My Favorite Couples Counseling Tricks
One tool that a therapist can use to help alleviate patients’ suffering is to guide them to see situations from new perspectives. Obviously this intervention does not apply in all cases, but with high-functioning [...]
The Atheist’s Guide to Surviving End Times: How To Lead A Meaningful Life When Civilization As We Know It Is Disintegrating
When asked why he hung a horseshoe over his door, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Niels Bohr replied, “I am told that they bring luck even to those who do not believe in them.” I think [...]
The Real Purpose of Dating and Why Married Couples Should Never Stop
I have had extraordinary success creating roadmaps for couples to invigorate or reinvigorate their relationships and one of the key ingredients has been dating. When couples come into my office, effective immediately they must [...]
7 Tricks To Disarm A Contrarian Spouse or Partner
If you’ve ever told your spouse or partner, “Y’know, it feels as if you debate everything I say,” and they responded, “No, I don’t,” you may have felt as if you were trapped in [...]
Would You Trade Your Life With The Life Of A One-Hit Wonder?
“In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” ~ Andy Warhol I must confess my fascination with one-hit wonders. Particularly those artists who at some point inexplicably spat out — possibly channelled — a morsel of [...]
What’s Your Default Response?
If you’ve ever told someone, “Y’know, you debate everything I say,” and your interlocutor responded, “No, I don’t,” you’ve already proven your point. This two‑line exchange is a perfect example of a self‑verifying, conversational [...]
What Is Expensive?
Human beings are fascinating creatures. Our belief in our own rationality is patently absurd. Poker players will tell you that if you can’t spot the sucker at the table, it’s probably you. Similarly, it’s [...]
“Marty Supreme,” “Hamnet,” “The Testament of Ann Lee,” “Nuremberg,” and “Is This Thing On?” Which You Need to See in Theaters and Which You Don’t
Regarding live performances, Derren Brown says that the number of audience coughs is inversely proportional to how good a show is, meaning that fewer coughs indicate that people are enjoying the show. Today that [...]
Telephone PTSD?
In prehistoric times, when a telephone rang in a home, all denizens would joyously scurry towards the plastic encased device as if it were Santa Claus descending their chimney with a satchel full of [...]
The 15 Coolest Things To Do In LA
Los Angeles is an awesome place to convene with like‑minded people in small venues to enjoy new music, food, art, comedy, yoga, lectures, and the occasional mind‑bending sermon. After decades of teaching, writing, and [...]