Reflections of a Coach
Make the Choice You Can
Make the Choice You Can When I first started grappling with hyperacusis, a specialist explained that I was showing signs of what doctors call “loudness hyperacusis” and “pain hyperacusis.” He also warned me that patients often progress to experience more forms of hyperacusis, including what they call “annoyance hyperacusis” and “fear hyperacusis.” Understanding the differences,…
Read MoreListen Like a Fish
Today, I’m celebrating Big Fish Day. It’s not exactly celebrating one year without alcohol, but rather the one year anniversary of realizing alcohol was hurting me. January 1st, 2023, I started a dry January. I planned to clear my head from all the whiskey nog and celebratory rum cocktails that were part of my life…
Read MoreStay In the Game on Your Goals
Keep Chasing Your Dreams If being a coach has taught me anything, it’s that chasing after wild and brave possibilities changes our lives for the better…but the chase can make life anything but easy. Personal growth, professional aspirations, and meaningful goals we have for making a positive impact on our world all require us…
Read More3 Ways to Enjoy Your Life More
3 Ways to Enjoy Your Life More Be Aware Be Wowed Be Wild Maybe your life needs big changes. Or your workplace needs a personality replacement. But we can’t always wait for things to change before we enjoy our lives more. Whether you’re riding out a hurricane or tough quarter at work, enjoying your…
Read MoreDealing with Grief
Holiday Nostalgia: Joy & Grief We celebrate most holidays to the tune of two “Eves” around my house. Birthday Eve Eve, New Year’s Eve Eve, and this week — Christmas Eve Eve. It’s like a tiny personal holiday to get some extra celebration in before the official day. But today’s eve-squared is salted with nostalgia…
Read MoreDeliberate Sanity – Life in Low Gear
Today it took me a good hour to make a snack. I didn’t get distracted with texting friends, or pause mid-prep to dance to music. A few years back, that would be the only reason a 20 minute activity would have tripled in duration. But today the work was silent, methodical, deliberate. No attempt to…
Read MoreDangerous Reflection (Growth Traps)
Reflection is essential to growth. If we don’t think into our lives, experiences, relationships, choices, and results, we’ll be at the mercy of chaos and entropy. Reflection is the fulcrum for seizing opportunity and influencing the path of our own lives. But there’s a sneaky, counterfeit form of reflection that can kill growth. It’s on…
Read MoreGetting to the Other Side of Suffering
Before the “almost category 5” hurricane Ian made a direct hit on my home town, I was learning a lot about how great thinkers have handled suffering and trouble. In my reading, coaching conversations, and coffee walks with friends in the park I had been chewing through the more existential side of suffering. Does suffering…
Read MoreAfter the Storm [Hurricane Ian 2022]
It’s been intimidating trying to capture the experiences of the storm we just weathered here in southwest Florida. The first hurricane I remember was Hurricane Andrew. My family lived in Fort Myers at the time, and our family businesses were on Sanibel Island. For Hurricane Andrew we closed up our little mom-and-pop style motels on…
Read MoreActive Constructive Responding
I didn’t invent most of the communication techniques I have become “known” to my clients for helping them learn. ButResearch I’ve come to believe it’s a colossal waste of time to try to define things as “my process” or “my techniques.” In any thinking partnership, ownership of ideas is fuzzy at best, counterproductive at worst.…
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