The Million Dollar Scholar From Southside Chicago
When Derrius Quarles was four years old, his father was murdered. The following year, he was taken away from his mother's custody. Growing up in the Illinois foster care system for nine years and in the south side of Chicago, higher education seemed far out of reach for Derrius, and the challenges of inner-city life almost led him down a path of crime and fast money. Everything changed one morning... posted on Dec 28 2013, 27,333 reads

16 Habits of Exuberant Human Beings
Martin Seligman, the father of positive psychology, theorizes that while 60 percent of happiness is determined by our genetics and environment, the remaining 40 percent is up to us. Through his research, Seligman discovered that happy people have consistent habits which may be introduced into our day to day life.Take a moment to read this delightful article, in which Seligman introduce the 16 habi... posted on Dec 27 2013, 357,090 reads

8 Creativity Lessons From An Animator
Whether it is sharing ideas, working hard and being persistent in your efforts, or having the ability let go of your own ego, amazing things can be accomplished when you allow yourself to become a true team player. Bernhard Haux, who has worked on blockbuster motion pictures such as 'Up,' and 'Monsters U', offers up some inspiring thoughts that can help everyone work together to achieve a common g... posted on Dec 26 2013, 30,262 reads

A Christmas Wish From Beyond The Grave
This Des Moines radio station had run a "Christmas Wish" program for over 20 years, but nothing had prepared them for Brenda Schmitz's request. The wife and mom of four lost her battle with ovarian cancer two years ago, at the age of 46. Then..."About a week and half ago we got [her] letter in the mail," shares station brand manager Scott Allen. Brenda wanted the station to do something wonderful ... posted on Dec 25 2013, 45,517 reads

Six Life Lessons from Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy, the author of literary epics such as 'War and Peace' and 'Anna Karenina', is most often thought of as one of the 19th century's greatest novelists. However, "few are aware that he was also one of its most radical social and political thinkers. During a long life from 1828 to 1910, Tolstoy gradually rejected the received beliefs of his aristocratic background and embraced a startlingly... posted on Dec 23 2013, 180,292 reads

6 Boys, One Cop: A Story of Restorative Justice
In one of Frank Baum's Oz books, Dorothy winds up in prison in Oz and is treated to luxury, kindness and warm cookies. When she asks why, the guard says, "Why would we treat people meanly when we want them to be kind?" The prison system in the US often runs counter to this notion of kindness and rehabilitation. This article focuses on a town in Longmont, Colorado where restorative justice that pro... posted on Dec 21 2013, 26,334 reads

Are We Losing Our Focus?
Daniel Goleman, renowned author and psychologist, writes that the ability to focus on one task to the exclusion of others is a lost art for many. Yet the skill of focus is connected to greater happiness, better relationships, and increased productivity. He writes that balancing inner, other, and outer focus are keys to success. Inner focus involves paying attention to our values, intuition, and wa... posted on Dec 20 2013, 26,608 reads

An Awesome Way To Help Kids Be Less Self-Absorbed
Malala Yousufzai, Craig Kielburger, and Ryan Hreljac are some of the many young people in the world who are trying to transform the world in positive ways. However, research suggests that a large percentage of youth are becoming less empathic and more disconnected from others. Getting children and young adults to be less self-absorbed has also been a subject of research, and as Dacher Keltner expl... posted on Dec 19 2013, 109,069 reads

The Art & Science of Conquering Your Fears
Aristotle believed courage to be the most important quality in a man. "Courage is the first of human virtues because it makes all others possible," he wrote. Today, it's one of the more neglected areas of positive psychology, but recent research has begun to move toward an understanding of what courage is and how we might be able to cultivate the ability to face our fear and make decisions with gr... posted on Dec 18 2013, 0 reads

Let Us Begin With Courage
The Okanagan People practice bio-regionally self-sufficient economies and believe that the total community must be engaged in order to attain sustainability and survival. The word "cooperation" is insufficient to describe the organic nature by which members of this community nurture the voluntary care of each other and of other life forms, the practice of which they hold to be an essential foundat... posted on Dec 15 2013, 32,123 reads