Gratitude has consistently been shown to lower stress, reduce pain, boost immunity, and improve blood pressure and heart function. Here’s how to spread gratitude not just on Thanksgiving…but always.​

We released a micro learning video series on how to express gratitude so it sticks, and these tools are easy to learn.  Neuroscientist Glen Fox has spent his entire adult life studying gratitude. “Grateful people tend to recover faster from trauma and injury, have better and closer personal relationships and may even just have improved health overall.” Fox did an experiment using brain-imaging scans to map which circuits in the brain become active when we feel grateful.

“We saw that the participants’ ratings of gratitude correlated with activity in a set of brain regions associated with interpersonal bonding and with relief from stress,” he said. To up your conscious gratitude, Fox suggests keeping a gratitude journal. On a regular basis, write down what you are grateful for, even if those things seem mundane. The positive effect is cumulative so it’s a good idea to make this a habit. You can also write letters of gratitude to those who have helped you along your way. Says Fox, “I think that gratitude can be much more like a muscle, like a trained response or a skill that we can develop over time.”

When was the last time you actively expressed gratitude, and how did you feel? To join the conversation, click on "comments" below -- we would love to hear from you!

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Have you ever noticed that some connections just click — no effort, no awkwardness, just instant ease? Here's how to make that happen more often...

When we meet someone and feel an instant connection, we often attribute it to
our similarities. But according to behavioral scientists, Dr. Maya Rossignac-
Milon and Dr. Erica Boothby, research shows that many of the strongest bonds come less from existing similarity and more from riffing playfully. In these moments, people create a little world that belongs just to them, a process we call “building a shared reality.”

Collaborative riffs are surprisingly central to our mental well-being, say the
authors. They’re the glue that binds us, adds pizazz to our lives and gives us a
sense of feeling understood. Sadly, our culture’s conversational rituals revolve
not around playful co-creation but around exchanging formalities. For example,
the small talk classic: “How was your weekend?” mandates you reply succinctly
and volley the question back. The conversation proceeds predictably, and
although both parties walk away with some trivial information, they remain worlds apart.

Although we think having such conversations is playing it safe, they result in
disconnection. Instead, if these people strayed from the script and riffed off each other, they might begin to feel that buzz of being in sync. “How was your
weekend?” “Good, but I spent way too much time watching parakeets dancing on TikTok.” “Whoa, like … in rhythm?” “Yes! This one guy was the Fred Astaire of
parakeets.”

The authors’ research shows that this sort of riffing pays off. But don’t worry,
riffing doesn’t require being naturally witty. It just means embracing spontaneity and, like any conversational skill, it takes practice.

Can you recall an initial conversation that sparked a deep friendship? What effect did it have on you? To join the conversation, click on "comments" below.

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Learning of 2022.

Curious why some leaders inspire loyalty while others struggle to connect? Discover the subtle power that turns teams into communities — and why your next conversation could change everything!
 
In January 2025, Gallup found employee engagement hit its lowest point in a decade. One data point says only 39% of employees strongly agreed that someone at work cares for them as a person. And findings from the human capital management firm Workhuman show 30% feel “invisible.” Feeling unnoticed is antithetical to engagement and satisfaction at work. 
 
Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Zach Mercurio, author of The Power of Mattering, offers advice for leaders who need to be better noticers:

• Rushing is a barrier to seeing others. Slow down. Noticing others takes time, but when leaders always hurry, it becomes too easy to cancel a one-on-one meeting, forget to check in on an employee who’s struggling, or connect  with a team member.
• Check in…in person: Make space for discussing how people are doing, not just what they are doing, in your real-time interactions.
• Leverage in-between moments: Connections are built incrementally. Use the few minutes before a virtual meeting starts, time on the elevator, or the couple of seconds after wrapping up a phone call.
• Observe, remember, repeat: When you learn something significant about an employee, jot it down to help your recall. They’ll feel seen when you bring it up in conversation, and you’ll develop a productive habit. 

Do you feel noticed at work, and do you make an effort to make those around you feel acknowledged? To join the conversation, click on "comments" below.
 
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Have you ever used the silent treatment? This “noisy” silence can destroy relationships — and there is a better way…
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The silent treatment is intentionally refusing to communicate with someone. Writing in the New York Times, Jane Dunn canvassed experts as to its repercussions.

Kipling Williams, emeritus professor of psychological sciences at Purdue University has studied the effects of the silent treatment for over 30 years.

He and others refer to its use as “noisy silence” because the point is to demonstrate to the other person that they are actively being ignored. It might even include tactics like leaving the room when they enter — perhaps adding a door slam!

Using the silent treatment can feel powerful in the moment, because it makes the other person uncomfortable. But, despite its common use, it can have long-term consequences in a relationship. Dr. Gail Saltz, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital, says, “The silent treatment is a punishment, whether you are acknowledging that to yourself or not.” That can destroy trust and fail to solve the actual problem. So what works better?

• If you’re tempted to give the silent treatment:  Ask for a timeout instead: “I can’t talk to you right now because I’m too upset to do it well. I’m going to go for a walk and come back in an hour.” Give a clear time when you will be back and willing to talk.
• If you’re on the receiving end:  Instead of prolonging the silence try: “I want to make things better between us. And I need more information about what is happening with you so I can try to do that.”

Have you ever given or received the silent treatment, and how did the episode resolve? To join the conversation, click on "comments" below.

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Trapped in continual “doing mode?” You’re not alone. Here’s how to give yourself permission to pause… and think bigger.

So many of us are focused on doing mode — achieving goals and checking items off to-do lists. But better relationships, bigger-picture strategies, and creative thinking all depend on pausing and entering into spacious mode. 

Writing in the Harvard Business Review, Megan Reitz of Oxford University’s Said Business School, and John Higgins, director of research at The Right Conversation, share their research-based tips for making it easier and safer to occasionally switch modes.

• Give yourself permission:  Pausing requires a leap of faith at first, but soon its benefits will become clear.
• Train your mind: A mere 10 minutes of mindfulness practice daily will, over time, help you develop a capacity to pay attention differently.
• Practice guerilla spaciousness:  If your organization is relentlessly promoting doing, be stealthy. Develop small habits that allow you to shift into spacious mode under the radar. Try changing up your environment or scheduling pauses. 
• Ask bigger questions: Pose broader questions to yourself and others, e.g. “What have we not talked about that would help us work together better?”
• Choose good company:  While you cannot choose your work colleagues, spend more time when you can with individuals and groups that help you expand your thought processes and see things in new ways.

When was the last time you deliberately took a pause to create thinking time, and what were the results? To join the conversation, click on "comments" below.  We'd really like to hear from you.

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Friendships are so important, they can literally impact life and death…

Romance gets a lot of attention but, according to a growing body of research, friendships are critical to our health and well being. A review of 38 studies found that adult friendships, especially high-quality ones that provide social support and companionship, significantly predict wellness and can protect against mental health issues like anxiety and depression. Those benefits persist across the life span.

Friendships protect to some degree by altering the way we respond to stress. Our blood pressure can lower when we talk to a supportive friend. When we have a friend by our side while completing a tough task, we have less heart rate reactivity than those working alone. Friendships can also change our perspective. In one study, people even judged a hill to be less steep when accompanied by a friend.

Fortunately, research also suggests that friendships can be forged and maintained at any age. Even minimal social interactions can be powerful. So-called “weak ties” -- interactions we have with casual acquaintances -- can boost our health and sustain positivity.  

Isolation during the pandemic proved hard on nearly everyone, but it did focus scientific attention on how important human connection is across all ages and all spheres of life. 

Do you have friendships that nourish you, and do you actively make an effort to keep them going? Let us know if you’ve found a way to start new friendships as an adult. To join the conversation, click on "comments" below.

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