The Library

Confidence isn't everything. Here are traits that are just as important to cultivate: - Acceptance - Kindness - Patience - Resilience - Grit - Foresight - Compassion - Rationality - Forgiveness - Authenticity - Courage - Gratitude - Honesty - Optimism - Discipline - Wisdom

Disclaimer Just wanted to share that I took a naturopathic remedy, Agnus Castus, which seems to have greatly balanced my mind-body chemistry and helped with the struggle. Perhaps this may be helpful to someone. Thank you

“If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.” — Lao Tzu

My sponsor told me that I should be a grateful alcoholic and always have “an attitude of gratitude”—that gratitude was the basic ingredient of humility, that humility was the basic ingredient of anonymity and that “anonymity was the spiritual foundation of all our Traditi...

A Practice For When You Find Yourself Annoyed by Other People By Leo Babauta It’s a common thing to be frequently annoyed by other people — added to our regular interactions with family, friends and coworkers are the online habits of people on various social media, and t...

I was 35 years old the first time I spoke up to my mother and refused to buy into her games and manipulation. . .I didn't have to start an argument. But I could say what I wanted and needed to say to take care of myself. I learned I could love and honor myself, and still ...

Rabbi Nachman teaches,In order to serve God, you must be obstinate. On no account should you give up and abandon the practices you have begun. Don't give up in any way, no matter what happens. Remember this well, because you will be in great need of it when you start serv...

When we were approaching חודש שבט I heard from Reb Shlomo Meyer a vort that was tremendous chizuk for me all these years. שבט ר״ת שמרם ברכם טהרם. This month, which is entirely during the weeks of שובבים is here to remind us what our goal in life is. We ask Hashem, please...

A while back, I met with Rav Nasan Maimon who taught me something from his Rebbe, Rabbi Michel Dorfman, zt'l. He taught me in the name of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov that if one wants to repent he should accustom himself to recite Psalms daily. (5 a day and you can finish th...

R' Avraham Alter ran a Yeshiva in Chicago for many years. He worked together with Baalei Teshuva. There was one fellow who was straddling the fence for a number of years. R' Avraham very much wanted this fellow to make a commitment. And he told the fellow, "You got to do ...

Mesilas Yesharim says, "Kol inyanei haolam nisyanos heim l'adam -- All matters in this world, everything, are tests for man." That's a sweeping statement! What does it mean tests? Hashem has to test you to know what you are? He doesn't know beforehand what you're going to...

One of the greatest challenges in the life of a Jew, especially in the generation we live in, is the concept of hotza'as zera levatalah, emitting seed in vain. This is an extremely difficult prohibition that many, many struggle with, often unsuccessfully. Unfortunately, i...

Here is my response to the statement below: "I am going to have bad days, days when I slip into anger, resentment, and self-pity. Days that I may even scream at wife and kids but I have not lost my sobriety for that. BUT, if I act out, I am basically back to the starting ...

I was in a grocery store, unloading my cart on the counter, and behind me was an attractive lady. She began unloading her stuff from the cart on the same counter as well. It was very triggering to me. I was turning back and forth for my stuff, and she was so close to me, ...

Whether you’re an athlete, entrepreneur, teacher, parent, manager, or - fill in the blank here -, what percentage of your game do you think is mental? When Lanny Bassham, our Olympic gold-medal-winner, asks elite performers that question, they all say that elite perfo...

Habit #2 of "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey Begin with the End in Mind So, once we move from being reactive to being proactive (Habit #1), we realize we aren’t victims. We’re creators. Which, naturally, begs the question: What do we want to ...

Your phone’s slick, minimalist shell betrays a cacophony of alerts from apps, notifications from non-humans, and icons your fingers barely intended to graze. Yet there you are, ten minutes later, not even using the toilet at that point. Tristan Harris, a former design eth...

First and foremost I thank this very special group, the finest of the finest, called GYE. For many decades I could not rid myself of using porn and acting out until I found this site. Today, thanks to Hashem, I am three years clean. I often have to travel by plane for...