If you’re in the first few years of working from home — congratulations, and welcome to the club! I’ve been working from home and self-employed for as long as I can remember. I love it and wouldn’t trade it for the world, largely because I have ADHD. My brain doesn’t…

There is no data for every aspect of life — Consider a few groups: •U.S. Presidents, Senators, and members of the Congress •CEOs •the military •teachers •doctors at a hospital Wouldn’t you want the best person for the job — regardless of their background or what they look like? Here’s one way to make sure that happens: encourage everyone to…

Wisdom is quiet and knows that life is complicated — A few years ago when I was a full-blown gym rat, I was horribly obnoxious. (I still am, but for other reasons.) I used to try to encourage people during classes by reminding them “the way to make progress is to keep going when you start to feel tired!” I’d…

Spoiler alert: online dating sucks for me, and I can’t be the only one — The attention economy maintains its stronghold on our brains by stealing our focus, getting us hooked on the promise of yet another dopamine rush. Companies are perfecting addictive products, exploiting our biological vulnerabilities for profit. …

Here’s the Math: We Pay Debt Instead of Buying Homes — Lately, my news feed has been overrun by articles stating that canceling student loan debt is an issue of “college graduates’ agenda-settting power.” It’s a trap, they say! …

Make Anything Figure Out-able by Working Backwards — I’ve wanted to be a writer since I was eight. Eight. In other words: I’ve spent countless hours in high school writing bad poetry. Essays, articles, and short stories in college. I wrote two novels in my 20’s. I’ve consumed more writing advice in my lifetime than a human should. …

Emotions and negative reactions to things that cause distress are actually normal and healthy — Recently, I was walking my dog, Daisy (breed: VERY GOOD GIRL) in my quiet neck of the woods when an unleashed dog appeared out of nowhere and attacked Daisy for what felt like 5 hours. Was I screaming at the top of my lungs? Yes. Very much yes. …