This week marks the summer solstice – it actually happens the day after tomorrow. This week also marks the winter solstice, which oddly enough also happens the day after tomorrow.

How can this be? It depends on your vantage point. If you’re in the northern hemisphere, Thursday at 4:50 PM eastern ti...

It’s a week before spring officially begins in the Northern Hemisphere, so maybe a little bit early for spring cleaning. It’s a month before tax returns in the US are due to be filed, and if you’re like me, perhaps you’ve found a lot of things to do instead of getting organized for that chore.

Toda...

Quick – what’s your name? I bet you know the answer to that question by heart, right? One of the first things parents teach their babies is how to recognize and use names – mama, dada, doggie, and the child’s own name. But what’s in a name and why are they so important that they get an entire week’s...

Do you even know what day of the week it is? This year, at least Christmas and New Year’s Day both fell on Mondays, so maybe they just showed up as regular three-day holiday weekends for you.

If you have a job that requires staffing 24/7/365, like first responders, health care workers, transportati...

In the United States, Thursday is Thanksgiving Day. In the early 1600’s, when the first Thanksgiving celebration featuring Englishmen in the New World happened, “giving thanks” was how people expressed their gratitude for surviving a tough year, or for bringing in a bountiful harvest.

The tradition...

Are you afraid to stand up in front of an audience and give a presentation? Most people are, including some professional speakers. There you are, unguarded, vulnerable, and relying on your memory and your personality to move the audience to think in a new way, act in a new way, and hopefully not thr...

Let’s talk about happiness today, and how difficult it is for scientists to even define it, much less quantify it for us. A focus on happiness has been in the news so much that now its shadow twin, toxic positivity, is making headlines. In this post, happiness is being discussed as one of the large ...

Today is so taxing! If you’ve noticed that people are cranky, distant, or just plain missing, it’s probably because today is the day Uncle Sam demands his due. It’s tax day, and those who waited until the last minute have discovered that there aren’t a lot more minutes left to get all that paperwork...

If you’ve seen a billboard, heard a radio or TV commercial, been inside a store or even just poked your nose outside your front door in the last week, then you already know what today is. Did you know that, in addition to Valentine’s Day, it’s Galentine’s Day, Madly in Love with Me Day, Internationa...

Could your self-esteem use a boost, and just how the heck could that be accomplished? Let’s talk about that this week.

This month is International Boost Self-Esteem Month, intended to shine a light on just how tough most of us are on ourselves. If you grew up hearing phrases like, “don’t blow your ...

It’s the last day of the first month of the new year. And it’s cold. OK, it’s winter and it’s supposed to be cold. Seriously, Mother Nature – 18 in Maine, 4 in North Dakota and minus 1 in Minnesota? The freezing temperatures are coast to coast, north to south, and make me want to hibernate. You, too...

Quick – when was the last time you gave someone a compliment? I hope it was sometime today, because today is National Compliment Day. Actually, I hope you’re in the habit of giving compliments. If not, keep reading, because giving compliments to others has many benefits for you!

Since smiling is a ...

Quick – when was the last time you gave someone a compliment? I hope it was sometime today, because today is National Compliment Day. Actually, I hope you’re in the habit of giving compliments. If not, keep reading, because giving compliments to others has many benefits for you!

Since smiling is a ...

Have you ever had an idea, brought it to fruition, and during its infancy you discovered that your idea was bigger than you knew? International We Are Not Broken Day began in 2019, so is still fairly new, as is the organization of the same name. The founder, Texan Nochola Cotto, intended it to be a ...

Today, let’s celebrate peculiar people. It’s officially Peculiar People Day, though no one knows how this one got started or why. It seems to be a nod to a group of faith healers formed by Englishman John Banyard, “Peculiar People,” in 1838. Or maybe not – the two events simply share the words “pecu...

The week between Christmas and the New Year celebrations is usually a quiet one. Many people are on vacation, and those who are working this week feel like it’s some of their most productive time. Why? Because there are far fewer interruptions, meaning they feel they can get more done than normal.

Today marks the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere and the longest day of the year in the southern hemisphere, meaning it’s the beginning of astronomical winter north of the equator and astronomical summer to the south. As far back as 12,000 years ago, people have noted the change a...

Do you eat enough food each day? I don’t think there’s any such thing as “enough food” but Mom disagrees!

Your brain needs over 300 calories a day just to run your body – more if you want it to do things like make decisions, sing and dance or spay that cat that was dropped off this morning.

If you...

You’re a veterinarian because you care about animals, right?

First of all, thank you – I love my veterinarian!!

And second of all, you know what that says about you? You are loving, kind, you care about the feelings of others and you’re a fountain of benevolent humanity.

Did you know that about y...

Does your morning wear you out before you even get to the hospital? If you have family, you’re probably care-taking for them – clothes, school bags, lunches, homework – while trying to make coffee and breakfast and get yourself ready too. Exhausting!!

Think about the pieces of your morning routine ...

Do you pay attention to intentions? Mom calls me Butterfly Brain so I guess that means I don’t pay attention to much at all sometimes.

Paying attention to intentions is easy though – in the evening, as you’re finishing up dinner dishes or whatever, think about the next day. Make one intention that’...

Is your motivation lagging a little bit today?

A great way to get your mojo back is to think back to times when you’ve nailed it – whatever IT is that’s demotivating you. Remember when you first learned IT, when you finally mastered IT and when you helped teach IT to someone else.

You’re aces at I...

Did you know that your brain can’t tell the difference between what you’re thinking and what you’re living? Brains don’t know reality, and for proof of that, let’s talk about a famous canine – Pavlov’s dog.

That guy Pavlov teased his dog a lot, using people in lab coats, metronomes and bells to tri...

What new thing are you learning? Does it excite you?

I love to learn new things – mom says I’m a fast learner with a short attention span. Someday I’ll learn what she means by that.

Anyway, learning is great – it keeps you focused and fascinated. In your work you probably learn something new prett...

Is life feeling a little bit chaotic today? Mom got me a Standard Poodle to play with – man is he tall!! And he doesn’t want to play the way I want to play and sometimes snapping happens.

Oooooh…did I hit a nerve there?

If there’s chaos in your hospital today and people are snapping at each other,...

Do you feel tense right now? I get tense sometimes when I’m holding really still, trying to sneak up on that big orange cat that gets in my yard. Grrrrrrr…cats!

You probably just think you get tense in your shoulders and neck but I bet your jaws are clenched when you’re tense, too. A quick way to b...

Exercise…who has time for that? I have naps to take and you probably have a lot of work to do. But exercise is necessary to keep our bodies and minds healthy, so here’s an idea to get a great workout in only ten minutes – high intensity interval training.

Pick a 10-minute part of your day when you ...

Did you ever hear that phrase, dress for success?

When I go to the dog show, I have a special collar and lead that Mom puts on me that make me feel special. What does dress for success even mean in a world where you wear scrubs all day? It means that you should wear clothes that make you feel power...

Great relationships – like great marriages – happen because people choose where to focus. People get along for a while and then they start noticing things they don’t like. Instead of focusing on what they do like, they get fixated on what they don’t like. Before you know it, feuds are happening on t...

Don’t fight change.

Well, actually, it’s good not to fight about anything if you can help it – fighting just gets you a bite on the nose from some mean dog that can’t take a joke!

Seriously, change is the one constant in this world – it’s funny that humans hate it so much. Everything changes and c...

If I have to make one more decision today I’m gonna snap!! Do you ever feel that way, too? Squeaky ball or bungee snake? Nap in the crate, on the kitchen tile floor or on the couch? Sheesh…so many things to decide!

Decision fatigue is a thing – really! I’ve heard Mom tell people about how decisions...

Do you have a staffer in your hospital who’s a bully? Sadly, that’s very common in veterinary hospitals and is very destructive for morale.

It’s like when mom and I go to the park for a walk and that big border collie stares at me really hard – it makes me nervous and it’s hard to concentrate. That...

Do you have an affirmation that pumps you up?

When I want to feel energized and fun I squeak a squeaky toy and howl at it – bonus, it makes mom laugh a lot!

What can you say to yourself when things aren’t working quite right to remind yourself how awesome you are? Mom reminds herself that things a...

Some days do you feel unappreciated? Who knew mom would be so upset when I brought her that pretty red leather shoe. I only chewed it a little bit and I did give it to her…sheesh, you’d think I started world war three or something!

Anyway, if you’re feeling unappreciated too, give yourself a little...

What new thing are you learning? Does it excite you? I love to learn new things – mom says I’m a fast learner with a short attention span. Someday I’ll learn what she means by that. Anyway, learning is great – it keeps you focused and fascinated.

In your work you probably learn something new pretty...

Look around your workplace – are you there? If you looked around my place you’d see stuffed toys, a hard rubber chew or two and you’d know I’m a dog that loves toys. When people look around your workplace do they know what you love?

If you love kayaking, do they see pictures of rivers you’ve been o...

Aren’t smiles cool? Even us dogs smile and humans know just what we mean when we do. Mom knew a dog a loooong time ago who squinted like crazy when she smiled – she used her whole face!

Do you use your whole face when you smile? You know you do when those little muscles at the outside of your eyes ...

Do you take all the days off that you’re entitled to? This is something I don’t understand about humans at all – most of you don’t take all your vacation days!! Yes, what you do is very important work. Yes, you love what you do and it’s a calling and most of the time it feeds your soul.

You know wh...

What is that voice inside your head telling you about yourself? And if you just thought, I don’t have a little voice inside my head, that was the voice inside your head talking!

Most humans got programmed early to believe bad things about themselves – that they can’t do things right, they’re not sm...

Have you heard people talk about the power of being in the moment? What does that even mean? Shhhhh…here’s a secret…it means being more like me! OK, pretty much all dogs and cats and gerbils and goldfish live in the moment. We are good at it and you can be, too.

Instead of letting your brain chew o...

Want a brain trick that’ll help you solve problems and be happier? When something looks like it’s going wrong, find three good things about it.

Let’s pretend I was riding in the car and someone hit us from behind. That’s not good – that’s the way I get in and out of the car, so can I get out or am ...

Do you hold grudges against people, or find it hard to forgive someone? I admit I’m pretty annoyed that the big orange cat can jump up on the fence way faster than I can run across the yard. Grrrrrrr….cats!!!

The cat doesn’t care that I’m annoyed with him, though – he probably doesn’t even know, an...

Sometimes questions are no fun, right? Like when Mom says "Who Did That???" Somehow, it’s always my fault. There’s a good question you could ask yourself when it feels like something has gone wrong – "how would it feel if I knew it would all work out?" When you think about the possibilities it keeps...

Did you know that the way you breathe might be making you anxious? When I pant it cools me down – when humans pant, their brain thinks something is wrong. When humans are stressed they take shallow, fast breaths and that tells the primitive part of their brain that it’s time to fire up the fight or ...

Are you feeling stuck between a rock and a hard place? I got stuck behind the couch once so I can relate – scary!! If that’s how you’re feeling today, you could just whine and howl like I did, or you could do something I can’t – let your brain go time-traveling. Look at your options and pick one, th...

Everybody has that one friend – you know, the one who tells you about their life, even the embarrassing parts? They’re so open with you because they trust you – a lot! You know what? When you have something embarrassing or confusing or sad going on in your life, you can probably trust them, too. We ...

Quick – what does it take to make you happy? Are you one of those humans who thinks that once you’ve achieved a certain goal you can finally be happy? I may be just a dog but I know things. Research studies done at universities like Harvard, Cambridge and UC Berkeley have come up with the same concl...

Does it feel like stuff gets on you that you don’t want? I’m not talking about real stuff like dog hair or cat vomit or anything, I’m talking about life stuff – like when the groomer and the receptionist get into a screaming match and you feel like you have to be the referee? Sometimes I just stand ...

Are you having one of those days with no-shows, cancellations and empty appointments? Maybe it’s time to play! Most days Mom takes me for a long walk at the park in the morning but on days when the sky is leaking she cancels that. That’s not fun! And then most of the time it turns into a different k...

Do you feel a little sad today? It happens to the best of us – me, too sometimes, and when I’m sad I just whine a little bit. And then I remember that it’s more fun to run than to whine and I take off, bunny-butting through the house up the stairs over the back of the couch and Mom opens the back do...