One way to be happy (or happier) is to operate in the workplace at a higher level of competence and effectiveness. Performing at our best is a great source of pleasure. Performing at our worst is, well, just ask Dilbert. The comic strip featuring that forlorn character and … [Read more...] about Overcoming Incompetence and Its Miseries
Search Results for: psychological defenses
Terrorism and the Death Drive
The front page of today’s The New York Times has a photo of the aftermath of a suicide bomber’s horrific attack on a group of Afghan Shiites who were taking part in a religious ceremony. Human perversity sometimes seems unfathomable, but we must keep trying to make sense of … [Read more...] about Terrorism and the Death Drive
Prose to Shatter Writer’s Block
There’s nothing more painful than having writing talent—yet being blocked from expressing it. A lifeless imagination withers the spirit of the aspiring scribe. The problem is called writer’s block. Writer’s block and other creativity blocks are symptoms or consequences of … [Read more...] about Prose to Shatter Writer’s Block
The Secret Allures of Pornography
Lots of people, men in particular, are addicted to pornography. They are sexually aroused by the visual stimulation, and they return compulsively to the activity, looking for that pleasure. However, it’s often a pleasure that comes with a price. Many feel shame after feasting on … [Read more...] about The Secret Allures of Pornography
When Sexual Desire Covers Up Self-Sabotage
What are some of the more important features of human sexual desire? Two neuroscientists falter badly in their attempt to answer the question in their book, A Billion Wicked Thoughts: What the World’s Largest Experiment Reveals About Human Desire (Dutton, New York, … [Read more...] about When Sexual Desire Covers Up Self-Sabotage