Inner Knowing…
I’ve been doing some research on a new organization: the International Listening Association. I decided to join, and just submitted an announcement about my book, “Head, Heart & Hands Listening in Coach Practice” along with a lovely review by one of their established members -whom I met through a rare bit of synchronicity. Laura Janusik […]
The Curious Coach 1: What are You Curious About Right Now?
One of the reasons I coach is that I have always been fascinated with human behavior. Always. Even as a very small child. My parents, when they were newly married, owned a very modest row of ground level apartments. In the summertime, everyone’s back doors were wide open to the breeze, as well as the […]
Who’s Got Time to Listen??? You Do!
Sam sits in front of me shaking his head. His shoulders are hunched in frustration. His mouth is a tight line, his eyes are closed. “I just can’t accept this. I’m sorry, but there’s no way. The math just doesn’t work.” Sam is a third year medical student in a large teaching hospital. He is […]
Behavioral Fractals: The Art of Coaching to Reframe Emotional Patterns
My meditation this morning was about fractals. For some reason, fractals have always fascinated me. From a galaxy’s graceful arc to the delicate veins of a leaf, nature weaves its design with fractal precision. These patterns, repeating themselves at various scales, find their mirror in human behavior. Much like the fractals that permeate the natural […]
Listening Lessons through Rhythm, Sound & Silence
My husband and I don’t get to our city’s symphony concerts often. To me, classical music, while lovely and quite uplifting when I’m in the mood for it, often feels a bit too formal for my tastes – a bit too stuffy to spend significant sums of money for. Also, true disclosure – it brings […]
Heart Listening Challenges: Burnout & Limiting Self Perception
Powerful empathic listening is what the world most needs right now. But for those who excel in this listening style, there can be significant downsides. Maya loved her job as a residence social worker at Harper Community. She is an empathic listener, and appeared, for a long time, to have an inexhaustible supply of […]
Shhhh! The Quiet Surprises of Silence
“Patricia” is a brilliant colleague who will NOT stop talking. Do you know someone like this? A group of us drove with Patricia for 3 hours to an educational event, and she proceeded to carry on her 1-way “conversation” for the entire drive. I kept wondering how she was able to continue this stream of […]
“The Way We Do Things Around Here” – Ritual can Infuse Meaning into Daily Life
What’s your morning routine? Have you thought about it? Do you know why you take the same actions consistently to greet the day? Are you aware of how you feel when, for any reason, you can’t complete them? As it is December, and here in New England, the days are increasingly dark and cold, I’ve […]
Empathy – Your Time-Saving Superpower!
“Brent” is not happy. As a newly hired emergency room physician within a nationally recognized healthcare system, he has been “volun-told” to show up to a four day onsite training on “Patient-Provider Communications”, which translates in his assumption as a Colossal Waste of Time. “At least the location is decent.” he thinks as he turns […]
Don’t Rip the HeART out of Education!
Stinky. Sullen. Bad Attitude. A Problem. Yeah we were pretty sure we had Joe pegged. How wrong we were… Years ago I was teaching in a summer Shakespeare program for teenagers. Every once and awhile, we would get a kid like Joe. He radiated defiance from his tattered running shoes to his sullen stare. Joe […]