Today I’m excited to present a guest post from author Paul Maurice Martin.  Paul’s experiences with Trappist monks as well as years in education help him lend a unique perspective to the topic of meditation.  Enjoy! —S.
Meditation is often discussed online today. But sometimes I think it’s discussed to the point of making it sound [...]

I’ll say it up front: this post won’t pertain to everyone.  Here’s how to know if I’m talking to you.  Imagine the first words out of your mouth in the following situations:
*Someone squeezes next to you in a cramped aisle
*You ate the last slice of pizza
*Someone commented on your clothing
*Your boss made a neutral statement [...]

Is there someone in your life who seems to handle things in stride, even when everyone else is jumping out of their skin?  That person is not me.  But I have tremendous respect for those folks, and have dreams of one day being that calm and collected.
Day to day drama can erupt around you on [...]

I’m not one to worry about getting older or avoid birthdays.  (Give me another decade and I might get a bit more concerned, but I hope not.)  In fact, as another birthday approaches, the overwhelming feeling I have is, “Thank goodness I’m older!”  Think I’m kidding? Try these reasons on for size:

You can live the [...]

While it may sound simpler to live in shades of black and white with no messy gray area to deal with, it’s not a great idea.  Thinking in terms of black and white boundaries that are set and unchanging comes with one huge problem: the world (and your life) simply doesn’t work that way.  Eventually, [...]

Have you ever felt like you were on a path that propelled you forward, regardless of your intent or interests?  You’ve gone too far in your education to switch paths, or you’re tightly tied to the expectations of family and friends. There are as many reasons to stay on a path as there are people [...]

JD Roth has written (quite effectively) on the different stages of personal finance that we all seem to go through. I can’t help but wonder if there’s any correlation with personal development. Do we all go through phases or levels as we strive to reach personal development goals?  If we do, what would they look [...]

“I’ve been trying to simplify my life and focus more on everyday pleasures. I’ve cut down on a bunch of stuff, but my life is as crazy as ever. What’s the problem?”
I don’t know the intimate details of anyone’s schedule but my own, but I’ve got an almost surefire way to figure out why this [...]