And so it begins 2023

 May this year be, for all, characterized by more peace and flourishing.

~ marty alan michelson, ph.d.

2022

 2022 is almost a wrap.

What a year it's been for growth, kindness, development, learning, empathy, exploration, compassion, challenge, maturation, love, friendship and for developing meaningful relationships. Superb.

My hope for all living beings persists -  Lives of Peace and Flourishing!

Life. Is. Full.

~ marty alan michelson, ph.d.

Life.

 Who I was is not who I am is not who I am becoming.

~ marty alan michelson, ph.d.

What Your Professors Wish You Knew About College-Level Coursework

What Your Professors Wish You Knew About College-Level Coursework

We want to have a positive relationship with you

The vast majority of us really like students.  We want our students to feel safe and engaged in our classrooms -- to benefit from the experience as much as possible.  We also think that interacting with you benefits us in all kinds of ways! In other words, we imagine a symbiotic relationship in which all parties can be better off by the time the course ends.

Responsibility for your success has shifted squarely to you

It can be a jolting experience to suddenly be treated like an adult.  On the one hand, it's great! You get to set your own schedule, choose your own activities, and probably live apart from mom and dad for the first time.  On the other hand, it means that the safety net is also gone.  Your parents aren't going to come into your room to drag your butt out of bed for class.  Your parents aren't going to be there to repeatedly ask you whether or not your homework is done yet.  And perhaps the biggest jolt of all: no one is is going to blame your professors if you fail, like they might have blamed your high school teachers.  

Professors will go to great lengths to help our students succeed.  I will always work with struggling students who are putting in the effort.  But college professors aren't going to coddle you like you might have experienced in high school.  

You and your classmates will get out of your courses what you put into them

Many students fail to grasp that a successful college course is a cooperative project between the professor and the students.  Yes, we are the ones that choose the readings, design the assignments, give the lectures, etc, but if you aren't doing the readings, participating in class discussion, engaging with the lectures, then the class is going to quickly become a drag for professor and students alike! 

Our job is to help you become a successful college student, not confirm that you were a successful high school student

 Students don't always get this.  They think that because they were good high school thinkers and writers they should have immediate and high-level success in my courses.  After all, they've studied history and written papers before.  However, I am teaching them college-level skills.  And that may take some effort to master -- definitely some humility.  They can get there, for sure, but they don't arrive at college already "there." 

You must be proactive in seeking help

I see my students in seated courses less than three hours a week.  I don't see my online students ever.  This means that it may take me a lot longer than my high school colleagues to realize that a student is struggling.  This problem is exacerbated by the fact that college courses tend to have less assignments, meaning performance "red flags" can take even longer to pop up.  

All this means that students must be proactive in seeking help.  If you feel yourself struggling in the course, reach out to your professor.  Professors will go the "extra mile" for a student who is truly trying and truly dedicated to putting in the hard work to improve.

Most class periods will require some sort of preparation beforehand

Almost all college courses will require you to complete readings before class so that the class can build on what you read.  Lectures, class activities, etc, don't just repeat the information in your assigned readings.  In addition, you won't be given time in class to complete most assignments.  You'll be expected to carve out time outside of class for those, too.  

Attendance is more than being a warm body

When students who bomb exams come to see me in my office, I always ask to see their notes.  9/10 students don't have any, or at least have very minimal notes.  You must have an effective notetaking system in college.  You cannot retain all the information given in college classes by sitting in your seat, arms crossed, trying to soak it all in.  If you don't have a good system, check out this notetaking system from Dartmouth.

Professors totally notice who is staring into space or texting on their "cleverly hidden" phone during class.  

You really are responsible for all the information in the syllabus.

When it comes to attendance policy, academic integrity policy -- all the ins and outs of your courses, really -- you are 100% responsible for knowing the information given to you in the syllabus.  Pleading after the fact that "I didn't know we could only miss so many classes" or "I didn't know that would be considered cheating" isn't going to get you anywhere.

Grades are not a reflection of effort, intelligence, or potential

It is possible to work hard and still do poorly if you are not demonstrating the skills and/or knowledge that an assignment requires. Grades measure your current level of mastery.  Honestly, that's it.  Struggling on an assignment or two does not mean you can’t “do college” or are “never going to get it.”  It just means that you are still learning how to master something.  Many students who struggle on the first assignment or two still go on to have tremendous success in my courses ... if they are willing to apply my feedback, come by office hours, submit drafts beforehand, take advantage of university tutoring services, etc.

We don't know the due dates in your other classes

That might sound like "duh"-level information, but it's really important to think through the ramifications here.  It means that your professors aren't working together to make sure that assignments are spread out evenly across the semester.  You'll end up with some weeks that you have nothing due ... and then some weeks where you might have 3-4 tests and/or papers! 

To my Muslim friends and future Muslim friends:

Eid al-Adha Wishes

Eid Mubarak! Wishing you a joyous and blessed Eid al-Adha with lots laughter and good health!

Wishing you a very happy Eid al-Adha. May the divine blessings of Allah bring you hope, faith, and joy on Eid-Ul-Adha and forever.

Eid Ul Adha Mubarak! I pray that Allah showers you with peace and prosperity in this life and in the afterlife.

Wishing you and your family a wonderful and blessed Eid al-Adha.

Wishing you and your family peace, harmony, happiness, good health and prosperity on Eid. Eid Mubarak to you and everyone at home.

May you continue to grow wiser and more charming every day! Eid al-Adha Mubarak!

Oliver Sacks

There are so many great humans we can learn from.

I'm so grateful that many years ago I "met" Wendell Berry . . . and Walter Brueggemann and so many other authors whose writings have shaped my existence.

in the past weeks I was introduced to Oliver Sacks.  

How did I not know him? 

I'm plundering my fourth book from him now as I work my way through his oeuvre! 

If you're not familiar with him, as I was not - start with the film entitled AWAKENINGS, based on Dr. Sacks life and starring Robin Williams

And then, as I'm doing - read Oliver Sacks books here!

An Oregon Public Official

I'm officially an Oregon Public Official! 

Breath, Sleep, Happiness, Neuroscience & Stoicism

Too many things going on in life to keep up with this blog in the past couple of years  . . . which is a bummer as I still read many books, and increasingly *try* to keep up with too many podcasts!

It has been the case that fully half of my book-reading consumption has been in more clinical and thus, more "boring" contexts in the past few years.  While the books I've been reading that inform clinical therapy and practices to engage, for example, Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing theory and practices is important to me, it won't matter much to the average reader.

I realized I haven't posted anything in 2022 and had a prompt from a Graduate Student who asked me about good books to read . . . which serves as a prompt for me to "catch up" on this blog by perhaps reviewing some of the books I've read in the past couple of years.

So - here are a few recent good reads:

It's clear that the way we breath impacts our life.  It is obvious that breathing is something we do - unconsciously.  What is less obvious is the fact that we can shift our breathing and our breathing can shift our life. 

I've personally benefited from (nearly weekly) and value the very simple methods offered by Wim Hof both in his writings and in his books or interviews.  His simple 30 deep inhalations and 30 deep exhalations in a calm state (no other complexity, no timing, no pacing, just 30 deep breathes) has helped me find mid-day calm many times.  

Beyond Wim Hof, I recommend Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art Paperback by James Nestor as a great introduction to the science of breathing.  [ For more on the "philosophy" of breathing for mindfulness, of course, Thich Nhat Hanh.]

Shawn Achor has written several books on Positive Psychology and the Science of Happiness.  It's likely the case that I've reviewed other books by him elsewhere.  The stories in this book, along with some practical steps, are good - Before Happiness: The 5 Hidden Keys to Achieving Success, Spreading Happiness, and Sustaining Positive Change   Among various issues in the book, I loved a simple practice he explains about gaining an "add-vantage" in life.  We simply "add" a new "vantage" point for looking at a problem.  In viewing a problem from a different perspective, we might be able to see it anew and find a fresh solution or perspective.  Adding a vantage point gives us an advantage on the problem. Great!

Sleep is super important.  Really. Very, critically important.  And our world's cultural patterns don't celebrate this or respect it.  Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker will give you perspective on the science of sleep and how to sleep more/better.

One of the more enjoyable reads I've had in the past year, The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons: The History of the Human Brain as Revealed by True Stories of Trauma, Madness, and Recovery by Sam Kean.  Kean deftly weaves together narrative stories of of history alongside the development of neuroscientific studies.  I enjoyed the stories, as much as what I learned.  A book worth reading a 2nd time, for sure! 

Finally, I've been reading both *from* the Stoics and in the study of Stoicism quite a bit in the past year. Including podcasts and videos, it's probably the case that I should call the latter half of 2021 as my "deep dive" into Stoicism.  I've read at least eight books by Ryan Holiday and he is an "evangelist" for Stoicism, indeed.  A couple of minor bits.  I have been shaped by Ryan and his presentations and that is super.  I wish he had someone else read his audiobooks, as I find his pacing to be a bit off.  His short videos on youtube in many ways are *really* great.  I especially love that he has clear descriptions in his videos where a person can "click" to the minute mark of each point.  Very nice.  One thing I don't like (or at least don't like "right now" with him is that he has about 10-20 key points from Stoicism, and every.single.video/teaching comes back to these few points.  In some ways, that is *the* point, I suppose, though I do feel a sense that once you get him, you've got him.  

To all . . . wishing you a life of peace and flourishing!