The Practice of Gratitude
"There are really three medicines that you should put in your medicine bundle every day, which are the power of genuine acknowledgment and gratitude, genuine apology, and the spirit of laughter and joy." So begins a heartwarming interview with Angeles Arrien, a teacher, author, and cultural anthropologist, who is affectionately called the "Gratitude Lady". Here, Arrien speaks to Sounds True about ... posted on Sep 17 2012, 30,036 reads

The Hidden Power of Character
A child's success can't be measured in IQ scores, standardized tests or vocabulary quizzes, says author Paul Tough. Success, he argues, is about how young people build character. Tough explores this idea in his new book, 'How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character.' This NPR piece shares more.... posted on Sep 16 2012, 9,097 reads

How To Trick Your Brain for Happiness
"In recent years, we have started to better understand the neural bases of states like happiness, gratitude, resilience, love, compassion, and so forth. And better understanding them means we can skillfully stimulate the neural substrates of those states -- which, in turn, means we can strengthen them." In this article, Rick Hanson describes how to skillfully use the mind to amplify positive conne... posted on Sep 15 2012, 147,922 reads

Free Money Day: Giving Is Common Cents
Last year on September 15, people at over 60 locations worldwide handed out their own money to complete strangers. Participants committed to give two small coins or banknotes to strangers, asking these strangers to pass one of them on to someone else -- as a symbolic gesture, not a donation. Quirky? Yes. Likely to elicit questions and dialogue? They hoped so. The idea was for this simple exercise ... posted on Sep 14 2012, 14,051 reads

New Zealand's River That Is A Person
From the dawn of history, and in cultures throughout the world, humans have been prone to imbue Earth's life-giving rivers with qualities of life itself -- a fitting tribute, no doubt, to the wellsprings upon which our past (and present) civilizations so heavily rely. But while modern thought has come to regard these essential waterways more clinically over the centuries, that might all be changin... posted on Sep 13 2012, 7,217 reads

This Larger Thing in the World
Mildred Howard sees things differently. Over 20 years ago, she was commissioned to create a house made out of glass bottles. That was her first of several bottle houses that have each made powerful, beautiful political and social statements. As an artist, community organizer, and leader, Mildred's colourful life embodies radical change. In this interview with works & conversations, Mildred speaks ... posted on Sep 12 2012, 3,969 reads

Two Mothers & Their Brave Friendship: A 9/11 Story
Two mothers. Phyllis Rodriguez lost her son, Greg, in the attack on the World Trade Center. Aicha el-Wafi's son, Zacarias Moussaoui, was an al Qaeda terrorist convicted of conspiring to commit the attack. When they met in November of 2002, Phyllis didn't see Aicha as her enemy; she saw a woman experiencing much the same grief as she was. "Our suffering is equal. Yet I'm treated with sympathy; she ... posted on Sep 11 2012, 4,772 reads

10 Life-Changing Perspectives On Anger
We all have had our moments of impatience, rage and frustration...but how do these moments affect our lives? Get curious about anger, and you just might discover an untapped well of vital energy that improves your life circumstances and wakes you up to the whole of life. This article offers 10 powerful perspectives on anger.... posted on Sep 10 2012, 0 reads

How to Change When Change Is Hard
"Find a bright spot and clone it. That's the first step to fixing everything from addiction to corporate malaise to malnutrition. A problem may look hopelessly complex. But there's a game plan that can yield movement on even the toughest issues. And it starts with locating a bright spot -- a ray of hope." So begins this excerpt in Fast Company from the best-seller "Switch: How to Change When Chang... posted on Sep 09 2012, 33,313 reads

The Little Guide To Contentedness
"Let's take a look at my life before contentedness: I was addicted to junk food and fast food, and overweight and unhealthy. I bought too many things on impulse, owned too much clutter, and was deeply in debt and struggling to make it to the next payday. I was unhappy with who I was, wanted desperately to change, tried a thousand different programs and books. I was always changing the way I did th... posted on Sep 08 2012, 36,985 reads