All posts tagged: Wisdom

Why So Many Gen X People Feel Weird At Work Right Now Isn’t Burnout, It’s Value Misalignment

Why So Many Gen X People Feel Weird At Work Right Now Isn’t Burnout, It’s Value Misalignment

Published by Jenni Sidey

As Phil Collins sang, I can feel it coming in the air tonight, oh lord. There’s something in the air that I’ve noticed both because I experienced it personally in my mid-40s, and now I see many other Gen X people in their 40s and 50s experiencing it.  There’s a feeling, a stirring, a restlessness. A feeling of questioning so many things, if not everything, at this point in our lives.   The place that so many Gen X people seem to be experiencing this midlife crisis most intensely is in their careers. I know that the stirring and restlessness I experienced in my mid-to-late 40s was rooted in my deep dissatisfaction with my life as a “successful federal government lawyer.” Although being a federal government lawyer may have felt attractive and cool when I was in my 20s, that all started to fade as I got older. It didn’t feel like where I was supposed to be. I felt like I’d sacrificed a lot of what was important to me in the name of …

The Wisdom of Children: Secure Attachment in Traumatic Times

The Wisdom of Children: Secure Attachment in Traumatic Times

Published by Jenni Sidey

By Evelyn Rappaport, Psy.D.P.C. Five-year-old Adam speaks about the war with striking clarity. He distinguishes between different types of missiles and describes the current escalation of the Iran War as “less scary” than the 12-day Iranian war in June of 2025. His tone is calm, almost observational. Yet beneath his words lies a nervous system already learning to track threat, compare intensity, and make meaning of danger. Twelve-year-old Ami moves quickly when the siren sounds. As he gathers his siblings and heads to the shelter, he pauses to collect two items that do not belong to him: his younger sister’s blanket and her stuffed animal. She is not home, yet he brings them anyway. “These are her love objects,” he explains, items she always carries into the shelter. In her absence, he becomes the guardian of her comfort, embodying care even when she is not present. These small, quiet moments reveal something profound. Even amid uncertainty and danger, children are not only adapting, they are also organizing, protecting, and caring for one another. What we …

NBA Star Devon Booker Finds Wisdom at James Turrell’s Roden Crater

NBA Star Devon Booker Finds Wisdom at James Turrell’s Roden Crater

Published by José Betancourt

Devon Booker, a five-time All Star guard for the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, has visited James Turrell’s fabled Roden Crater three times—and even struck up something of a friendship with an artist who called him an “amazing person … taking it to another level, and that’s what all artists try to do.” As reported in a lengthy profile in The Athletic, the sports section of the New York Times, Booker first traveled to Roden Crater in 2020, when he was first rapt by an artwork in a dormant volcano that Turrell has been toiling away at for more than 50 years. Booker has also been talking about an imminent visit with teammate Steph Curry (“who recently purchased a piece by Turrell”), and even designed a basketball shoe for Nike that Turrell took a liking to. Related Articles “My hair is sticking up on my arm just remembering every time I’ve been there,” Booker told The Athletic about Roden Crater. “I don’t know if you’ve ever felt like you were going to a different dimension, but it’s …

Building Wisdom With BDNF—and Ketamine

Building Wisdom With BDNF—and Ketamine

Published by Jenni Sidey

Over the past several decades, we’ve learned more about neuroplasticity, which is the intrinsic property of the brain that allows it to adapt and reorganize itself. Neuroplasticity allows an aging brain to make the adaptive changes needed to maintain cognitive functioning and resilience. One particular brain protein, BDNF, plays an important role in neuroplasticity—and boosting it can help improve our brain’s health and stave off cognitive decline. Anyone can do that by making some changes to their daily habits, but there’s another way to increase BDNF: ketamine. BDNF, or brain-derived neurotropic factor, not only helps brain cells grow, but also helps with synaptogenesis (extending the branches of neurons, which can improve connectivity and efficiency of neuronal signaling). BDNF also supports neurogenesis, or the birth of new neurons. BDNF is especially important in neurogenesis in the hippocampus, which is the seat of our ability to learn and remember new things. As neural networks reorganize over time, supported by the interaction of experience and neuroplasticity, the brain can develop greater emotional regulation, creativity, pattern recognition, and what …

Mary Beth, Steven Curtis Chapman unveil crazy stories, hard-won wisdom from 40-year marriage in ‘Still Here’

Mary Beth, Steven Curtis Chapman unveil crazy stories, hard-won wisdom from 40-year marriage in ‘Still Here’

Published by Sam Flores

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — New York Times bestselling author Mary Beth Chapman and multi-Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter Steven Curtis Chapman have two new milestones to celebrate: 40 years of marriage and writing their first book together. “Still Here: Life Together on the Long Way Home” (B&H Publishing Group) reveals, for the first time, behind-the-scenes stories of a couple held together by divine grace and mercy. The Chapmans’ story, which began as young love on a college campus, has aged into a cherished but challenging shared journey through the complexities of life. “Still Here” provides a vulnerable narrative from two imperfect people who love God most—and love each other almost as much. Their book doesn’t sugar coat the difficulties in their 41-year marriage. It goes into candid detail about fights, tragedies and the strain brought by Steven’s career on the road. They forgo quick tips and hot takes, instead offering an authentic recollection of lived lessons and hard-won wisdom earned across four decades. “Until now, we have shied away from writing about our marriage because we thought it …

End of advisory boards gives Whitehall ‘monopoly on wisdom’

End of advisory boards gives Whitehall ‘monopoly on wisdom’

Published by skeptic

More from this theme Recent articles Most behind-closed-doors meetings that once analysed plans for the future of schools have already been canned, Schools Week can reveal, as ministers prepare to scrap the controversial gatherings entirely.  One regional advisory board has not assembled in the past 14 months, prompting one leader to note that some groups “have essentially ceased to exist”.  But, with the meetings – which are designed to inform officials on the decisions – due to end this month, the government has been warned that it risks handing civil servants a “monopoly on wisdom”. Mark Boylan, a Sheffield Hallam University professor of education, said: “Whatever the issues with the composition of advisory boards in the past and the lack of representation of community schools, at least they were senior leaders who understood how schools work, the process of transferring schools, supporting schools. “The regional officers do not have really detailed, close local knowledge of all the schools in their region – nor could they.”  Rulings ‘in isolation’ Advisory boards consist of current and former academy bosses …

New psychology research reveals that wisdom acts as a moral compass for creative thinking

New psychology research reveals that wisdom acts as a moral compass for creative thinking

Published by José Betancourt

A recent study published in the journal Intelligence has found that wisdom plays a key role in ensuring people use their creativity for the benefit of others. The findings suggest that while creativity can be a powerful tool, it requires the moral guidance of wisdom to be directed toward socially constructive goals rather than selfish ones. “A recurring concern in psychology is that intelligence and creativity are ‘morally neutral’: they can be used to help others, but they can also be used manipulatively or destructively. Many theories propose that wisdom functions as a moral regulator that helps channel cognitive strengths toward prosocial ends, but empirical evidence for this moderating role has been limited,” said study author Yuling Wang, a PhD candidate at Peking University and member of the Self Exploration and Meaningful Existence Lab. “We also noticed a methodological issue: intelligence/creativity are often assessed with natural science–oriented measures, while wisdom is assessed with more humanistic, value-laden measures, creating a domain mismatch that may obscure how these constructs work together in real life.” “Beyond this theoretical …

The Olympic wit and wisdom of an African skeleton racer : NPR

The Olympic wit and wisdom of an African skeleton racer : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

Ghana’s Akwasi Frimpong takes part in a training session for the men’s skeleton event in the 2018 Olympics. Kirill KudryavtsevAFP/via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Kirill KudryavtsevAFP/via Getty Images For those not familiar with the sport of skeleton, where the solo sledder lies flat on their stomach, head first, Akwasi Frimpong sums it up: “You’re on a cookie sheet sled and it’s like ‘dude, good luck.’” Skeleton was actually the third sport Frimpong took up to chase his dream of becoming an Olympian. Born in Ghana, Frimpong moved to the Netherlands when he was 8 as an undocumented immigrant. He eventually got Dutch citizenship. He also took up track in the Netherlands, and later bobsled, then skeleton. In 2018, he became the first male Black African skeleton racer to compete in the Olympics. (That same year, Simidele Adeagbo became the first female Black African skeleton athlete in the Olympics, competing on Nigeria’s team.) NPR spoke with Frimpong about the challenges of being an African athlete in a predominantly white sport, his foundation called Hope …

Revolutionizing Science: Jane Goodall and the Challenge to Conventional Wisdom

Revolutionizing Science: Jane Goodall and the Challenge to Conventional Wisdom

Published by Sam Flores

For more than twenty years, I kept a signed postcard of Jane Goodall affixed to the bulletin board behind my classroom desk as a daily reminder to me and my students that scientific greatness begins with observation and intellectual humility. The postcard pictured the iconic Jane Goodall sitting next to Freud, a chimpanzee. She signed the postcard, “Together we can change the world.” But it wasn’t until April 29, 2013, that I experienced this personally. On that day, Goodall met my nine-year-old son. While the crowd waited, she bent low to his level and offered a few simple, genuine words of encouragement. I’ll never forget the hush that surrounded them. It was a magical moment, and everyone in the room realized the significance. This scientist who had revolutionized the study of animal behavior, the only female scientist many people could recall by name, was taking a moment to speak to a little boy. She wasn’t going through the motions; she was patient and deliberate, asking him questions and listening intently. Jane Goodall with the author’s …