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Book Review

Can Practical Wisdom Save Us?

Even if you’ve never studied a lick of philosophy, you’ve likely heard of Aristotle. Living from (c. 384 B.C. to 322 B.C.), he was an Ancient Greek philosopher and scientist who is still considered one of the greatest thinkers in politics, psychology and ethics. I’ve been considering how interesting it is that we are so heavily influenced by the minds and hearts of those that lived 2000+ years ago. I wonder if this points to what is amiss in our cultural evolution as humans.  How is it that we are still looking to thinkers from ancient times to solve the problems we face in

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My Thoughts

Post-Traumatic Growth of Wisdom after Covid

It is both a popular belief and a research backed notion that wisdom is gained through experience.  The more challenging the experience, the more opportunity for growth. Situations that push us to the limits of our endurance are called “ultimate limit experiences,”and they can accelerate the development of wisdom. The psychological term for inner growth that springs from stressful experiences, is “post-traumatic growth.” These two areas of research overlap, and ultimately come to the same conclusion: The opportunity for growth exists within all crisis, but not everyone who goes through a life crisis becomes wise as a result. The Post-traumatic growth of wisdom after

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My Thoughts

The Skill of Wisdom: Part 2

In The Skill of Wisdom: Part 1 we defined wisdom as insight in action: The integration of the rational brain (knowledge), with the emotional brain (experience), which creates insight; or deeper, intuitive knowing. This deep knowing put into action is wisdom. To practice wisdom so to practice living from the balanced state of the wise mind.  Dr. Marsha Linehan, the founder of DBT (Dialectical Behavior Therapy), says “Wise Mind is like having a heart – everyone has one, whether they experience it or not.” Thus, this is something we all possess naturally, even if we are not aware of it all the time or

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My Thoughts

The Skill of Wisdom: Part 1

If you ask 10 people “What is wisdom?” you will likely get 10 different answers, but connecting them are likely underlying themes, such as having a wealth of knowledge, but knowing the limits of that knowledge, taking different perspectives into account, giving good advice, or having self-awareness. Often we decide who is wise by observing the outcomes of the decisions they make in their lives and the quality of their relationships. We see the wisdom they hold through their actions. Often wisdom is used synonymously with knowledge or insight, but if you dive a little deeper, you will find that knowledge and insight are

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