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Living in Green™ transforms the way you love, work, and connect to your larger community.

We hope the insights and strategies here inspire you to go back to green!

Join the CompassionateUSA Initiative

Join the CompassionateUSA Initiative

The founder of the Living in Green Proejct, Dr. Poonam Sharma is pleased to have participated in the CompassionateUSA initiative, introducing the three states of the nervous system and how they connect with compassion: https://compassionateusa.org/be-self-aware/

CompassionateUSA is a people-centered campaign that includes:

A video series to introduce learners to key concepts about compassion

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How Remote Work Affects Employee Well-Being

How Remote Work Affects Employee Well-Being

Remote work used to be a luxury reserved for a select few, but thanks to the pandemic, many more people have gotten a taste of what it’s like to work in our pajamas. And let’s face it, who needs professional attire when your pets are your coworkers and your boss is nowhere to be found!

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How to know when its safe to tell the truth at work

How to know when its safe to tell the truth at work

As we enter a season typically all about connection, celebration, and reflecting on our path forward, as a nation we are questioning our basic safety and wondering if this is where we belong.

In a recent nationwide Harris Poll for the American Psychological Association (APA), over a third of Americans said the country has changed so much that they would consider moving somewhere else. Alarmingly, more than a quarter of Americans reported being so stressed that they can’t function.

Factors that are largely out of personal control, such as inflation, violence and crime, and the current social climate, are of the most concern to the large majority of Americans. Most people do not feel that the government cares about them, and worry about their rights being under attack.

Interestingly, annual surveys by the federal government, show no major rise in violent crime since the beginning of the pandemic. Although the murder rate did increase, it is still well below previous highs.

Is the world more unsafe now? Are people showing their real colors by being more selfish, rude, and outspoken? Do you need to guard yourself at work and everywhere else you go?

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Red and yellow kill a fellow

Red and yellow kill a fellow

“Red and yellow kill a fellow” is a common warning to help identify the coral snake which is poisonous to us. However, this phrase may also apply to your health.

Red and yellow on the traffic light tool are states of survival. There’s nothing wrong with going into those states when necessary, but spending excessive time in yellow and red indicates you are experiencing chronic stress and can have an impact on your well-being.

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Do you have a runaway brain?

Do you have a runaway brain?

Are you a chronic worrier?  Do you obsess about things?  Or, does your mind seem to always be stuck in the past?

When any of us experiences high stress (eg., an illness, a death, intense work pressure), our sense of well being is often temporarily hijacked by our thoughts running off into the past or into the future.  I call this the Runaway Brain.  Tune into your mind’s chatter at any given point, and there is a strong likelihood that you will find yourself everywhere but here.  You may be regretting a decision you made or worrying about how you will make ends meet if you lose your job.  The problem with this tendency of the brain to meander out of the present is that neither the past, nor the future, actually exists, except in your mind.  The only thing that exists is right now.  This moment.   The rest is pure imagination.

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Moments

Moments

Life can move so fast that it’s easy to miss the small moments that ultimately define a lifetime.  This video by William Hoffman serves as a reminder to be more mindful of these...

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The real reason we’re having a hard time moving past COVID

The real reason we’re having a hard time moving past COVID

Although the pandemic is technically winding down in the U.S., many people are still struggling to make the transition back to a more normal rhythm of life.

As people return to the office, almost 63% report that the pandemic has changed them forever according to the 2022 APA Stress in America Poll. High rates of stress and burnout are prevalent, challenging companies to pour energy into addressing the psychological well-being of employees.

People are changing jobs, demanding input into where they work, or simply refusing to have work consume as large a portion of their lives. We are hearing of The Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting, potentially signaling a sea change in the attitudes Americans have toward work in this post-pandemic era.

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