ThriveologyPodcast – Thriveology

Tools to Thrive Series. The human mind is amazing.  It is capable of so much.  Thoughts that lead to great works of art, inventions, beautiful buildings, great literature, and everyday life.  Thoughts can also lead to destruction, pain, hurt, and anguish.  All from the same mind. Your mind and my mind does one thing all day long:  it creates […]

Tools To Thrive Series. Having the right tool can make ALL the difference.  Ever tried to drive a screw with a hammer?  I have.  It didn’t go so well. A few years back, I was changing out some faucets.  After stripping the skin off my knuckles and muttering a few choice words, I decided there HAD to be a […]

In my latest book, Thrive Principles, one of my strategies is Accepting What Is.  Which has caused some readers to wonder how that fits into my ideas about constantly growing and changing. They are not mutually opposed.  Accepting What Is creates a beginning point, a starting line.  From there, you can move toward who you […]

Wouldn’t it make sense if we just made things easy, direct, and effective? We don’t.  We tend to complicate things.  Repeatedly. Life is already a challenge many days.  So why do we make it harder on ourselves?  Sometimes, it is mental blocks.  Sometimes, it is reaction.  Sometimes, we let our emotions run the show. This […]

I was madly taking notes at a conference a couple of months back.  This guy beside me was taking no notes.  I was impressed with someone who could remember all the details needed.  The conference was about setting up social media, blogs, and other technical elements of launching a program. At the break, I turned […]

We all get them.  Sometimes there is a reason.  Sometimes, they just catch you for no real reason.  Down days.  Those days that seem to be energy-less, lacking in passion, and kinda blue. I was having a down day, so I went to my “Down Day Toolbox” to make it through and make it better. […]

Thriving Habits Series. Over the last few weeks, we’ve focused on habits as a path to your thriving life.  If you missed any of the weeks, the links are noted below. Today, we wrap up the series by noting the difference between two types of habits:  revolutionary habits and evolutionary habits. Let’s say you are currently not exercising, […]

Thriving Habits Series. For the last few weeks, we’ve been talking habits.  What they are, how they form who you are, how you make them stick, how to turn your goals into habits, and finding your “linchpin habits.” This week, I want to draw your attention to your thoughts.  Really, I want to draw attention to the fact […]

Thriving Habits Series. A single habit can be tough, either to make or break.  But what if you could make one habit and it multiplied into other habits?  What if there is a linchpin habit for you that sets others in motion? The fact is, we all have linchpin habits.  The question is whether they are working for […]

Thriving Habits Series. We like to make goals.  Most of us start the year with a set of goals.  And most goals, certainly most resolutions, never quite make it.  Goals are “out there,” some deadline in the future. Resolutions may start now, but rarely do they make it into habit. Think about goals as an end result of […]

Thriving Habits Series. Last week, we started a series on habits.  Your life is, in many ways, built on a series of habits.  Some are good.  Some get in your way. It always seems to me that we form bad habits so much easier than good habits!  And these aren’t the habits we want to “stick.” Which raises […]

Thriving Habit Series. For a long time, habits seemed to be a useless topic to me.  Got a bad habit?  Change it.  Need a good habit?  Build it. But the more I reflect, the more I realize how much of life is really about habits.  More than that, I have noticed how hard those bad habits are to […]

Today is a big day for me.  It is the release date for my new book, Thrive Principles.  This book is near and dear to my heart.  I have lived with it for years, collecting and developing the strategies throughout my career. The fifteen strategies can help you build a thriving life, regardless of what […]

It happened long ago, in what feels like another life.  And the story I tell is absolutely true (as far as I absolutely remember it happening this way!).  I promise accuracy, as far as my memory is capable. Early in my college life, my rather foolish young man’s brain thought it made sense to drive […]

It’s a dizzying world, disorienting and jarring.  And every day, you have to make decisions about how to live your life.  What is your primary focus point?  How do you orient your life? In workshops, I have asked this same question.  People begin to name their priorities:  family, happiness, reputation, respect, or even profit.  Does […]

Midlife Transition Series. Yep, MY midlife.  Because I find myself at midlife (maybe, even probably, beyond “midpoint,” but in the midst of midlife). I thought that since I have been discussing midlife transitions and crises, I needed to be open about my own midlife issues and transitions.  While not a crisis, it is definitely a transition. Let me […]

Midlife Transition Series. “I think I might be depressed,” he told me.  I wasn’t convinced. When Brian was talking, it seemed he was searching more than he was lost. Depression, unhappiness, and a midlife crisis can look very similar. But they are very different.  And the way through each is different. Brian felt depressed.  But in reality, he […]

Mid Life Transformation Series. Not every mid-lifer manages a crisis.  Many make a healthy transition to the new stage of life and development. The difference? There are several factors that come into play.  Central is a misunderstanding about what is happening. Many people refuse to admit some change is happening.  They hold onto old models that no longer work. […]

Mid Life Transformation Series. Most people slide right into midlife, out of breath from exertion.  Up until then, it is all about achieve.  What can I do, build, and achieve?  Then, something shifts.  It is about believe.  What do I believe?  What’s important?  What will I leave as my legacy? And that is the heart of a midlife crisis. […]

Mid Life Transformation Series. This week, we turn our attention to mid-life.  Maybe because that is where I am! Many clients come to me in the midst of a midlife crisis.  But that term carries so much baggage that many people are even embarrassed to consider the fact that it might just be. . . a. . . mid-life […]

Every year, my everyone in my family chooses a word to live into for the coming year.  This replaced my New Year’s Resolutions almost a decade ago.  After I started this podcast, I have shared my word with you. 2016 was my year of Appreciation.  I wrote letters to a number of people, letting them […]

How to Beat Stress. How many times do you hear someone say, “I’m so stressed!”  Or how many times do YOU think and feel that? We live in a culture that seems to revel in being stressed.  Unfortunately, it is sometimes a badge of honor — the cost of being in demand and doing important stuff. But is it? […]

How do you build a thriving year?  By having thriving days. How do you have thriving days?  By focusing on how you start your day and end your day.  What happens in the middle tends to take care of itself — IF you start strong and end strong. Do you have a morning plan or […]

“You can’t take my joy!”  What a great line.  And it fits so many times.  You are having a great day — and then that one person, that difficult person. . . .  They try to rob your joy! So, how DO you deal with difficult people?  Because they are all around.  At work, in […]

In the midst of my own serious illness years ago, I had friends who were more than willing to share with me the many ways I might die from my illness.  They seemed to have missed the fact that I had the same information. But they also missed the fact that I refused to play […]