drspencersherman.com
Writings
Here’s a chapter from my most recent book Be the Sky, Not the Clouds – The new Mindful Psychology of Happiness and Wellbeing. It’s entitled Accept Yourself. It starts, “The first requirement for self-knowledge: accepting yourself just as you are. This is not easy.”
Wouldn’t it be great to have a psychological theory of everything, one succinct set of consistent ideas that could explain why we feel and act as we do, and how to improve and optimize our functioning? In this regard, I invite you to consider Meeting Our Needs.
Suppose we could get an indication of how we were functioning in all the important domains of a full life. And suppose we could discern how to improve in those areas that need it. Well, here’s a clear picture of the state of your wellbeing, and a powerful prescription for increasing it. Welcome to The Chakragram!
Another chapter from Be the Sky, Not the Clouds. It vividly describes how our natural tendency to judge everything as good or bad – that is, promoting our survival or threatening it – needs to be reined in if we are to live optimally. There’s considerable value in realizing that You’re Not the Supreme Court.
Want to know the absolute best thing you can do to improve your relationships? This is something we all think we do well. But upon closer examination, we find there’s lots of room for improvement. Ready for a surprising, user-friendly lesson in relationship optimization? From my new book, here’s Listen With Full Attention.
Here’s something that I wrote in 2005. I just rediscovered it while doing some post-pandemic cleaning. If you want the CliffsNotes version of how to be mindful, check out the two pages of Even Easier – Mindfulness Made Awesomely User-Friendly. I think it really lives up to its title!
Again from the new book, a very short essay entitled Why Are We Isolating Ourselves, in which I suggest that much of the distress so many of us are experiencing these days might stem from the way we’re choosing to connect, but not really.
What makes us lastingly happy? Here’s a simple way to understand a complex topic. And a very manageable prescription for improvement.