Several weeks ago, I began a short blog series exploring the myths that people believe about calling. I have coached hundreds of people over the last several years – NFL players, CEOs, retirees, fraternity guys, soccer moms, etc. and these five myths continue to pop up frequently in our conversations. Myth one: My calling and...Read More

One of the catalysts in the Big Quit, the recent flood of resignations hitting businesses these days, is the dream of having a job that provides more personal meaning. This is a good thing if the end result…the new job… allows an individual to contribute in significant ways to the world. Certainly, the world needs...Read More

This quote is still rumbling around in my head…“When we are no longer able to change a situation… we are challenged to change ourselves.” Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning. I referenced that quote in my last post about developing resilience in a time of ambiguous loss. Frankl, a Holocaust survivor, certainly spoke with authority...Read More

It is what it is. Ugh…I can’t stand that phrase. Probably because it sounds too superficial to me. But as glib as it sounds, that expression does capture the shoulder-shrugging reality of the ambiguous losses we’re all facing these days. I’ve been thinking about the lack of resolution imposed upon us by the waves of...Read More

The other day I took my grandson Jude to my office. He loves going there, because the company that has graciously allowed me to have office space also has a break room for its employees. It’s loaded with all kinds of fun activities like Foosball, bumper pool, ping pong, and video games. We had a...Read More

In my last post I reflected on the “losses without conclusion” I and many others are facing in these days of COVID. I was captivated by an interview I heard with social scientist, Dr. Pauline Boss, who has pioneered research on this idea of “ambiguous loss”. Her early work was summarized in the book Ambiguous...Read More

Last night I developed a fever along with aches and chills. I assumed that COVID had finally caught up with me. I have been sick with a respiratory illness for 5 straight weeks…going through COSTCO level amounts of Kleenex, Advil and Mucinex. And I’ve taken 5 COVID tests assuming that it had gotten me, including...Read More

Disillusions all come from within…from the failure of some dear and secret hope. The world makes no promises; we only dream it does; and when we wake, we cry! Pearl Mary Teresa Craigie All over the world, in the next few weeks, many children, likely between the ages of 5 and 9, will suddenly become...Read More

I was not prepared for my transition. This, even though I saw it coming many months in advance. It didn’t sneak up on me. I certainly thought I was prepared for the change, my retirement from many decades of one type of work. I wasn’t. And neither are many of you as you face a...Read More

Pain has a disorienting effect on just about everything, doesn’t it? Take, for instance, the misfortune of a chronic illness. You face the double whammy of physical discomfort coupled with the realization that you might not be able to do your job or pursue your career in the same way anymore. “Now what?” might be...Read More