If destruction be our lot, we [will] ourselves be its author and finisher. – Abraham Lincoln from his speech “The Perpetuation of our Political Institutions” on his concerns regarding mob violence Nowadays, it’s common knowledge that the U.S. — and countries around the world — face an increasing threat. No, I’m not talking about the energy…
Stories have shapes which can be drawn on graph paper. — Kurt Vonnegut The title of today’s post shares its name with the title of new and fascinating research that tries to answer the following question: why do certain movies, books, stories, etc. catch on and become popular? These days, it’s gone viral to say…
Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. — Maya Angelou If you could ask a genie to improve just one of your personal traits, there’s a good chance you’d wish for more courage. Indeed, in one study, researchers examined the major religions and…
The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken. — Warren Buffett Usually, when we talk about habits, we’re not talking about the good ones: eating junk food, swearing, picking your nose, swearing while eating junk food and picking your nose, etc. But habits can also…
The greatest deception humans suffer is from their own opinions. — Leonardo da Vinci Today’s post complements research I recently discussed on the podcast, Water Cooler Talk Podcast, where I applied psychological research to why people continue to resist wearing masks, why people avoid facts that could be helpful, and other (fascinating!) topics. Here’s a…
Just because you’re right doesn’t mean I’m wrong, you just haven’t seen life from my position. — Anonymous Probably the greatest issue facing the world today is the failure to take “the other side’s” perspective. Whether it’s between political parties or religious rivals, siblings or relationship partners, failing to consider another person’s perspective can lead…