Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Attitude adjustment”
When I was 16 years old, I trained to be a lifeguard. The lesson on our very first day surprised me. In the movies, the rescuer shouts, “I’ll save you!” then dives in and swims madly toward the drowning person. It turns out that in real rescues, you only get in the water as a very last resort. Instead, the …
What’s the difference between hope and false expectations? How do we know when to hope for the best and when we’re deluding ourselves? In each case, we’re throwing ourselves open to faith, to things we can’t control or predict. Is there such a thing as healthy and unhealthy hope, and if so, where’s the line? On the one hand, I’ve often found the …
Have you ever met an earth angel–a regular person in an everyday place who says something deeply profound at just the moment you need to hear it most? Yesterday, my local post office clerk was that angel. “Keep your fingers crossed for me, Roy,” I said, handing him my book in an envelope addressed to a screenplay reviewer in L.A. …
It’s 6 am, the morning I’m due to fly from Boston to Chicago for a cable TV interview. One thousand miles away, an FAA employee takes his own life by setting fire to Chicago Airport’s air traffic control tower. All flights in and out are cancelled. I get the last seat on a 25-hour overnight train. To my right, a petite woman …
In Spanish, the word “esperar” means both to wait and to hope. This is a good lesson. How many of us wait not with hope, but with impatience and doubt? Much of life requires waiting, and how we wait can make all the difference to our happiness. When you’re on a long line at the post office, on hold for …
I’m sad to report that today, I was an airport asshole. As I stood in line for the ticket counter, jammed in among several screaming babies, frazzled moms with carry-on car seats, and a crew of eight buzz-cut army guys with two overstuffed duffle bags each, the wait around the four winding turnstiles to the ticket agents seemed endless. I …
Have you ever understood a loved one’s situation more clearly than he or she does, but weren’t sure whether to say something or to bite your tongue? The other day, my friend was talking on and on in an angry, confused haze about her unfaithful boyfriend, and I just wanted to blurt out, “Dump the dirtball!” Last month, a couple …
A couple of weeks ago, I became inspired to feng shui my house. The biggest area that needed improvement was my front door. Your entranceway is supposed to be “the mouth of Chi,” where you welcome in opportunity. Since my front door is also in the north, that’s the career area of my home. According to the feng shui map, …
I was visiting a quaint, historical city with my friend Suzanne, who had just slept over 10 hours that night. Although she had managed to control the urge to check her Blackberry for most of ourbrief vacation, she made the mistake of sneaking a quick peek. “Ugh, I’m so exhausted; I hardly got any sleep at all last night,” …
As Valentine’s Day approaches, many people start to feel pressured or anxious. Those in couples often resent the huge price mark-ups and the imperative to do something romantic whether they’re in the mood or not. Single people often feel lonely and depressed, either rushing to make plans or giving excuses of why they don’t really care about this day anyway. …
