If you want to excel in life, being able to stay calm when feeling overwhelmed is an essential skill. The consequences of not doing so can be significant (e.g., addiction, damaging relationships, job loss, missed opportunities, etc.).

Knowing your triggers (people, places, and situations) and how y...

As your self-confidence improves, other parts of your life improve as well. Often relationships strengthen, you see opportunities you missed before, and your focus & creativity improve. You CAN improve your self-confidence by taking action.

While you might believe that self-confidence is something ...

Vulnerability is required for making genuine new friends. This means you risk getting rejected, hurt, judged, or mistreated. It means that you reach out to someone without a guarantee that the outcome will be positive.

I'm often asked for advice on how to make new friends. Many people are lonely, a...

We all have seasons in our lives when it's very hard to be positive. I can easily view myself as the victim. Gratitude is one of the only things that can end my pity party.

Focusing on gratitude has helped me on my darkest days. It helps me get focused on what's right rather than what's wrong...

Healthy people are drawn to those who like themselves. Being around people who have confidence in their worth and abilities will build your own self-esteem.

Many believe their value comes from their performance in different areas of life (career, health, finances, marriage, etc.). When they do well...

You can make meaningful progress in just 15 minutes. Real momentum comes from consistently making smart, imperfect choices—because progress doesn’t require perfection.

Over a decade ago, when I designed our logo, I chose a tree with seven leaves to represent our “Make it a 7” philosophy. On a scale...

It's easy to find things to worry about and dread. Being grateful is often hard, yet ironically, our gratitude is more grounded in reality than our fears. So many things in life are outside our control, but one thing you can directly influence is your perspective.

You can focus on what's going wron...

Since founding Decide Your Legacy in 2012, I’ve worked with four different coaches. Each one played a meaningful role in helping me grow the business and myself as a leader.

The results you experience in coaching depend, in part, on the quality of the professional you choose. I’m often asked who I ...

At times, I can become extremely negative. My mind starts focusing on everything that could go wrong, the opportunities I have missed, the mistakes I have made, and the fear that my life could fall apart.

When I get into that mindset, my perspective is not accurate. I lose sight of what is going we...

In seventh grade, on the last day of school, a kid kept pushing me hard from behind. I asked him to stop several times, but he refused. 

I finally told myself, “If he does that again, I’m spitting in his face.” When he pushed me again, that is exactly what I did.

I am not recommending that respons...

Life is hard! It brings us many challenges we didn't expect and weren't prepared to face. I've had days when I've struggled to stay hopeful. Many people vacillate between hope and fear. I write this post to remind myself and to remind you to choose hope.

There are two orientations towards life: a f...

Clients often ask for help managing stress. Most people can identify what’s creating their tension—conflict, parenting, relationships, finances, work, health—but they struggle to use that awareness in a way that actually helps them cope.

A significant amount of stress comes from investing our energ...