The Sanskrit word Lila loosely translated means “divine play." Play is one of those words we’ve done ourselves the great disservice of oversimplifying. We’ve let it become something we regard as childish, frivolous, un-serious. Even if we appreciate the potential for...

“That might be the best answer I’ve heard.” That’s what I thought recently when a prospective client was explaining to me why she wanted to do this work. She was going through a crisis in her life that was showing up in a variety of ways but centered on the very...

Why can’t we agree on things that used to seem obvious? Why are people betraying so many of the values they used to cling to? Why is lying, hypocrisy, and hate so flagrant and unapologetic now? Let’s get back to that in a minute, ok? I remember being on the phone with...

Have you noticed a big letdown recently? It shows up in a lot of different forms, but I think they’re all related. -Eve did a great job of keeping her business going even when it seemed unlikely. Now things have stabilized and are even on the upswing. Unfortunately,...

My friend was telling me she felt stuck with the masculine version of God. She didn’t agree with it intellectually. It didn’t make any sense to her. She felt God must be all things, including gender (and no gender). But she still couldn’t override the default setting...

In 1987, a woman named Pat Schroeder gave a speech announcing that she was ending her campaign for the presidency. It was unusual for a woman to run at all in those days so that drew some notice. But what really got their attention? She cried. That was a disqualifier....

I found out my friend has ALS. I didn’t respond right away. I postponed, I avoided, I tried to get used to the idea. I finally sent the “can we talk” text. And when he agreed, when I knew we were going to talk...then came the grief. It took me days to move through all...

Last week I attended an online event where one of the presenters was breakthrough play consultant Gary Ware. He led us through some games that had no immediate goal - what I mean by that is, there was nothing to win or lose, nobody was keeping score, and there was...

Did anybody get what they really wanted out of the election? Yes, the Presidency will change hands, and I in no way mean to downplay that. But I think both sides were really dreaming of a total repudiation of the other. We hoped that the results would reveal that many...

A week or so before the election, I heard a political reporter interpreting some polling. He was making the point that the information gave a pretty clear indication of what results we could expect, and that if this were any other election, we would feel pretty...

Our personal and cultural mythologies are very powerful. And when they get disrupted, the results can be both transformative and chaotic.   For the last four years, many of us have wondered what it would take to bring Trump down. He has broken every rule, norm, and...

As I write this I’m doing my best not to puke in my own mouth.   I really don’t want to say this, but I think it’s important...   I suggest we forgive the President.   He is a sick old man who is facing his demise politically and literally. For his entire term, I have...

How does a spiritual practice work?   You probably have a good idea of why you would do one, or what you hope to achieve or create, but how does it function? I bring this up because I believe having some sense of this helps enhance the results.   For me, there are...

Does it feel like part of you is stalled? Treading water? Killing time until things change?   We’re at a peculiar intersection in the big transition. It feels like this is both never going to end while also coming to a head quickly. It can result in a kind of...

What can we learn by understanding our “Inner Saboteur” better?   I recently appeared as a guest on the Profitable Joyful Consulting Podcast. To get you in the mood, I decided to focus this piece on one of the central components of our relationship with the...

How are you holding up in the face of this never ending stream of fear, anger, and hate?   Do you get sucked in, ranting, arguing, or compulsively sharing “Look how stupid they are” posts and videos? It’s tempting - after all, they are really, really stupid.   Do you...