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Different Ways

Mailing Lists versus Forums: Community, Convenience & Closeness

by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. 5/16/2024

Mailing Lists versus Forums: Community, Convenience & Closeness The way we communicate in groups online naturally changes as our technology evolves. We cannot assume that a technology or format that worked in one decade will work as well in the next.

And yet, there’s a reason why some technologies persist, despite alternatives that seem to offer additional benefits. Email is still with us (and seems likely it will always be, in one form or another), largely because of its asynchronous and convenient nature. Unlike so many other newer online technologies and services that seem to demand our real-time attention, email is happy to be exist in the background on our computers and mobile devices, ready to be reviewed in batches when our time permits.

Yet time and time again, organizations seem to face the same common conundrum — now that we’ve “outgrown” our mailing list, how do we move our organization to an online forum?

Let’s review the benefits and drawbacks of different ways people communicate online today in groups, and see if we can’t answer why mailing lists remain popular, despite their flaws.

5/16/2024 0 comment

The Year in Gratitude: Introducing the Virtual Gratitude Visit

by Daniel Tomasulo, Ph.D. 2/17/2024

By Daniel Tomasulo, Ph.D.

The Year in Gratitude: Introducing the Virtual Gratitude Visit “You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen.” — Paulo Coelho

Each year is a transition.Â We let go of relationships, connections to places, jobs and ways of being.Â But this opens us to new people, new associations and different ways of relating.Â Through death or circumstance or choice we move away from those we loved, or cared for, or knew: The unknown, the surprise, the unexpected takes their place.Â This is life.

Too often the losses weigh us down with a centrifugal sadness that keeps us pinned to the passing.Â Our energy is invested in the mourning, often for longer than what may be healthy or helpful.

But the loss we experience is directly proportional to the joy and love and engagement we’ve had.Â We feel the pain because we knew the joy.Â So the grieving must honor the connection as well.

2/17/2024 5 comments

Why You Can’t Make a Good Decision at 5:00 pm: Decision Fatigue

by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. 12/19/2023

By John M. Grohol, Psy.D.

Why You Can't Make a Good Decision at 5:00 pm: Decision Fatigue We live in the most prosperous society on Earth at this moment. You can walk into any Gap or Target store and choose from more than 2 dozen different types of jeans (and in some cases, more than 3 dozen).

All of that choice comes at a price, however. It’s called “decision fatigue” and its full impact is only starting to be fully understood by psychologists and researchers.

Our brains can suffer from “mental fatigue,” just as our bodies can become physically fatigued after a long workout. What is so surprising about this phenomenon is just how little people appreciate the importance of mental fatigue and its resulting decision fatigue — even when making decisions that can be life-changing.

12/19/2023 2 comments

What Would You Do If You Were Me?

by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. 8/31/2023

By John M. Grohol, Psy.D.

What Would You Do If You Were Me? So you’ve finally made the leap and sought out help for a psychiatric or mental health concern in your life. You’ve gone to the psychiatrist, who has asked you a lot of questions over the course of the past hour or so, and you feel a little exhausted.

The psychiatrist turns to you and says, “Well, we could approach your treatment from a number of different ways. We could do this, or we could do that. There are pros and cons to each…”

You try to listen, but you really don’t understand the differences, or what the likelihood is that one treatment is more beneficial than the other. Your eyes begin to glaze over as the psychiatrist keeps talking, oblivious to your zoning out.

“So how would you like you to proceed with your treatment, this or that?”

At the end of his little talk about treatment options, you’re left a little dazed and confused. You have no idea how to proceed with treatment, so you ask the question millions of patients before you have also asked, “What would you do if you were me, doc?”

Will the psychiatrist answer honestly (e.g., what he, personally, would actually do?), or professionally (e.g., give a standard treatment recommendation based his experience and the research)?

8/31/2023 3 comments