Creating Healthy Relationships: Why Emotional Safety Matters

Creating Healthy Relationships: Why Emotional Safety Matters

“Healthy, connected relationships cannot happen without safety on every level.” ~LMB Are you safe towards others? I mean: Are you REALLY safe to others? Are the people in your life tiptoeing around your anger? Is your spouse afraid to be honest about their...
Avoiding Conflict Makes Intimacy and Connection Near Impossible

Avoiding Conflict Makes Intimacy and Connection Near Impossible

“Avoiding conflict makes intimacy and connection near impossible; Dare to have the hard conversations.” ~LMB Few people get excited about conflicts. Disagreeing, arguing, or talking about your upset or someone else’s upset is seldom comfortable....
Use Your Words to Build Others Up, Not Tear Them Down

Use Your Words to Build Others Up, Not Tear Them Down

“Use your words to build others up, not tear them down.” ~ LMB I believe that people underestimate the power of words every day. Whether it is a kind word shared with love or mean words thrown in anger, words have an impact. Kind words can soothe a...
How Do You Respond to Negative Feedback From Others?

How Do You Respond to Negative Feedback From Others?

“Explaining why you did what you did is a defensive response that creates distance, not repair.” ~ Lisa Merlo-Booth Do you ever find yourself responding to someone’s upset about something you did by explaining why you did what you did? Explanations can...
Take an Honest Inventory of Your Relationships

Take an Honest Inventory of Your Relationships

“People want to spend time with those who feel good to be around. Be a bright light, not a black cloud.” ~Lisa Merlo-Booth When clients were making bad choices in their lives and experiencing negative consequences, my mentor would often say, “If you...