Do you suffer from "should itis"?I should exercise moreI should be more productiveI should spend more time with my kidsI should spend more time outsideI should go to bed earlierI shouldn’t drink so muchI should eat betterI shouldn’t eat so much sugarI should be happyI should be more gratefulI shouldn’t be so greedy! It shouldn’t take me this long.I should do betterI should know betterI should BE betterWhatever the “should, or shouldn’ts” are on your list, they always add up to the same t...

ADHD stands for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. But, as my guest Coach Lara Dawn helps us understand today, that label is somewhat of a misnomer. The truth is that ADHD is neither a deficit of attention (actually, people with ADHD have an abundance of attention), nor a disorder. In fact, some people consider ADHD to be a superpower. Lara is the founder of the wonderful ADHD Village, a community that offers brain-based, science-backed support for families raising children with...

If you've ever felt discomfort over a decision you've had to make, tried to justify a choice you've made, or regretted something you've done because you thought to yourself "I don't know why I did that, that's not me!" you have likely experienced cognitive dissonance.Cognitive Dissonance Theory was presented by a social psychologist, named Leon Festinger, in 1957.Cognitive dissonance is a term for the state of mental or psychological discomfort we feel when two or more modes of thought (belie...

Have you ever found yourself staring into the fridge, looking for something that was right in front of your nose all along?Do you ever wonder why your kids, or students, can't seem to just focus on one thing, or can't hear you when you call their name 100 times, but can remember all the details of what you told them 4 1/2 years ago?It may have something to do with Selective Attention and Inattentional Blindness.Adults are quite skilled at focusing on one thing, and disregarding all other "uni...

What does "play" mean to you? Do you consider yourself a playful person? Do you engage in play on a regular basis, or are you resistant to play?Many of us understand that play is good for children's development, but do you know how, or why? Do you know that play is also good for adults?Play reduces stress, helps strengthen relationships and trust, enhances imagination, develops social skills, and even increases productivity and creativity.And, it doesn't have to be extensive or extravaga...

What expectations do you have of your students? Of your partner? Your family? Your friends? Yourself? I expect my kids to be polite. I expect my students to listen to me. I expect my partner to remember my birthday. I expect my friends to be on time. Sound familiar?What happens when your expectations are not met? How do you feel?The problem with having expectations is that they are all about other people. They often originate from a place of wounding, fear, and lack. We impose expectations be...

This week, I was invited onto the Create a Life You Love video podcast hosted by the amazing Chantal Cox. Chantal is a fellow educator and Master NeuroCoachTM, an author, a friend, and a wonderful human being doing great things in the world.We had a delightful conversation about creating a life we love, and collaborating on an incredible project!Enjoy!LINKSComplete the application to join the Create a Life You Love Coaching ProgramFree RRT tapping resource - PDFTeaching Little Brains Facebook...

Wait, what?! Positivity is toxic?It can be. Positivity can become toxic when it is used to mask, suppress, avoid, or cover up negative emotions. It's the belief that no matter how dire or difficult a situation is, people should maintain a positive mindset, or put a positive spin on all experiences. It's a "good vibes only" approach to life. Toxic positivity denies people the authentic support that they need to cope with what they are facing. It paints negative emotions as a failure or w...

What makes you angry? What really makes your blood boil?How do you feel about anger itself? What do you do when you feel angry?We’re taught to avoid, is anger. We learn that anger is bad. It’s scary. It’s destructive. But, the truth is, that anger is just an emotion, like any other we experience as humans. It’s a vibration in our body. It’s neither good, nor bad. It’s just energy in motion.I talk a lot about feelings and emotions in my coaching, and here on the podcast because feelings ...

Hello Teacher Brain! Good news: I'm Open For Business!Do you believe in signs, or nudges from the universe - or God, or whatever you might call it?Oprah calls them whispers from the universe. She says that, for example, when we have an idea, or desire on our heart, first, we may hear a whisper of that idea or desire. She says, when we ignore that little whisper, which we often do, the universe then starts speaking more loudly to us.And this is when we may start to get little “nudges” (t...

Hello Teacher BrainHeads Up: this episode may trigger (or as I like to refer to it, "activate") you. I encourage you not to shy away from your feelings. Allow them to come. Sit with them. Get curious. Don't be afraid of your emotions - whatever they may be. They are clues to what drives you (in either direction). Remember, the only dangerous emotion is a suppressed emotion.With this being National Indigenous History Month, and the recent discovery of mass unmarked graves at some o...

Have you ever been in an audience of something and someone coughs, and it seems to start a chain reaction of coughing. Or, you’re talking to someone, and they scratch their nose, so then you scratch yours?Ever wonder why?Well, it may be, at least partly due to something called, mirror neurons. Mirror neurons were discovered accidentally, in macaque monkeys in 1992. A mirror neuron is a neuron that fires both when an animal acts and when the animal observes the same action performed by another...

Hello Teacher Brain!If I told you I'd give you $1000 to work out every day for a year, do you think you'd do it? The answer might surprise you! Studies show that external rewards (like money), can actually have negative effects on motivation! Not only that, but they squelch creativity, encourage cheating and can result in exploitation of the reward-based system.Like most things, the answers are within.Intrinsic motivation is long-lasting, and has positive benefits to self-esteem, resili...

We are all just in this human experience, trying to figure things out as we go. And sometimes we get it wrong. Sometimes we get it REALLY wrong. And when that happens, we can be hard on ourselves. And when the coin is flipped, and it’s about other people, we can be really hard on them! We throw the baby out with the bathwater, as they say. We judge the whole by some of its parts. And we do this all the time, in big ways and small.Someone cuts us off in traffic, and we yell (i...

Have you ever sat down to get a moment's rest, take a "brain break", or meditate, or even gone for a "peaceful" walk in nature, and all that starts running through your mind is all the terrible stuff that has happened in your past, or all the terrible things that might happen in your future? What's up with that?!Well, it turns out, we have a "demon" in our brain. Our DMN (Default Mode Network), like most other functions of our brain, is designed to keep us safe by running all the negati...

You are the boss of your brain!We are sleepwalking our way through life. 80-95% of our daily decisions and actions, are made on autopilot - by our subconscious... without our having to think about them consciously - without our permission, even. We are letting our subconscious run the show - and we don't even know we're doing it. Those automations are formed by the repeated thoughts and feelings we had as a child - based on what we saw and experienced of the people around us. Your ...

When was the last time you had a good cry?Did you know that our tears contain natural pain-killers?Emotional tears are made of higher concentrations of toxins that accumulate during stress. The hormones, including adrenocorticotropic hormone & leucine enkephalin (a natural painkiller), get excreted from the body through crying, suggesting that crying helps in balancing stress hormone levels. Additional studies also suggest that crying stimulates the production of endorphins, an...

A few weeks ago, Roni Habib from EQ Schools, co-hosted an incredible and interactive (virtual of course) keynote event for educational staff in our area.... and beyond.Roni shared his genius with us around Emotional Intelligence, mental wellness, and rest, and engaged us in some simple, fun, and impactful activities and techniques that we could easily implement daily for ourselves, and with our students to benefit our wellness.Our mutual purpose and vision is so aligned that I knew I had to i...

Do the "Little Brains" in your life love watching, listening to, and/or doing the same thing over and over...and over...and over again?What's up with that?I decided to ask an expert, 6-year-old, Zoey Nykoruk why she loves hearing the same book, same podcast, and watching the same movie over and over... and over again. She had some interesting things to say about repetition.And then, I did some research and found out even more interesting things about our affinity for repetition. I...

Today we're going to get uncomfortable in the uncomfortable. We're going to give your brain a workout. Has someone ever said something to you like “Oh my goodness, thank you so much, that was so helpful!” and you respond with something like “Well, I didn’t do anything!"Or, “Congratulations on that award! That’s so great!” and you brush it off with a “Oh my gosh! No, So-and-so should have gotten it. I didn’t do anything to deserve it”Or even “Oh my gosh! You totally smashed y...