Henry Ford once famously said If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right. Right through Covid, mental health has been one of the most challenging things I have had to coach. Depression, anxiety, negativity, loneliness and a sense of loss or darkness all combine in some people to varying degrees of complexity, and now are exasperated by the piling economic woes that like a tsunami army are marching towards us. I have been coaching John - not his real name - for the past two years. He has been living much of his life with anxiety and depression. John is fragile and some recent events seem to have broken his resilience. John is now also overwhelmed by negative feelings – shame and self-doubt. His relationships are crashing around him, his business is collapsing, his life feels so empty yet his head is so full of thoughts. John has lost count of the number of times ‘well-meaning friends’ have said to him, "Cheer up. Keep smiling. Count yourself lucky. Be positive. Snap out of it.” As though his depression would suddenly lift and his demons be immediately vanquished, if only he stopped…

My 11 year old  son Ethan asked if I did understand the 3 Ls and when I asked what they are,  he said they are the most important lesson in life, and that if we implement them, it will make a huge difference to the kind of life we have. Obviously, I was intrigued. He told me the 3 Ls stand for: Live - Live in the moment Love - Love widely and inclusively Learn - Learn to forget Fantastic words and so meaningful to us all. Too often, we spend huge amounts of time travelling  back to our past and we don't live there anymore. We spend 80% of our time worrying about things that probably will never happen and only 20% living today. We waste so much of our irreplaceable time wishing our lives into the future, when there is so much loving and living still available to us today. So we should focus on the important things. Here is a story I share in one of my workshop: (Original source unknown) I remember standing in front in front of a group of students. I picked up a very large and empty jar and proceeded to fill it…