Matt Cohen
Life and Leadership Mentor Coach
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The simple thing about complex things
It always seems impossible until its done Nelson Mandela When reflecting on my day, I find often recurring themes or recurring lessons and advice. The reflection is often clearest when the same themes show up in various spheres of life. The latest such theme is that a task or project seems complicated not purely by […]
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Responding versus Reacting
When confronted with something new or unexpected, we have a choice; do we react, or do we respond? There is a distinct difference, which I’ll unpack below. In new or unexpected scenarios, it is very common to react. This is most commonly visible in lashing out or responding with angst and stress. Our muscles tense, […]
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Lean In
I’ve often advised people to “lean in”, to “eat that frog”, and to focus on addressing the thing that is most troubling them. Whether a conflict, a fear, or something else, leaning into it is far more effective at addressing the concern than is leaning away. I found myself offering this feedback more frequently lately, […]
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On Purpose
For as long as I can recall, the phrase “on purpose” has been a colloquial phrase said to mean “consciously” (as in, “I consciously ate the piece of cheese” / “I ate the piece of cheese on purpose“). I’ve recently redefined “on purpose” for myself to mean (in simplified form) “with intention”, and with a […]
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Now Here
At times, we’ve all felt lost. Confused. Uncertain. Perhaps even a combination of all three. At times, we feel stuck. Stuck between thoughts. Between feelings. We’re stuck between where we’ve been, and where we’re going. At times, we feel as though we are “nowhere”. No where. In these moments, our thoughts and feelings begin to […]
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Enjoy
To enjoy something or someone carries with it such a pronounced and clear meaning in today’s world. The dictionary definition of “enjoy”, described below, uses words such as “receive”, and “have”. Possessive words, often associated with material objects, things, possessions, and personal fulfillment. en·joy (ĕn-joi′) v.en·joyed, en·joy·ing, en·joys v.tr. To receive pleasure or satisfaction from. […]
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Meditation: Health & Clarity
Continuing the practice of meditating on annual word themes (here’s the meditation for 2021 on “kindness” and “positivity”), below is 2020’s meditation, working backwards to fill in meditations for previous annual word themes. Our words for 2020 were “health” and “clarity”.
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Meditation: Kindness & Positivity
Each year, my partner and I choose one word each. These words combined will be our theme for the year, woven into the fabric of everything we do, and attracted by our thoughts and focus on them. Our words for 2021 are “kindness” and “positivity”. This year, I decided to evolve our process, and externalize […]
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Open source thinking and opening up opportunities
As a creative, I like to identify interesting combinations of thoughts, and believe there is a connected-ness to all things. Thus, two seemingly unrelated topics, thoughts, or items can be combined based on the ways in which they are the same, and which they are different. Finding the common ground between two things, to my […]
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Identifying root causes for fun and sustainability
It seems to be that there are themes and patterns across several areas of life at the same time. What is seen as a recurrence in one area of life seems to come up in others. I’ve noticed this for several months, and this time around the concept of “identifying root causes” is coming up. […]