Great Christmas Ad: Teen Make a Gift for His Family: Misunderstood: Challenge Our Assumptions :)) Happy Holidays to Everyone

My Little Niece: A Short Digital Story to Commemorate the Final Day of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence: Thank You, Center for Digital Storytelling and the Asian Women's Shelter

Depression: "I Had a Black Dog" The Equal Opportunity Mongrel... 450,000,000 People Affected by Mental Illness, Worldwide and We CAN Do Something to Help and Heal! Reach Out, Be Authentic and Practice Empathy and Gratitude... That's a Start :)

National Violence Monitoring System (NVMS) is Used in Indonesia to Actualize Their Policy of Sharing Commitment to Reducing Violence

Why Does the Educational System in Finland Work So Well? Quite Simply...

The Power of Vulnerability: Dr. Brene Brown Speak About Shame & How We "Armour Up" Which Blocks Any Chance to Meet Our Irreducible Needs as Men, Women & Growing Our Children

In Honor of Veterans Day: The Timelapse Transformation of Jim Wolf, US Army Veteran, Walking Wounded for Many Years. Thank you, DeGage Ministries and Rob Bliss Creative

The Relationship Spectrum: How It Works: LoveIsRespect.org Uses a Great Tool to Help Teens Evaluate If Any Relationship They Are Contemplating Is Healthy or Not? Parents, Please Get Involved and Talk to Your Teens!

"Loved to Death" Highlights the Tragedy of Teen Violence and Break Up Precipitating Murder- This is Not Love, People. This is Obsession & Violence.

Jessica's "Daily Affirmation" Such Powerful Messages! The Way We Talk to Ourselves Sets the Tone for How We talk to Others How We Allow Others to Talk to Us :) Happy Monday!

Iversity: On Line Education for Everyone!!

"That's Not Cool" is a Fantastic Resource for Parents of Tweens and Teens: Tell Them to Join in the Conversation!

Break the Silence! Stop Teen Dating Violence! Thank You, CDC Streaming Health!

As we kick off the summer, it's a great time to remember that preventing/reducing/stopping teen violence is a "learning thing."It's a shared responsibility and there is no such thing as "NONE OF MY BUSINESS." Smokey the Bear was right. "ONLY YOU CAN PREVENT FOREST FIRES." The "fires" of violence spark and burn and we all can work together to teach, model, defuse situations before they escalate, spark and burn out of control. These are our children, and they deserve the best guidance we can provide, right? This is a great video and tool to begin that discussion... grab a pizza and a teen (or two!) and watch it together. Ignore the eye roll :)) and carry on...

Cow and Gate Supergroup: From the UK (Of Course!) Focusing on Feeding Their Personalities! Lovely!!

Santa Clara County's Teen Audrie Pott's Tragic Suicide Resonates Deeply With Us. It Starts In Preschool as Michael Pritchard Discusses How We Can Identify and Address Bullying in Preschool Aged Children

Change the Stigma Against People with Mental Illness- Let the Change Begin with Each of Us..

Twub is the Tool for the Voice of the Child II Conference on April 26, 2013

Positive Affirmations: The Beauty of the Morning Meeting: A Model of Refreshing Self Talk :)

Morning Memo: The Importance of the Morning Sales Meeting

I've been reading a lot about neurological research and bias lately. I particularly am fascinated by how easily we are influenced by our "hard wired" desire to keep our lives "predictable" even though life is anything BUT predictable. So, if our brain is designed to believe that  whatever we tell it is TRUE, then it seems like the wisest course is to consciously direct what our brain is telling us. I tell my brain "X" and then my brain tells me "X".  So... if I tell myself "I am going to create my very best effort today" then I am prescribing a direction and a purposeful action plan for my day's activity. If I focus on having an "attitude of gratitude" as I begin this daily trek, I can arm myself with the patience, compassion, and sense of humor(!) I will need as I greet each day. I find that the easiest way to develop that is by making my "Gratitude List." "I am grateful for..." And that's how we "sell" ourselves on actualizing the plan! Simple...

OnGuard OnLine is a Great Resource for Safety Tips Online

Dancing Boy at a Pacer's Game Adds a Smile to Your Face - What a Way to Start a Meeting!

"Bullies Kill, Words Scar, Rumors Destroy"

Kaelynn shouts it out (although she is silent in this brief video) against all bullies, after numerous years of enduring her own torturous abuse until her friend's suicide galvanized her to take action to stand up, speak up and call on all of us to protect others. It is very difficult for people to understand why this ability to "save " someone else motivates people to reach beyond their own perceived ability to help themselves. Yet, they can. History is full of examples of these people. They walk among us, every day. Social scientists have studied this and confirmed this ability (described as reflecting "empathy" or "agape", among other terms). What a brave heart lives within this young woman. She deserves our gratitude, our prayers and our willingness to demonstrate our courage to stand up in front of her and say no more. We will not stand by and say nothing. Nor will we participate or silently "pass it on." Thank you, Kaelynn. Thank you for finding your voice and sharing it here...

Contemplative Lawyers: Some Mindful Resources- Thank you, Stephanie at idealawg!

http://westallen.typepad.com/idealawg/2008/09/contemplative-lawyers-some-mindfulness-resources.html

PSA About Stopping the Easy Access to Guns and Please Note the Violence Against Women Act Has Lapsed in the U.S.

This powerful, 2007 London commercial shows images of the impact of a bullet on an apple, an egg, a watermelon and a water bottle.  London ad agency AMV BBDO got a former Navy SEAL to shoot the items and the photography was slowed to 10,000 frames per second. There are no images of harm to any animal or human in this video. Thank you, BuzzFeed.

Guided Relaxation Exercises for Teenagers and the People Who Love Them!

Beautiful "Duck Run" Where Nature Shows How Little Ones "Pick Their Person(s)"

What a Beautiful and Inspiring Video- Thank you, Arthur.

Beautiful Short Video on Helping Families Get "Un-Stuck"- Thank you, Ackerman Institute, New York City!

New Brand with Wordle and Facebook Page Launch

I am catching up with "modern times" today. On the strong advice from others (ya, ya, ya...) I have made this new Wordle, which includes various "synonyms" with my mission statement and my professional foci (I learned that is the plural form for the word "focus".) 

I also started my professional Facebook Page:

(https://www.facebook.com/CounselorsConsultantsInc.) 

That was absolutely frightening... There was no time to do a "draft" or think it over! I tend to value and fully embrace the beauty and wonder in reflection, running ideas and drafts by my "FOCI GROUP" (gotta work in that new word) and generally operate by the principle "When in doubt, DON'T." 

However, I discovered today that this is not how social media works. I have been inspired by Stephanie Kimbro, my MILO listserve mates, Brandify, MyCase, Virtual Mediation Labs and numerous clients to forge ahead. These folks have no idea of their inspirational impact and are not responsible for any of these decisions. Thank you for your kind tolerance. 

"There is no such thing as bad feedback. Good news or bad news; it is all valuable! Thank you."

"Broken Trust Depicts the Impact of Harsh Anti-Immigrant Sentiment: Harming Children