Confessions of a Techie

How to navigate the tech maze and maintain sanity.
by Ran Zilca

The Happy Airplane

Any plane can be the happy plane, if you smile. Read More

Count to Ten and Reclaim Your Autonomy from Your Limbic Brain

the oldest intervention in the toolbox of the science of psychology: Count to ten. Read More

This Year Touch the Rainbow

Can you stand on your toes and touch the rainbow? Read More

Is the Financial Crisis Bringing Us Together?

Should banks provide free beer? Read More

Do you have to break your back to be happy?

A few weeks ago a nagging pain at the side of my left leg appeared out of nowhere. At first, it was muffled and intermittent, then gradually turned sharper and more prominent, until eventually it was impossible to bear. It was time to see the doctor. Read More

Comfort Kills

We live in a society where comfort has become a value and a life goal. But comfort reduces our motivation for introducing important transformations in our lives. Sadly, being comfortable often prohibits us from chasing our dreams.  Read More

The New York Deli – a Positive Intervention

Save thousands a year in therapy costs in your local Deli Read More

Did You Remember To Say Thank You?

We train our young ones form infancy to express their gratitude when they receive something. But beyond compliance with the social code of saying thanks, are we teaching them to be grateful? Read More

Take the Long Way Home

Who says the shortest way is the best? How about the most scenic way for the season? The most interesting way? The way with the most beautiful buildings? The one you've never tried? Read More

The Midlife Man

Meet the midlife male Read More

Dreams Matter

Do one thing today to pursue your dream  Read More

The Last Day of Summer

It’s 8:30pm, Labor Day. The last day of summer has ended. Read More

Would Krishna Ride a Motorcycle?

Get on the road and don’t miss out on the ride of your life. Read More

Take Responsibility

You have full control over your own actions. Use it! Read More

Dump Your Ego

Me? I don’t have an ego. I’m a nice guy!  Read More

Be Present

Ride Of Your Life  Time travel has long been our  technological dream and fantasy. Read More

Building Inner Strength

Being strong means having the resources, the mental skills, and the physical capabilities to confront difficulties of all kinds. When you are strong, you have the ample excess of energy and stamina, so that when facing a challenge that depletes you of energy and inner strength, you still have enough left in you to act. Read More

Holiday Stress Relief NOW!

Is Holiday Stress keeping you up at night and wound up during the day? Here are some useful tools to make your Holiday season more relaxing! Read More

Still Not Happy?

The quest for true happiness is perceived by many to ultimate goal of human existence. When asked what they wish for themselves, most people say that they would like to be happy. Everything else they wish for themselves is just means to an end. While happiness has always been a topic of interest and aspiration, its study, understanding, and the means to accomplish it recently has become a focal point of Western civilization. Read More

Finally - Over The Counter Psychotherapy!

The over-the-counter shelf of your psychologist finally has some good evidence-based stuff. Read More

Immerse Yourself in the Gratitude Stream

Learning about others' good fortune cultivates an optimistic attitude and makes people feel more positively about the future. Read More

Sleepwalking on the Job

We all act mindlessly a good deal of the time, running on auto-pilot, and not fully present in our situations. Read More

On Mr. Roboto’s Couch – Will Machines Become Our Counselors? Part II

Software that makes you feel better? Read More

On Mr. Roboto’s Couch – Will Machines Become Our Counselors? Part I

It’s a machine suggesting to us what we should buy (Amazon), what we should listen to (Pandora, last.fm), and who we should marry (eHarmony, Match.com). So – is it possible to design a machine to provide life advice and perhaps even therapy? Well – it already is happening. Read More

What’s in the Water of Eugene, Oregon?

Whoever cracks the Eugene mystery will be a very rich person. And if it's something in the water, I want to drink some of it too. Read More

How I Lost My Wallet and Maintained My Innocence

A story about technology-enabled kindness. It starts in Brooklyn, continues in Manhattan, and reaches its happy ending in the south Bronx. Read More

Ran Zilca

Ran Zilca is the CEO of Signal Patterns, developers of assessment and positive psychology applications.

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Thoughts from a techie on a spiritual quest.

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