Tiny Bites of Wagaliciousness

Those who don’t read are no better off than those who can’t read. That’s a paraphrase of something Mark Twain wrote, and it’s true. When you have a skill you don’t use, it’s exactly the same as not having that skill. Many people come out of their school years and don’t read anything that challenges them or expands their mind. When was the last time you read a book that challenged your beliefs or e...

Have you ever been so mad about something that you mentally concocted scenarios of how you could get back at whoever wronged you? Oh, the sweet savoring of revenge! It’s very human to use your marvelous imagination to plot your rival’s downfall, and it’s detrimental to your own mental wellbeing when you focus on revenge. Instead of thinking of how you could take them down, focus on lifting yoursel...

When was the last time the hair on the back of your neck stood up? Did you trust the warning and move away from where you were, or did you just forge on anyway, trying to rationalize why your intuition was wrong? Bad vibes, also known as gut reactions, happen when your internal wisdom is trying to keep you out of danger. They are a primal reaction to a subtle change in your surroundings that happe...

We all have different opinions, and all of us are right. Yes, even when the opinions are diametrically opposed to each other, each person is still correct to believe what they believe. How can that possibly be? Our opinions are informed by those who raised us, the experiences we’ve witnessed, and the experiences we’ve had. I like snakes and find them fascinating because Dad did and my 7th grade sc...

Is your life what you want it to be? Now and then, most people question whether or not they are in the right place in their lives. It doesn’t matter whether you define the right place as a relationship, a town or a career. Think about your life right now – do all the pieces feel like a good fit for where you are, or do you feel like one of them needs tweaking or maybe even a complete overhaul? Bef...

In 1981 Nile Rogers of the band Chic wrote a song called “Your Love is Cancelled.” Fast-forward to around 2010 and people started cancelling those they disagreed with, and the term “cancel culture” came into common use. Social media sites made it simple to gather a gang of keyboard warriors ready to do battle against anyone who said or did things they disagreed with. Suddenly it became dangerous t...

Have you ever been around someone who suffered a big loss? Maybe it was the loss of a job, a relationship or the loss of a loved one. Whatever it was, you can see that their own light is dimmer as they struggle to cope with a major change. Maybe you don’t know what to say? Here’s a news flash – you don’t have to say anything, and if you do find words you want to share, they may or may not be able...

Are there people who suck the life out of you? They need more from you than you have to give, or they don’t value your time or your patience or your support or your caring heart, yet they constantly want even more from you? Yep, today’s Tiny Bite is about boundaries. People who suck the life out of you either violate your boundaries or you haven’t set any boundaries to keep their neediness from bl...

How often do you feel insignificant? Many people feel like who they are and what they do doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Maybe they even feel they’re not making a difference in this world. Does that sound like you, even just a little bit? Please know this: it’s very human to take our strengths for granted because they come easily to us. It’s very human to assume that others are at le...

How do you feel when someone doesn’t like you? The answer is probably a big, “it depends!” Let’s say it’s someone important in your daily life and it feels like there’s been a big misunderstanding. Do you try to help them understand who you are? Do you do things for them so they can see what a good person you are? Think about it – you don’t like every single person in your life, right? Accept that...

Are you a confident person? Before you answer that, how old are you? If you’re between 20 and 30, your self-esteem is just over 50% of what it will be when you’re between 50 and 60. Why is that? Because the more life you lead, the more you prove to yourself that you can handle stuff. Confidence grows with age because we gain more perspective, in addition to learning that many problems aren’t even...

What do you love to do outside of what you do for a living? In other words, what is your hobby? Hiking with your dog? Pickleball? Going to places you’ve never been before, either down the block or around the world? Whatever feeds your soul, do it. When you look at your weekly calendar you should see your hobby showing up there somehow. Block out time for what feeds your soul and don’t let work or...

Think of every argument you’ve ever been part of – there were at least two people in it, right? What do you do when a family member, friend, or co-worker gets mad and wants to argue with you? You can just let them vent. Go ahead, give them plenty of time to spout their irritation. When they run out of steam and are finally quiet, take a breath before you start to reply. Let there be space in...

Are you self-employed, or maybe you have a job with minimal supervision, requiring you to set your own schedule and police your own time? Do you sometimes find it hard to prioritize your many to-do’s? It may help to spend a few minutes today categorizing all the things you need to get done in order to do your job well: Income-producing tasks Marketing tasks Tax-related tasks Networking tasks Busin...

How do you feel when you can’t answer a question? Many people hold themselves to impossible standards and then beat themselves up when they fall short in any way. Don’t know the answer to a question? Beats self up. Can’t figure out how to do something. Beats self up. Single-handedly takes on a project that’s really a task for three people, and then can’t complete it on time. Beats self up. Did I m...

Quick – think about this: what do you have in your life that’s really valuable? Most people think of their car or house or other material things. Those are valuable, for sure. What’s really valuable to me – and maybe to you, too – is a bit different. I love that my eyes work. I love being able to tell the difference between my two dogs in the dark, just with my fingertips. I love walking through a...

When you have a big idea, people get scared. Maybe they’re scared of the bigness of the idea, and maybe they’re scared for you because they don’t want to see you fail. Big ideas scare people, and when people are frightened, the worst parts of their personalities come out. Jealousy and a desire for you to fail comes out in some people. Others want to make you conform so they won’t look bad by compa...

Frustration is so frustrating! You are trying to do something that doesn’t make sense, it refuses to make sense, and you feel mired in your inability to make it make sense. That feeling sucks, doesn’t it? You feel like you can’t, like you’ll never be able to, and thoughts like that take you down the “beating yourself up” road. Stop. When you feel frustration coming on, take a walk. It could be up...

Are you a reader? I love books and usually have two or three going at a time. Most of them are non-fiction, and there’s usually a fiction tossed in for fun. Do you ever just stop reading a book? I do, though it rarely happens with non-fiction. Sometimes I’ve chosen a fictional tale that I thought I’d like and then discover I really kinda don’t. Does that happen to you, too? You keep reading, and s...

Is there someone in your life who can be very very very difficult to be around? They run on knee-jerk emotion, are offensively defensive, and the cherry on top is that they’re judgmental? Wow…fun times! Wouldn’t it be lovely to wave a wand and have them suddenly be the balanced, reasonable, fun person you wish they could be? Yeah…not gonna happen. And the harder you try to help them behave better,...

I saw a young man a few days ago with the sweetest, shyest smile. We didn’t know each other – our paths crossed at an event where I was in a position to help him a little bit. I complimented his smile and he proudly told me he’d be getting his braces off in a month, and his smile got a little bit bigger. I made a lame joke about how it would feel for him to go out in the world with naked teeth, an...

Yesterday you were strong physically. You moved boxes around, maxed out your steps for the day and added more, and you rarely slowed down. Today you woke up a bit sore and slow, yet you still took care of the things you had to take care of, showed up for others to the best of your ability, and didn’t even come close to the level of physical strength you demonstrated yesterday. Today you’re still s...

Are you a smart person? Most people consider themselves reasonably smart, especially those who did well in school, because they were told often in their formative years that they were smart. As we grow and age, the smartest people are the ones who: consider different perspectives than their own, usually have at least one non-fiction book in the process of being read, admit when they’re wrong, are...

People aren’t either friends or enemies. People aren’t either lovers or haters. People aren’t either for you or against you. Most people are much bigger than that. Sure, coins have two sides, and black and white are the absence of and the presence of the full spectrum of color. People are the full spectrum too. People can be an acquaintance, neither friend nor enemy. People can fall out of love wi...

Why is it so hard to forgive another person? Why is it so easy to relive a personal affront over and over inside your head, having imaginary arguments until you finally win? Why do you insist on getting even? Pride, and I’m not talking about a group of lions. Our own sense of self – our pride – is an important part of feelings of self-worth and self-confidence. Pride is not a bad thing until it’s...