I ain’t gonna lie – it’s been a hard week at my house. I’m doing all the things that comfort me: playing music, writing, exercising, connecting with folks, (there is a little ice cream involved, too…). My mom sent me this article to cheer me up: “Who Has the Secret to Well-Being? The Answer May Surprise You.” Spoiler alert: the answer is toddlers. Toddlers who talk to themselves, who move, who ask over 100 questions an hour! And who look … read more »
Fight Right!
Sometimes when I am working with couples in conflict, I think, “Oh, they care about each other so much, it’s too bad that they can’t stay together.” And sometimes I wonder, “How did they ever get together in the first place?” I’ve been aware of this dichotomy for some time but have not really thought about what would trigger these different reactions in me. Then, around Valentine’s Day, I heard an episode of the LifeKit podcast about John and Julie … read more »
Collective Trauma and Healing
It’s been 4 years since Covid came and changed our collective lives forever. You remember – schools and offices closed suddenly, and we all stayed home for so long. We thought it might last a few weeks, remember? But then weeks turned into months which turned into years…. Sometimes it feels hard to remember that the shutdown happened at all. Sometimes it feels hard to remember what things were like before it. We are generally focused on other things now, … read more »
How to Become a Possibilist
CNN recently published this photo of President Biden, taken on his way to Camp David last weekend. The book he is holding is Possible: How We Survive (and Thrive) in an Age of Conflict the newest book by William Ury, who was a coauthor of Getting to Yes, which is one of the foundational books of conflict resolution. Ury, who often works with seemingly intractable conflicts, was challenged to distill his 50-year career to one sentence. Here’s what he came … read more »
Embryos: children or property?
Are frozen embryos that have never been implanted in a human uterus, children, or property? I have written divorce agreements with clauses about the disposition of frozen embryos – and always under the heading “Personal Property.” I’ve never had clients suggest that they should be anywhere else. Yet the recent Alabama decision that the embryos in that case were “children” who were “killed” and subject to a wrongful death lawsuit is sending shock waves through the country. Here’s how it … read more »
All That You Can’t Say
I’ve been obsessed with Tracy Chapman since I saw that stellar performance she gave of Fast Car at the Grammy Awards with Luke Combs. I used to listen to her a LOT. This week, I’ve been singing her music repeatedly, rediscovering old songs like they were buried treasures. I found the words to Baby Can I Hold You that I just had to share with you: “Sorry” Is all that you can’t say Years gone by, and still Words don’t … read more »
Traveling with the kids
Today is the beginning of the February school break in NYC, so I thought I’d share some ideas about traveling with the kids when you are co-parenting. There’s a balance between protecting your privacy and respecting your co-parent’s right to know where and how their child is. The general rule of thumb, I think, is to use the Golden Rule (‘do unto others as you would have others do unto you’). In other words, think about what you would want … read more »
Look What You’ve Done!
For the last 11 years, I’ve been honored to run the estate of the late, great bandleader, Count Basie. One of the undisputed joys of this assignment has been getting to know the leadership of the Count Basie Orchestra and getting to hear the Band whenever they’re in town. And I’m thrilled to let you know that they’ve just won a Grammy Award for Best Large Ensemble Jazz Album for Basie Swings the Blues, which came out last year. Count … read more »
The SOP of PB&J
I’m working with a tech coach who is helping me simplify my work life by automating procedures. It turns out that simplifying things is very complicated. She’s talking to me about SOPs – Standard Operating Procedures. These are really kind of checklists. I remember being very impressed by Dr. Atul Gawande’s book, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right when it came out in 2011. Dr. Gawande is a surgeon. You (or at least I) kind of hope that … read more »
Does this register?
“There shouldn’t be a registry for weddings, there should be one for divorces,” a client said recently. These days, many people actually need very little when they are getting married, either because they had established their own homes as adults or because they were already living together. It’s when the relationship is ending that they need help. One divorcing spouse has to buy new beds and sofas and cutting boards and sheets and pots and pans. Some couples carefully divide … read more »
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- …
- 32
- Next Page »