Blog

  • Catastrophizing Is Coping

    Catastrophizing Is Coping

    Find yourself catastrophizing and coping when you are faced with an upset or problem? Find yourself looking at all the ways things can go wrong? Jump to the worst possible outcomes, regardless of how likely or unlikely they might be? How This Shows Up Screw up at work and immediately focus on being fired? Get…


  • Intention and Attention

    Intention and Attention

    To who and what did you show Intention and attention last week? Think about your last week and what you spent your time on. For the causes, purposes, initiatives. projects – were any of them yours, or did they start with and belong to someone or something else? Pursuing a shared vision can be powerful.…


  • Ownership Is Not “Being At Fault”

    Ownership Is Not “Being At Fault”

    One hurdle that people learning to practice Responsibility stumble on is the feeling that taking 100% Ownership means “being at fault.” You’re conditioned by cultural norms and past experiences to believe in “justice” as an assignment of fault and consequences: These structures and programs reinforce your natural coping strategies of Lay Blame, Justify, Shame, and…


  • # “People Are Our Foundation”

    # “People Are Our Foundation”

    Do you work for a company that claims “Our people are our foundation”? Maybe it’s that “People are our biggest asset” or phrased in another fashion. “Our heart is our people” perhaps? All of these sound noble and high-minded. Does your lived experience match? For many, unfortunately, no. All of these metaphorical framings betray themselves.…


  • “Acting Responsible” versus Being Responsible

    “Acting Responsible” versus Being Responsible

    What’s the difference between “acting responsible” and being Responsible? Ownership. 100%. It’s about your actions being 100% your full and free choice, or being made to meet an external standard that lets you give ownership away. “Acting Responsible” “Acting” responsible is often “doing the right thing.” According to what standard? Who’s making the call on…


  • You Must Be This Tall

    You Must Be This Tall

    There is no “You must be this tall to ride this ride” requirement for Responsibility. No apprenticeship. No “dues.” 10,000 hours not mandatory. You’ve already had many moments in your life where you’ve operated from the mental position of Responsibility. You may not have called it by that name. You faced a problem, you looked…


  • How People Talk about Problems

    How People Talk about Problems

    How people talk about problems reinforces coping, not solving and growing. Consider: “My car broke down, so now I have to deal with that.” That’s pretty common language. And it’s not “wrong” or “bad.” It encourages reacting to that situation – All of these are you “at effect.” Something happens to you, and you’re the…


  • There’s Always an Opportunity

    There’s Always an Opportunity

    There’s always an opportunity, a chance to “change your life,” a hot new thing. Many of those are exploiting your desire to have pain stop, or have a simple solution to all your problems. Focusing on “making things stop” is a coping strategy. Your brain and energy get anchored to thinking about the thing you…


  • Owning It

    Owning It

    Being conscious that everything you do is yours empowers you.


  • If You’re Reading This

    If You’re Reading This

    If you’re reading this, a lot has happened to make that possible. The sun continued to emit light, and the planet kept rotating. Untold millions of chemical reactions happened inside your body to keep you alive, nourish your heart and brain, and prompt you to wake up. Entire industries devoted to power generation and transmission…