Good, Better, Best

Once upon a time there was a retail and appliance store called Sears (sadly there are only a few locations remaining) where almost every single item we ever owned was purchased. Every appliance in our home had a Kenmore label purchased with a Sears employee discount. This retailer was so prominent during the 70s and …

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Rent to Own

Growing up I remember television advertisements which claimed the tagline “Rent-to-Own” as a marketing ploy; and a quick search of the Internet leaves me to believe there remain a few stores which still offer this service, but it appears the interest has waned. With the current options for transferring payment through technology like Apple Pay, …

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Flourishing Thinking

On this journey to examine ways to equip and engage Gen Z, specifically in the college classroom, much of my interest has zeroed in on processes such as active or experiential learning activities such as gamification, virtual simulations, and student-created content. As I’ve pondered what strategies might be successful in my classes, research on tinkering …

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Lose the Prescriptions

As a health educator who supports the use of pharmaceutical medicines to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease, I admit to wrestling sometimes with where to draw the line between behavioral habits and the use of chemicals. When I make a choice to consume high-fat fast foods over fresh fruits and vegetables, I understand the …

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Is Gen Z the Canary?

Entering unchartered territory is challenging and not for the faint of heart. Thankful for all the pioneers whose courage led them to brave new areas, I relish those who are willing to risk the unknown. Trailblazers are eager to journey into new territories to open opportunities for the rest of us; and currently, I believe …

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A Flourishing Generation

At the university where I teach, each semester we are provided with opportunities to participate in dialogue groups with other faculty members and administrators which I find both insightful and challenging. Since the spring of 2011 where the group discussed Tim Elmore’s Generation iY to the fall of 2016 when the group read Jean Twenge’s …

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The Habit of Resilience

Passion and Perseverance Emerging from the research on Gen Z comes the notion that Americans are trailing in their ability to be resilient, to bounce back after a flounder or failure, resisting the lessons to be learned from those valuable experiences. The prevalent reason for this gap relates to the protective nature us Gen Xers …

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Probing Conversations

Since we’ve been conversing about conversations in previous posts, I could not omit relevant information from Todd Henry as he writes in Die Empty, which I read in 2017, and continue to return to again and again for the wisdom it provides when considering the qualities of a flourishing life. One of my hopes in …

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Asphalt of Habits

When was the last time you were intently aware of the asphalt that lined the streets of your town? As many luxuries in Western culture are easily taken for granted, I would opine that asphalt might possibly be at the top of this invisible list. Driving through our regular routine, we notice many things through …

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