Work

My reading about life in many different hunter-gatherer cultures has led me to conclude that their work is play for four main reasons: (1) It is varied and requires much skill and intelligence. (2) There is not too much of it. (3) It is done in a social context, with friends. And (4) (most significantly) it is, for any given person at any given time, optional. Let me expand on these, point by point. Each point is relevant to our lives, today. Read More

About 15 years ago I began to notice a sweet solid convergence between the Tao, Darwinism and the Serenity prayer that has guided both my behavior and my research ever since.  Here are some more practical variations on the serenity prayer, second in a series of four. Read More

During this time of economic and corporate turbulence, many employees are experiencing significant anxiety and uncertainty. Organizations and those in leadership positions can do a lot to help their employees better navigate the murky and shifting environment. Read More

The wife as volunteer muse/amanuensis/typist/editor/proofreader is not an unusual series of roles for a woman to assume. What is unusual for the wife in such a situation is getting any acknowledgement for her contributions, aside from a few words in the front of the book that can be altered with each edition. Being supportive of a spouse in his or her work is, surely, what one expects.

When that support translates into doing another person’s work as if it were one’s own, however, the dynamic changes drastically. The male author does not see his wife as a co-author, even if she positions herself in such a manner. The dust jacket will boast his name, the check arrive with his social security number, and all fame will be awarded to him.

It is not true that behind every famous man stands a good woman, but what is true is that anyone standing behind someone else is necessarily overshadowed by them. Read More

We’re all getting published, punching in our keywords, hoping that someone will listen. Read More

The serenity prayer is more than how they close AA meetings. That thing is deep and speaks to the fundamentals of the human condition, including everything that drives psychology and the behavioral sciences in general--the pursuit of wisdom whereby we can make better decisions, trekking the winding mountain ridge of life in the dark about the future without sliding down the slippery slopes on either side of the ridge top. Here are some new variations on that greatest of prayers. Read More

How can we be happy when our investment savings have dwindled, we've lost our job, or our house. The recession has had a negative impact on the lives of many people. Is it possible to be or remain happy? There's no denying the negative consequences of our current recession, combined with the media obsession with reporting it, much can be done to maintain or increase our levels of happiness. Read More

Writes my pal Gene Weingarten in The Washington Post "Because women are attending grad schools in record numbers, and because male CEOs have screwed things up so publicly, Gina thinks women are soon going to dominate American business -- and feminize it." Read More