Have you ever been asked a serious question that you were hesitant to answer because it was uncomfortable? It wasn’t that you felt awkward as much as answering it would call into question something you said or did. My dad was a master at this. He would say or do something that was hurtful or…
Have you ever had those times when your significant other seems upset or out of sorts? It may be that he or she is unusually quiet or they simply appear to be distant or cold. So, what do you do? Well, if you are like most of us, you ask, “Is something wrong?” or “Are…
Have you ever caught your child red-handed, getting into the cookies when they were told not to because dinner would be ready in 20 minutes? As you stand there in anger and disbelief, you are befuddled by what you are seeing. But even as you see it happening, your kid tries to deny the crime.…
Have you ever gone into a downtown to go shopping at perhaps a high-rise of stores and had to pay for parking? But if you actually go into one of those stores and purchase something, you can ask them if they validate, and they will, so that you don’t have to pay for parking. Today…
In my last “Relationships Tip Tuesdays” I began discussing the ways in which we often unwittingly build up walls (sometimes massive) between us and our mate. Typically we find ourselves feeling hurt or discounted by the other person and the trust and safety that we once felt begins to slowly erode. We may find ourselves…
Do you remember when you first began dating your mate? I know that for some, that may have been a long time ago. But one of the things that we hopefully experience that keeps us coming back, is a sense that we can trust this person. We trust them not just to be physically safe…
There are a handful of topics that can easily derail a couple and finances is near the top of the list. Sometimes the issue is most challenging because there is just not enough money to make ends meet. But for many, the bigger issue is disagreement with how best for a couple to manage their…
Now my wife would say “No.” She does not like to be the center of attention. However, she likes to have my attention just as I like to have hers. A 2017 study on relationship experiences was published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. The research found that on days that a person’s…
While I certainly pray that is not the case, Jamil Zaki, a Stanford psychologist and director of its Social Neuroscience Laboratory, states, “If you wanted to design a system to break empathy, you could scarcely do better than the society we’ve created.” He believes that we are becoming more and more disengaged, citing the amount…
My wife and I have four grandkids ranging from 6 months to 4 years of age. As I have watched the newest one with her mother, I continue to be fascinated with the bonding process. I know from watching Erica interacting with our granddaughter, just how vital and easily that connection can happen. And securely…