WHAT GAME ARE WE PLAYING? Consistency and certainty are conditions we all love. Even those of us who identify as highly spontaneous need some level of stability in life. Certainty is a core human need. One could say uncertainty shakes us to our core, because it does. We invest a great deal of time and energy trying to plan for the future because we want to know what is further down the road. We want to control at least some of what happens to us. But, is certainty an illusion and are we all trying to play a game with the universe where we win most of the time?  Okay, so if this is a game, how do we play …

In general terms, therapy or counseling is defined as treatment for a wide variety of mental health problems. I know, that’s pretty vague so I will tell you what I mean when I say therapy. Therapy is something you can do when you need extra help handling life’s challenges. I see clients who suffer from stress and anxiety disorders but, more often than not, I see people who want to improve their lives in some way. They want to see how they can become professionally successful. They want better relationships. They want to see how they can grow and become better versions of themselves. That’s what I think therapy can be for some and these are the people I typically see.  Having …

How Unconscious Strategies Manifest to Preserve Security There are many inspiring stories out there about people who started out with very little and became successful later in life. It is encouraging to hear or read those stories because it reminds us of how humans can overcome the greatest of obstacles and not just survive but thrive. Ultimately, becoming successful does not come without its challenges. You don’t become successful and that’s it; you’ve made it. Far from it. Depending on the person’s childhood experience (some of them being outright horrifying), the impact can be tough to overcome. I came from a working class home and it was apparent to me very early on that success was not a goal my …

The Second Time. The hours and money we invest in graduate school doesn’t add up to a small number. Depending on the type of master’s degree you earn, it may also entail more time and money after graduation to get you where you want to go. Then you have people like me who go to graduate school twice. Why I did that is not really important within the context of this article but I will say that I learned HOW to do it better the second time around. What made it better was not necessarily graduate school itself but what I did after I graduated. So you may be wondering what I did the first time around, right? What did I do …