The Cost of Cynicism

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Howard Scott Warshaw

Do you know this phrase?: “Those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.”

Of course you do. Most of us know this clever quip which demeans a profession crucial to the continuance of our society, thereby meeting the standard for cynicism.

Do you know who first said it? I didn’t, so I looked it up. Turns out it was the illustrious Irish author and playwright George Bernard Shaw in 1903. Shaw was (among other things) a satirist. This quote is actually a twist on an ancient bit of wisdom. Really?

Absolutely! The original idea was first expressed in the 3rd century B.C. by another illustrious author and playwright. His name was Aristotle. Here is what he said:

“Those who know, do. Those who understand, teach.”

Ever heard this one?

Probably not. Precious few people today have. This is a different sentiment entirely. This elevates the profession of teaching and (IMHO) is more accurate than Shaw’s take.

Aristotle’s wisdom had a 2000 year head start, but in one century Shaw’s twist on it has effectively erased the original from mainstream culture. This saddens me.

Cynicism is frequently more popular than sincerity. Its humor reaches many and at times it passes for insight. These are benefits for the cynic, but I’d like to point out the cost.

When affirmative wisdom loses ground because the cynical take steals our attention, I believe we are all diminished.

It makes me wonder: Where else is our wisdom being obscured by clever slogans?

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The Planting Season

Posted on December 27, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

‘Tis the season. The one with many names.

Most people call it the holiday season, but how you refer to the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day depends on who you are and what you do.

For consumers it’s shopping season. For retailers it’s profit season. For marketers it’s the window. For producers it’s the wall. It’s a time for inspection and reflection. A time for rapping up and wrapping up. For farmers this is the quiet time after the harvest, but for therapists… this is the planting season.

Families everywhere are reuniting and reigniting. Gifts are exchanged and buttons are pushed. Resentments long dormant through summer and fall are reawakened in a cornucopia of closeness. Drama for some, comedy for others. It can be filled with complexity and nuance, but through a therapist’s lens the scene is very simple:
Seeds are being planted.

These seeds sit quietly through the winter, doing their invisible business as newly planted seeds do.  And sometime in early spring they reemerge, sprouting new clients.

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When Online is Off-point

Posted on December 15, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

I just returned from an excellent professional conference. As a direct result I feel better able to serve my clients. This was meaningful Continuing Education!

I don’t get that feeling from online CEUs. I get the hours but I don’t get the infusion. I believe that’s where online is off-point. Hours are necessary, but live conference experience actually improves my practice.

I got to immerse myself in professional kinship and camaraderie. I got to write off some delicious meals and a fun trip. But most importantly…

I got to see the ICONs practice what they preach. I got to see the people I’ve studied for years come to life. I saw demonstrations by Sue Johnson, Bill O’Hanlon, Donald Michenbaum and many others. It solidified and clarified many elusive concepts in powerful ways.

I didn’t just rack up hours for license renewal, I’m genuinely inspired and enriched by this experience. My clients benefit also as I bring this fresh energy into the room.

I believe continuing education is significantly more effective if I see you when I CEU!

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The Meaning of Being a Psychotherpist

Posted on November 30, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

“I’m filled with gratitude & every day it grows. How could it not?
My appointment book is a bouquet of intimate moments.
My colleagues are a network of skilled empathizers.
My cost of doing business is self-care and personal development.
In the service of helping others I help myself.
Where else can I get so much value for giving so much value?
I learn. I grow. I love to inspire…
I am a Psychotherapist.”

Excerpt from “The Inspired Intern”
A new book by Howard Scott Warshaw, MA, ME, LMFT

This book is from my heart. Share my inner journey from Trainee to Licensed Psychotherapist. People find it inspirational. They say it reawakens their passion by bringing them back to why they began this journey in the first place.

I’m very grateful and honored to provide this experience.

Available in Paperback and eBook:  Click here to check it out!

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Movie: MASH (1970)

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

MASH is an amazing movie. I’m not talking about the TV series here but the original movie from 1970, directed by Robert Altman.

This was a controversial film when it first came out because it was full of 1960’s cynicism and anti-war sentiment as well as lots of graphic blood-gushing surgical scenes. However, I believe this film also carries a very positive message which is frequently overlooked…

To me, this movie is about freedom. The freedom to choose our focus. The freedom to decide what to make of our experience rather than having it define us.

MASH is the story of a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (the title is the acronym). This can be a very depressing place. Here are people confronting death and suffering on a daily basis. Yet their focus is on doing the best they can to alleviate the suffering and find ways to see past it, to distract from it and to lighten it up.

Not everyone in the film adheres to this philosophy, but those who resist it do so at their peril. Some adjust and some are crushed, they reap the consequences of their choices.

It’s a dark film to be sure, but it sheds a lot of light on how people may face traumatizing circumstances in the healthiest possible way. I find it very uplifting on this level.

While facing horror and death, these people choose to celebrate life… and in that celebration lies their salvation.

If you haven’t seen MASH, or haven’t seen it lately, check it out. It’s about finding/creating some good in a very bad situation. That’s a lesson I can always use.

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Telling My Story

Posted on August 25, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

We all have our story. From time to time we tell our story… to friends, relatives, co-workers, co-passengers, bystanders, strangers, bartenders, and of course people tell their story to therapists. It’s your story and you are the one telling it.

Here’s a big question: When you tell your story, do you tell the truth?

Some people embellish their story. Some people hedge a bit. Some gloss over details here and there while others outright fabricate.

So I ask you again: When you tell your story, do you tell the truth?

I believe you always tell the truth. You can’t help it. But the truth I’m talking about here is not objective, universal truth. I’m talking about your personal truth.

A therapist’s job is listening to your story and trying to zero in on the truth. Not the truth of the story, but the truth of you, the person. These are quite different things. We are always telling the truth about ourselves, to anyone who can see past our words.

Sometimes, for whatever reason, someone else winds up telling our story.

Here’s another big question: When someone else tells your story, do they tell the truth?

Absolutely they do! However, the truth they tell is their truth, not yours. You are hearing their story told through the details of your life. That is a very interesting (and potentially confusing) turn of events. But there is an upside…

It takes your story to new and interesting places. It opens up new ways of seeing the story when you view it through someone else’s eyes. This is a very rich opportunity indeed! It gives us the chance to find refreshingly new takes on our story… and ourselves.

Recently some very accomplished story tellers decided to tell a bit of my story. Here is a glimpse of what it can look like when that happens:

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Quote: Definitive Power

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

“The power to define the situation is the ultimate power.”  -Jerry Rubin, activist and author (1938-1994)

As a political activist, it is likely Mr. Rubin meant that power derives from being able to define situations for others, thereby influencing their actions and reactions. And that is a great power indeed. This is the power of the Spin Doctor!

However, I believe a more practical meaning arises when I take this as the power to define the situation for myself. After all, the situation is only the situation. It is what it is. But the big questions are: What will the situation become? What do I do next?

My actions do not derive from the situation itself, my actions derive from my beliefs about what the situation demands. And as we all know, this varies a lot from person to person. Are my beliefs about this situation derived from my own worldview or were they shaped by others? Is my choice internal or external? Is it rigid or flexible? Am I acting or reacting?

In other words: Who’s defining the meaning of the situation? Who’s in control of my perceptions? Whoever this is, they control my direction.

Some people think it’s impossible to shift your perceptions. If that were true, no one could intentionally change or redefine themselves. Don’t believe everything you think!

I would add one thing to Mr. Rubin’s quote:
The power to define the situation is the ultimate power to facilitate my own growth.

And it’s a power well within anyone’s reach.

This quote reminds me of a 2000+ year old saying: “We are disturbed not by events, but by the views which we take of them.”  -Epictetus, Greek philosopher, c.80AD

Today, while trying to verify that quote I kept finding this:  “It’s not the events of our lives that shape us, but our beliefs as to what those events mean.” – Tony Robbins

Apparently two millennia ago people thought the author of this quote was Epictetus, but nowadays it’s Tony Robbins. That’s an interesting situation. What should I make of it?

It could be “everything old is new again.” Or maybe “some things never change.”
How about “there’s nothing new under the sun” or even “talent borrows, genius steals!”

I guess it depends on which way I choose to go with it.

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The Specificity Paradox

Posted on July 14, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

What is your client population? Who do you want to see? Who will you help?

These can be vexing questions for psychotherapists in general, particularly so for interns and trainees. These questions raise many emotions for us, chief among them is fear.

Here is a sample internal dialogue:
“If I’m too specific I might lose a large part of my potential client base.”
“Oh? Who is your potential client base?”
“Well, there’s mood issues, anxiety, trauma, relationships, grief. Oh yeah, and eating disorders, OCD, social issues, work pressures and life transitions. Pretty much everyone.”
“So you want to see everyone?”
“Of course not. But I don’t want someone to read my ad and think I can’t help them.”

Aha! Fear of rejection. Which in this case is a mask for a fear of inability to launch my career. A career in which I have invested more years, $$$$’s and intimate personal resources than most professions come close to demanding. After this kind of commitment, I don’t want anything to limit my ability to succeed!

So when I answer the question, “Who are my clients?” my main goal is avoiding rejection.

That makes sense psychologically, but it’s a very poor strategy. Here’s 2 reasons why:

1)  In order to avoid rejection you are going to make your ad so generalized and so amorphous that no one will identify with it. Therefore, no one will see their issue in your description. Therefore no one will have any reason to think you can help them.

2)  You can’t see everyone! There isn’t enough time in the week.

I’m afraid if I’m too specific about my primary client I’ll miss too many potential clients. But to get clients I have to be specific enough to be chosen.

This is The Specificity Paradox!

Do you want clients? Then take this to heart:

Getting clients is not about avoiding rejection, it’s about getting selected!!!

Getting clients is about reaching the 100 people in the area who need your help. It’s not about keeping 1,000,000 people in the area from rejecting you.

You only need some clients. So when you answer these big questions, be as specific as possible. The people looking for you need to know you are the one they seek!

You can’t see a million clients. But if you design your marketing to appeal to all of them you can easily wind up with none.

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Quote: Flow of Life

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

“I cannot prevent the wind from blowing, but I can adjust my sails to make it work for me.”  ― Code of the Order of Isshinryu

There is a flow to the universe which happens regardless of our actions. This flow goes by many names: Natural order, God, Cause & effect, Karma, Physics, Fate, etc.

But flow it does, leaving us only one real choice: join it or resist it.

When I resist I get very busy. The world abounds with opportunities to spend my energy. This gives me the illusion I’m getting somewhere. Swimming up-river is a lot of work, but it’s a very inefficient use of time & effort.

It’s easy to work hard, but working smart tends to be more productive. Working hard in smart directions should be unstoppable. So… what should I work on?

How about getting in touch with this flow? If I work hard on recognizing the flow, I can learn to drift with it and get “there” faster. I’m freer when I release my destination and learn to focus on where I’m heading… particularly when my heading needs to change.

If my goal is to arrive in only one place, I can fill my life with lots of work and the constant feeling I’m not there yet.

On the other hand, if my goal is to explore and express my true fundamental desires, I’m always being where I’d most like to be and I’ll still wind up somewhere. Surprisingly, this formula leads to many wonderful places and a more enjoyable journey as well.

OK, so how do I identify my true fundamental desires?

That, my friend, is an entirely other blog entry.  🙂

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An East-West Metaphor

Posted on June 17, 2014 by Howard Scott Warshaw

Here is a story which illustrates one possible take on the difference between Eastern and Western approaches.

Imagine one day some aliens come down to earth and they issue a challenge. They are going to leave a specimen with us and we must analyze it over time and report the results upon their return. The aliens split the specimen right down the middle. They give one half to the East and the other to the West, and then they leave.

Some time later, the aliens return to evaluate the findings. What’s interesting here is not the relative completeness or accuracy of the findings. What’s interesting is that the East is able to return their half of the specimen almost entirely intact whereas the West has virtually nothing left.

 

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