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[VIDEO] Run (or move your body) to Lower Anxiety and Depression, and Improve Overall Mental Health
Moving my body has been one of the most important things I have done in my life to help with the reduction of my anxiety, depression, and just overall wellness in my mental health. There is a lot of good research on this topic, and running comes up quite a bit in the...
Run (or move your body) to Lower Anxiety and Depression, and Improve Overall Mental Health
I don't think it will come as any surprise to anyone if I tell you that running can help you with your anxiety and depression. Or better put, movement of the body helps your mental health. I can speak to this personally as runner who has been running my entire life...
[VIDEO] The Transformative Benefit of Journaling
Journaling has been an invaluable benefit to my life personally, and so many of the lives that I get to encounter in my therapy and executive coaching work. In this video I share briefly about why I want to encourage you to take up the practice. You can also check out...
An Encouragement to “Journal”
"I'm not really the type of person who likes to journal." "I don't like to write, or put my thoughts onto paper." "I just don't have anything to write." These are pretty typical responses I hear from clients when I broach the subject of journaling as a practice. And I...
[VIDEO] The Best Breath Practice for Anxiety (and much more)
The "psychological sigh" is the best breath practice for anxiety -- that I have found to date. Check out my short post last week on this topic, and I hope you give it a try in your own life.
The Best Breath Practice for Anxiety (and much more)
It would be too much to say that I have been on a quest for the best breath work practices for anxiety. But it is true to say, that over the course of the last 10-12 years I have tested out and practiced all kinds of differing breathing patterns to help my anxiety....
Rhett Smith 139: Transforming Our Anxiety — Getting Comfortable with the Uncomfortable
Earlier this year I was really impacted by Michael Easter's book The Comfort Crisis. And I think what stood out to me the most was really the idea that in order to grow, one must work on becoming more comfortable with the uncomfortable -- and I liked how he connected...
Rhett Smith 138: Some Lessons I’ve Recently Learned About Hiring a Coach (and how it may help you)
n this episode I share with you some lessons I've recently learned in hiring an endurance running coach to help me train and complete the UTMB trail race this year in the Alps. I talk about the importance of hiring a coach (therapist, executive coach, etc) to help...
Attention, Psychic Energy and Flow: The Contents of Creating and Shaping Your Life
A decision I made several years back, was that if books that I was reading, kept referring to one author/thinker, etc., time and time again -- then I needed to go read that person. More than likely, this person would be the original source of much of the work others...
Video: Anxious Progression One Day at a Time
One of the ways that I have found to be helpful in working through anxiety, is what I refer to has anxious progression. In the fitness world it is often referred to as progressive overload. In terms of anxiety I like to think about the idea of taking things one is...
Rhett Smith137: Anxious Progression One Day at a Time
This podcast episode is a further exploration of the blog post, Anxious Progression One Day at a Time. In this episode I explore the concept of progressive overload in physical fitness, and how that same concept can be applied to working through anxiety -- mainly,...
Anxious Progression One Day at a Time
The key to improving physical fitness lies in adhering to a concept called progressive overload. You work a specific muscle or function in a specific manner, progressively adding intensity and duration over time. Hard days are followed by easy days. The Practice of...
Video: Acknowledge, Identify and Reframe Your Anxiety and Depression
I know it has been a heavy year for many. Mental health issues have been increasingly on the rise, and anxiety and depression are leading the way. In this video I share about some of my own struggles and what has been helpful for me in navigating them. I hope you find...
Rhett Smith 136: Acknowledge, Identify and Reframe Your Depression and Anxiety
I recently wrote about this on my blog -- because I've realized the last few months that I have been depressed and anxious for a while. Spurred on by the continual navigation of COVID, and how that has impacted things culturally, as well as some of the way things are...
Anxiety & Depression: Acknowledge, Identify and Reframe
I think I have been struggling with depression for about the last 6 months. Actually, let me rephrase that. I think it has been longer, but I think I've only really acknowledged it here in the last few months. This isn't my first bout with depression, but I'm one who...
Rhett Smith 135: I’m Doubling Down on Breath Work
I have always been a fan of breath work, especially in the way that it has not only been so helpful for my own life and the anxiety that I have struggled with -- but I have literally seen it change the people's lives that I work with. Breath work is integral to our...
Rhett Smith 134: My Ongoing Experiment with Fasting
"We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience." Pierre Teilhard de Chardin I'm definitely no expert on the topic of fasting, but I have been experimenting with it for a few years, and finally decided to do my...
Rhett Smith 133: Goal Setting, Habits and the “Long Obedience in the Same Direction”
At the beginning of each new year we tend to think about turning the page on the current year, setting some goals, and moving with energy and momentum towards the new year that awaits us. Though there is no magic with the turning of the calendar year, it does offer us...
Marc Payan on Leadership, Facing Challenge and the Lessons That Endurance Teaches Us
It's hard to know where to begin when describing my friend Marc Payan. Just Google his name and see what comes up. Marc is a leader everywhere he goes, and like few people I have seen before, he inspires and encourages those around him to life a transformed life....
Rhett Smith 132: Marc Payan on Leadership, Embracing Challenge and the Lessons Endurance Teaches Us
It's hard to know where to begin when describing my friend Marc Payan. Just Google his name and see what comes up. Marc is a leader everywhere he goes, and like few people I have seen before, he inspires and encourages those around him to life a transformed life....
Anxiety, Fear and Grief: Parent Equipping Panel
I have had the privilege over the last 6-8 weeks to participate in some parenting panels online via Zoom and other technologies. COVID-19 has raised a lot of concern for people and the topic of anxiety and grief seem to be the two most common topics that I have been...
Rhett Smith 131: Encouragement in Your Anxiety
Part of being human is that we get anxious. And no human can opt out of experiencing anxiety. It visits all of us at varying times in our lives, and to varying degrees. But what if you can reframe anxiety in a way that you see it as a friend, rather than a foe. What...
Encouragement in Your Anxiety
Part of being human is that we get anxious. And no human can opt out of experiencing anxiety. It visits all of us at varying times in our lives, and to varying degrees. But what if you can reframe anxiety in a way that you see it as a friend, rather than a foe. What...
Importance of Play and Rest at Home and in Organizations
In this with The SouthCity Group CEO Todd Sandel, we discuss the importance of play and rest within the home and in organizations. If families and leaders continue to press for more and more productivity, without pausing to play and rest -- the result most likely will...
Addressing Leadership Drift During Times of Uncertainty
This is a difficult time for many leaders as they are trying to navigate this uncertain time -- not only for themselves and their families -- but for their organizations as well. In this video, Todd Sandel (The SouthCity Group) and I discuss how leaders can get off...
Rhett Smith 130: Importance of Play and Rest at Home and in Organizations
Todd Sandel (CEO and Founder of The SouthCity Group) and I discuss the importance of play and rest at home and in organizations. One of the most important things leaders can do is model from top down the importance of play and rest to their teams. Link to Episode...
Rhett Smith 129: Addressing Leadership Drift During Times of Uncertainty
Todd Sandel (CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group) and I continue our conversation around leadership during this time of uncertainty due to COVID-19. In this episode we address leadership drift due to overworking and trying to prove ourselves worthy of adding value....
Rhett Smith 128: Habits, Routines and Tuning In to One Another
In my ongoing conversations with Todd Sandel (CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group), we discuss the difference between personal wellness and productivity. One leads to burnout, while the other can lead to a thriving home and organization. Link to Episode 128
Rhett Smith 127: Productivity, Personal Wellness and Burnout
Todd Sandel (CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group) and I continue our conversation about leadership during this time of uncertainty. In today's episode we focus on the habits and routines that help leaders and their organizations thrive during this time. As well as...
Rhett Smith 126: “Trimming the Sails”
In this interview I chat with CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group Todd Sandel about how leaders can navigate this time of uncertainty. We discuss the metaphor of trimming the sails and how leaders and their teams can identify and prioritize what is most important...
Productivity, Personal Wellness and Burnout
Todd Sandel, the CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group, and I, discuss the difference between productivity and personal wellness. One can lead to burnout, and the other to a thriving organization and relationships. Knowing the difference between the two during this...
Habits, Routines and Tuning In to One Another
In this continued series, Todd Sandel, the CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group and I, discuss the needed habits and routines that families and organizations need to thrive during this time of uncertainty due to COVID-19. We also discuss the importance of daily...
“Trimming the Sails”
In this interview, Todd Sandel, the CEO and founder of The SouthCity Group, and I discuss the importance of identifying what is most important for yourself, your relationships, and organizations -- during this time of uncertainty due to COVID-19.
Loss, Grief and New Life in the Space Between Good Friday and Easter (COVID-19)
It was 34 years ago this month that I lost my mom to breast cancer when I was 11 years old. I've been reflecting on that loss a lot this season. It is important that we don't rush ahead to looking for new things, or try and return to "normal" -- whatever that looked...
Navigating Relational Space During COVID-19
What does healthy, functioning, relational space look like during this time of COVID-19? How do we keep from overly fusing and suffocating one another, while also not moving away and disconnecting from each other as well? What does self-differentiation look like?
The Compression of Physical and Relational Space (COVID-19)
During the quarantine due to COVID-19, I think that we are experiencing a compression of space. Relational space. Physical space. This compression of relational and physical space messes with boundaries and raises important questions about our identity. Questions like...
Being Honest About How We Feel and Connecting in New Ways (During COVID-19)
"I'm doing fine." "I'm doing good." Those have typically been our responses to the question posed by others: "How are you doing?" And they are typically what we are hearing during the stressful time of COVID-19. But now...more than any time in recent history, I think...
“How to Feel Safe in an Unsafe World”
Two of my most influential mentors, Terry and Sharon Hargrave, put together a helpful video this last week regarding relationships/families, and navigating COVID-19. I highly recommend it.
Ideas for Leaders in Times of Uncertainty and Stress
Leaders are under a lot of stress these days during the uncertainty of COVID-19. Stress in their own lives. Stress in trying to navigate how to manage and effectively lead those that are around them. Here are a few ideas that I think are helpful for leaders during...
Rhett Smith 125: Deeper Dive Into the Movement of Orientation, Disorientation, New Orientation
Yesterday I posted a short video on the movement from orientation to disorientation to new orientation. I first learned it by this name and paradigm by reading Walter Brueggemann's work, The Message of the Psalms. The movement itself is as old as humanity, and it is a...
Moving from Orientation Through Disorientation to New Orientation
The hope is that we don't go back to what was (pre-COVID-19), but that we move forward into something new. What that something new will look different for everyone. But in a season of disorientation, the hope is that one grows from the experience into something new --...
“When We Leave Our Safe Spot” mini-book.
Moody Publishers has created a free mini-book to be shared on social channels. It's material that has been repurposed from my book The Anxious Christian, and meant to bring help during a time of uncertainty with COVID-19.
Naming, Navigating and Reframing Anxiety and Depression During COVID-19
During a time of uncertainty, such as this -- COVID-19 -- people's anxiety and depression can start to increase. In early March I noticed families anxious, but eager to adjust to the demands of COVID-19, but as time wears on, I have noticed an increase in anxiety and...
Experimenting with a Rhythm of Work, Play and Rest Each Day — COVID-19
With everyone at home most of the day during quarantine and shelter in place, it can be challenging to find a good daily rhythm. Trying to work, play and rest at the same time, or weave back and forth between them can often cause frustration. Therefore, it's important...
Partner Communication During High Stress — COVID-19
During times of high stress, like we are facing right now with the COVID-19 quarantine, it is no surprise that conflict is high for many couples. In this video I talk about some specific things you can do to help you navigate the high stress and conflict.
An Exercise to Help Your Thoughts Become Beliefs Become Actions
A lot of people are experiencing things right now (i.e. rest, ceasing of activities, connection, etc.) in ways that they would like to continue on post-COVID-19. But unless these things are talked about, it's unlikely one would continue them. Instead, it's our...
Naming and Creating Space for Grief in the Midst of COVID-19 Loss
In the midst of COVID-19, we are all experiencing loss of some kind. And loss is loss. Loss may mean something as painful as the death of a loved one. Loss may also mean the loss of not being able to physically walk through a graduation. Loss may be the end of a...
Developing Consistent Habits in Times of Uncertainty
In times of uncertainty, it is really critical to focus on key habits. It's these habits that help us stay focused. They help us stay anchored to routine and structure, which are critical to help one navigate times of uncertainty. And right now, in the midst of...
Leadership in the Age of Anxiety
It's all quiet in my house. As it probably should. It's 12:30am and the kids have been asleep for a few hours. Which is a challenge right now amidst COVID-19. Every day since the beginning of Spring Break has felt like a vacation to them, and it continues to feel that...
Breathing Practices as Essential to Navigating Anxiety
Breathing is underrated in my opinion. Because we just don't think about it. It's automatic, unconscious activity. But it's also breathing that becomes a critical piece in helping us navigate anxiety. When we become anxious, our breathing often becomes shallow, which...
Therapy Practice Updates – COVID-19
COVID-19 is having a lot of us re-evaluate how we practice mental health. I am continuing to work with clients in person, following the recommendations of the CDC and my local county. As well as increasing the number of phone and video sessions that I am doing. Check...
Rhett Smith 124: How to Navigate Mental Health in a Time of Uncertainty
It's been a long time since I have done a podcast. About a year actually. I was on a break for awhile, just reading, researching, writing and focusing on other kinds of work. I had nothing new to add to the conversation so thought I would hit pause. But in light of...
Rhett Smith 123: Jeff and Robin Reinke on Pornography, Marriage, and Recovery
In this episode I had the privilege of sitting down with my good friends Jeff and Robin Reinke. Besides being colleagues of mine in a workshop we lead in equipping ministry leaders in a variety of issues impacting the church, we are also co-authors in Vital Tools for...
Rhett Smith 122: Kelly Haer Discusses the Issue of Singleness, and How Restoration Therapy Can Help One Navigate It
In this episode I discuss the topic of singleness with my colleague Kelly Haer. Kelly is on staff at Pepperdine University in the Boone Center for the Family where she is the Relationship IQ Director. Kelly is a part of the teaching group that I am a part of that...
Rhett Smith 121: Robert Scholz on Addiction Through the Lens of Restoration Therapy
In this episode I get to sit down with a colleague of mine who I have been getting to know more over the last couple of years in our collaborative work together around Restoration Therapy and ministry leaders. Robert Scholz is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist,...
Rhett Smith 120: Conversation with Terry and Sharon Hargrave on the Beginnings and Future of Restoration Therapy and Relate Strong
In this episode I spend some time in conversation with Terry and Sharon Hargrave. Terry is the founder of Restoration Therapy and is the Evelyn and Frank Freed Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy at Fuller Theological Seminary and Sharon is the Executive Director...
Rhett Smith 119: Dust and Identity
"for dust you are and to dust you will return.” (Genesis 3:19) In this episode I reflect on the passage found in Genesis 3:19 that is repeated every Ash Wednesday. It's a beautiful, but harrowing passage that reminds us of just how fragile and short our lives are. But...
Rhett Smith 118: Possibly the Two Most Important Questions We Can Ask Ourselves
And he said, "Hagar, slave-girl, of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?" Genesis 16:8 Where have you come from? Where are you going? Perhaps these are two of the most important and fundamental questions we can ask ourselves. I appreciate that Jay...
Rhett Smith 117: The Creation Account, Self-Differentiation and Restoration Therapy
This episode is somewhat of a continuation of Episode 115 where I reflected both theologically and psychologically on the biblical text found in Genesis 1-3 (and a little of 4). Those opening chapters have lots of insight and implications for us relationally. In this...
Rhett Smith 116: Reframing How We Talk About Anxiety and Depression
I had the opportunity this last Monday to record a video on anxiety with another therapist, and one of the pastors at Preston Trail Community Church in Frisco. And then a few hours later, I talked to a group of parents at Legacy Christian Academy in Frisco about...
Rhett Smith 115: Some Relational Reflections on Genesis 1-4 (at the intersection of theology and psychology)
As I mentioned in a previous podcast, I thought I would take some time this year (on occasion) to stop and reflect on my reading of the bible, and how it connects at the intersection of theology and psychology. So in this episode I want to take some time and just...
Rhett Smith 114: Journals, Goal Setting, and a New Season of Podcasts
It's been about 5 months since my last podcast episode, as I was needing to take a break for a while why I focused on some other goals. But it's time for a new podcast season, and in this episode I talk about some new topics I am going to explore this season, as well...
Rhett Smith 113: Letting the Silence Unfold Between You and Others
"Love consists in this, that two solitudes, protect and border and salute each other." -- Rainer Maria Rilke A couple of weeks ago my wife and I returned from a "marriage adventure" on the Inca Trail in Peru. This adventure (through WinShape and Intrepid), led...
Rhett Smith 112: God “Intermingles” All Things Together for Good
As many of you know from listening to my podcasts, or reading my blog over the years, is I'm pretty obsessed with the novels of Susan Howatch. Particularly her Starbridge Series of which I'm about to finish my 9th reading of the series in the last 15 years. It's that...
Rhett Smith 111: People Are Complex, So Don’t Judge
"I’d like to know more, of course, but I’ve accepted that there’s nothing more he has to say; I’ve accepted that there’s a limit on our knowledge of even those who are closest to us. The older one gets the more one realises how saturated life is in mystery, and the...
Restoration Therapy: A Concise Road Map and a Simple Tool Leads to Transformation of Anxiety and Depression
"I want to create a clear roadmap for you for next steps, and how we can go about creating change in our therapeutic work together." "You don't need a bunch of tools to practice. You just need one or two that you practice over and over and over again." Two Mistakes...
Restoration Therapy: The Resonance Between RT and Performance Coaching in Managing Anxiety
On the night of October 18, 2015 I was unable to sleep. I tossed and turned all night, my mind filled with anxious thoughts, and an anxiety that I was unable to shake. The reason for all this anxiety was that at 7:00 am on October 19th, I would be running my first 50...
Restoration Therapy: My Journey to RT and Its Unique Position to Help Those Struggling with Anxiety and Depression
The Hideaway Experience In October 2010 I was sitting "third chair" at The Hideaway Experience in Amarillo, TX. The Hideaway Experience is a four-day marriage intensive that I had decided to go check out after hearing about it from a colleague of mine. My colleague...
Restoration Therapy: Depression and Low Emotional Affect
I have written extensively on various ways to work with people who are struggling with anxiety, but I find that working with people who are struggling with depression, to be quite different, and more difficult. The main factor that I have experienced is in the level...
Restoration Therapy: The 4 Steps of RT and How to Implement Them in Work on Depression
Discerning Depression I have written extensively on anxiety, especially on my own anxiety, focusing on the roots of it and how Restoration Therapy has really helped me transform it into a life-giving force. But when it comes to depression I have not written as much on...
Restoration Therapy: Depression and the Bible
Often, when someone expresses anxiety in the context of the Church or Christian community, more than likely they will hear somebody, at some point, recite the famous words of the apostle Paul in Philippians 4:6. "Do not be anxious...." is the beginning of that verse,...
Restoration Therapy: Tools, Resources and Strategies for Working with Depression
The Depression Equation I am a big believer in the equation that insight + practice = transformation. In fact, in an earlier post on anxiety I shared the same equation, highlighting Angela Duckworth's work on the concept of deliberate practice in her work. In her book...
Restoration Therapy: Reframing Depression as an Opportunity for Growth
Reframing Depression "What if this depression you are experiencing is helping inform you about your life? What if we listen to it together, it may give us some clues about what is going on with your life. Maybe it will give us some direction about what kind of changes...
Restoration Therapy: Identifying the Underlying Emotions of Depression
What Is Underneath Depression Like anxiety, one of the most difficult aspects of depression is trying to figure out what are the underlying roots of it. But without properly identifying its underlying roots it's possible that one may see depression simply as a...
Restoration Therapy: Depression, Self-Care, and Ministry
When serving in ministry there are many opportunities to come in to contact with people who are depressed. I say this, because churches are often what I refer to as the "gatekeepers" in mental health, therefore, those employed or volunteering in ministry are often on...
Restoration Therapy: Trying to Define Depression
"Are you depressed?" I asked him in session. "Depressed? What.....depression? No, I'm not depressed." he said to me as if that was a crazy question to ask. There was some silence between us for what seemed like a few minutes, and then he said. "Well...I mean, I may...
Restoration Therapy: How Looking for Opportunities to Practice Through Your Anxiety Can Transform You
When I encourage people to look for opportunities to practice their anxiety, I am often given a blank stare in return. It almost sounds crazy to ask someone to practice something that is already at times, making them feel like they are crazy. But perhaps a better way...
Restoration Therapy: The 4 Steps of RT and How They Can Change Your Life
"Deliberate practice is a behavior, and flow is an experience." Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance by Angela Duckworth When I was 21 years old and sitting alone in my college apartment, full of anxiety, but knowing my life needed to change, I had some inkling...
Restoration Therapy: Learning to Reframe and Befriend Your Anxiety
"Learning to love ambiguity can be a very powerful, if rather counterintuitive, act. By love here, we're not talking about falling in love or being in love. We mean love as an act. You can learn to care for and cherish ambiguity. You can invite it into your house for...
Restoration Therapy: Distinguishing Between Anxiety and Fear
In October of 2016 I spoke at the first ever Restoration Therapy Summit on the topic of anxiety and fear in the Restoration Therapy model, and more specifically, trying to differentiate between what exactly is anxiety, and what is fear. I even recorded a Part 1 and...
Rhett Smith 110 — 8 Simple Principles to Help You Achieve Your Goals This Year
One of the things that happens at the beginning of every year, or at the start of a major transition, is that you see people setting goals. If you were like me you probably thought about all the goals you wanted to achieve in the New Year, and you might have even...
Rhett Smith 109: Managing and Using Your Anxiety in the New Year
The new near can bring forth a lot of varying emotions from people. In my experience, a large number of people come into the new year very excited about change and all the potential possibilities that await them. It's often a time to start anew. But there is also a...
Restoration Therapy: The Process of Working With Anxious People
Working with Anxious Clients There are a lot of ways that one can work with anxious people, but I have found over the years a very helpful process that I would like to share with you. With any process it's best that you make it your own and use what is helpful to you,...
Restoration Therapy: Tools, Resources and Strategies for Working with Anxiety
The Anxiety Equation In an earlier post I wrote about a very powerful and transformative therapy experience I had back in 2010. It was one of those therapy sessions where insight was enough to create change. Or at least I should say, the insight alone was enough to...
Restoration Therapy: Anxiety and the Bible
Reframing The Meaning of Anxiety in the Bible "I am here, in your office to see you because I didn't feel like there was anyone else I could talk to about my anxiety." I hear some form of this statement quite often in my office. And it most frequently comes from...
Restoration Therapy: Discerning the Difference Between Healthy and Unhealthy Anxiety
Anxiety Changed My Life Back in 2011 when I was doing some reading and research for my book The Anxious Christian, I came across a sentence in Rollo May's book, The Meaning of Anxiety that really resonated with what I was thinking about in regards to anxiety. In that...
Restoration Therapy: Identifying and Healing the Underlying Roots of Anxiety
What Is Underneath the Anxiety One of the most difficult things about anxiety is trying to define its roots. In an earlier post I wrote about the challenge of trying to define it, but in this post I want to explore more in depth what the underlying roots are that...
Restoration Therapy: Trying to Define Anxiety
Anxiety in the Headlines Anxiety is a hot topic these days. I am not saying that it has ever gone out of style, but it seems that anxiety has been increasing at record numbers in our culture and one can hardly look at the news without seeing article after article...
Rhett Smith 108: 3 Important Relational Postures: Ask, Let Go, Hold On
Often when I'm working with someone in session I try to think of visual and tangible ways that they can remember some of the things that we are processing together. And what I have noticed a lot about relational interactions is that there tends to be this movement...
Rhett Smith 107: Life Lessons Learned from My Recent Palo Duro 50K Race
As many of you know, I love to run. And over the last 3-4 years I have been getting more and more into trail running, as well into ultrarunning (which is technically anything over 26.2 miles). And about a month ago I finished my second ever 50K race, and my second...
Rhett Smith 106: The Importance of Adventure in Marriage — with Director of WinShape Marriage, Matt Turvey
Over the last several years my wife and I have begun a new journey in our life. That journey has involved a couple of elements: 1) Trying to incorporate more adventure into our marriage (i.e. trips, taking on challenges, etc.); 2) Working on ways to partner together...
Rhett Smith 105: The Key to Why Some Couples Can Work Through Conflict and Problem Solve, and Why Other Couples Can’t.
One of the reasons many couples can't solve conflict in their relationship is because they often get stuck thinking that their argument is really about the topic at hand (i.e. money, sex, parenting, work, inlaws, etc.). And as long as they believe that, then they will...
Rhett Smith 104: The Importance of Discerning the Different Between Feelings and Coping Behaviors to Get to Deeper Work
This is a very short podcast episode, but it's a really important one. One of the most important tasks I have in the counseling room is to help people to discern between what their feelings and coping behaviors are. In fact, I spend a lot of time helping people...
Rhett Smith 103: A Personal Story About a Good Kind of Anxiety
I talk a lot about anxiety on this podcast. And sometimes anxiety can seem vague or too theoretical, unless one really has experienced. And even then, just talking about it can seem like an intellectual exercise. But today I had a personal experience that really makes...
Rhett Smith 102: The Intertwining Voices of Vocation and Anxiety
I have recently been thinking a lot about the intertwining of vocation and anxiety. What I mean by that is that it seems that part of the journey towards finding vocation is that anxiety is often along for the journey. In my writing and speaking on anxiety, and in my...
Rhett Smith 101: Parenting in the Age of Smart Phones and Social Media
One of the most prevalent topics that I come across in my counseling and when I'm speaking, is the topic of technology and relationships. Specifically, the technology of the smart phone/iPad/computer...but usually the smart phone. And along with this technology there...
Rhett Smith 100: Listening for that “Voice” of Vocation and Calling
Wow! I can't believe I am already at Episode 100. I published my first episode back on March 24, 2015, with the goal of trying to get at least one episode published per week. With that in mind I was hoping to hit 100 episodes right around the two year mark, if not...
Rhett Smith 99: Some Thoughts on Taking Next Steps In Your Life
Sometimes I have thoughts that I have been processing and I just want to explore out loud with others. In this case, the others is you. So in this episode I explore what it looks like to wrestle with taking the next step in your life, and how you discern what the next...
Rhett Smith 98: What Emotional Regulation Is, And Why It’s So Important
A couple of weeks ago, my colleagues and I at Thriiive Practices did a lecture for the Meadow's lecture series on emotional regulation. What is emotional regulation? It's essentially one's ability to control or manage their automatic, reactive responses to an...
Rhett Smith 97: Four Game Changing Books — Simply Your Life, Regulate Your Emotions, Practice Deliberately to Get Into the Flow, Work Deeply, and Perform for a Bigger Purpose
I read a lot of books, but I don't consider myself the best book reviewer. Even though I read with pen in hand and underline and take notes throughout my books, I'm not great at writing about the details. But what sticks out to me are those big ideas in a book...the...
Rhett Smith 96: A Transformative Roadmap for Therapy — For Those Who Have Been to Counseling and Those Who Haven’t
One of the things that I hear as a counselor a lot, typically near the end of an intake session with a client, is the question, "How is this going to look?" The question can be asked in a variety of ways, but what is implicit is usually either some form of anxiety...
Rhett Smith 95: Pepperdine Bible Lectures — Reframing Anxiety as God at Work in Our Lives
This past May I had the opportunity to speak at Pepperdine University for the annual Bible Lecture's series. It's primarily a gathering of a combo of lay and professional ministry leaders, and as this event I was able to talk to them about one of my favorite...
Rhett Smith 94: Three Postures on the Forgiveness Journey
Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to share with the ReEngage Ministry at Hope Fellowship the topic of forgiveness. It's such an important topic not only in all of our lives, but especially in the context of marriage where one's ability to forgive becomes an...
Rhett Smith 93: Understanding and Taking Care of You: Work, Relationships, and Self-Care
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak to a group of employees for Marriott Hotels here in the local Dallas area. It was a great opportunity to help others understand how to have healthy relationships in and out of the work place by beginning to take care of...
Rhett Smith 92: What Are You Holding Onto, That Is Holding You Back?
I have shared in previous episodes that the journey through Lent has been one of the most helpful things I have done for my faith. And as we finished Lent this last week, culminating in Easter yesterday, I wanted to take a few moments to reflect on the next steps. As...
Rhett Smith 91: Creating Space for Silence During Lent
We live in a culture that continually inundates us with noise. That noise comes in all kinds of forms. Advertising, entertainment, technology, etc. Sometimes we are passive observers of it as we have little control over what billboards are placed in front of us as we...
Rhett Smith 90: Creating Space During Lent to Reflect on Pain and Suffering
This week's episode is somewhat of a continuation of Episode 89 where I reflected on the role of Lent in helping us process pain and suffering, and as a time to work through trauma. That is, Lent is a period of remembering that is important for us if we are to work...
Rhett Smith 89: Lent, Trauma, and Remembering
I have been thinking a lot about the Lent season, which is appropriate since Ash Wednesday was yesterday. Here is what I posted on Facebook last night: Over the next 40+ days I am going to take some time to reflect on some of the things I am exploring around Lent,...
Rhett Smith 88: Fostering the Varied Types of Intimacy in Relationships
This last weekend I led a class on fostering intimacy in marriage to a group of premarital couples. I love doing this work, but intimacy can be a complicated issue. When we think of intimacy in our culture we often think of sex, or at least physical intimacy to say...
Rhett Smith 87: Creating Space for Grief After a Death
I have been wanting to talk on the topic of grief and loss for quite a while. I was going to wait to do an episode with my father since that has been a big part of his professional life as a pastor and hospice chaplain. But in light of some recent events in our local...
Rhett Smith 86: Navigating the Chaotic Path to Affair Recovery
If I had to take a guess, I would guess that at least 50-60% of every couple that I work with is in my office because of an affair. Affairs come in varied forms from the physical to the emotional and everything in between. And affairs don't discriminate based on...
Rhett Smith 85: Insight + Practice = Transformational Flow
One of the things that I have come to believe through my work with clients, and through my own personal work, is that insight alone is usually not enough to create change. That insight has to be coupled with practice, and lots of it to create the change, and...
Rhett Smith 84: Emotional Regulation, Boundaries and Anxiety in the Age of Online Political Discourse
So I am not one to talk much about politics...at least online. There are several reasons for this. 1) I feel a bit naive on the subject matter and not as fluent in political knowledge and conversation as I would like to be. 2) I've rarely seen political discussion...
Rhett Smith 83: A Wholistic Paradigm for New Year Goal Setting
I decided to take about a 6 week break from the podcast to focus on my work and family as we entered into a very busy holiday season. It was good to take a break from the podcast as I focused on the New Year ahead. I'm not sure what the podcast will look like in 2017,...
Book Reading in 2016
So I took a totally opposite approach to book reading in 2016 than I have in years past, and I'm going to take it into 2017 as well. And in 2017 I plan on re-reading a lot more of the authors and books that I love. In the past 17 years I have primarily read theology,...
Rhett Smith 82: Seven Books to Transform Your Marriage
One of the most common questions I get is about what marriage book I might recommend. That is a tough question in some ways because there are so many books out there, and every person responds to a certain book differently. So it's hard to be too prescriptive on this...
Rhett Smith 81: Making Your Marriage a Priority in a Culture of Busyness — Assessing Marital Drift and Strategies to Keep Your Marriage on Course
Last week I had the privilege of speaking to one of my favorite groups...MOPS. In this case it was the MOPS group at First Baptist Frisco which is an awesome group I have had the opportunity to speak to before (as well as their MOMSnext group). And as I was thinking...
Rhett Smith 80: Why the Distinction Between Anxiety and Fear (and worry) is So Crucial, and How the Restoration Therapy Model Helps Anxiety/Part 2
Last weekend I had the humbling opportunity to speak at the first ever Restoration Therapy Conference which was held at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. When the founder of the model, Dr. Terry Hargrave asked med to present on anxiety and the Restoration Therapy...
Rhett Smith 79: Why the Distinction Between Anxiety and Fear (and worry) is So Crucial, and How the Restoration Therapy Model Helps Anxiety/Part 1
Last weekend I had the humbling opportunity to speak at the first ever Restoration Therapy Conference which was held at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. When the founder of the model, Dr. Terry Hargrave asked med to present on anxiety and the Restoration Therapy...
Rhett Smith 78: “What can I do if I, or someone I know struggles with anxiety?”
One of the most common questions I get outside of my office (via Facebook, Twitter, email, etc.) is, "What can I do if I struggle with anxiety?" Or often they are asking for someone they know and care about, "What can I do to help someone with anxiety?" I have to...
Rhett Smith 77: The 4 Crucial Questions We Are Always Asking Ourselves
When I was in my early 30's I was fortunate enough to have a really great Marriage and Family Therapy supervisor in D. Michael Smith. He was actually one of many early great mentors I had and supervisors as I pursued my license as a therapist. But one day while I was...
Rhett Smith 76: What Exactly is Anxiety? Exploring the Different Understandings of Anxiety
“Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom.” Soren Kierkegaard That quote by Soren Kierkegaard in his work The Concept of Anxiety, has always been one of my favorite quotes. I think it truly captures the hear of anxiety for many...In that being free, creative beings who are...
Rhett Smith 75: Kid’s Athletics, Parental Pressure, and Grit
One of the populations I love working with in my practice is athletes. I've been fortunate enough to work with a large variety of athletes from professionals to amateur, from middle school kids all the way up to a middle aged runner like me. And in my time with...
Rhett Smith 74: What Are You and Your Kid’s Expectations of this School Year? Capitalizing on Connection, Time, and Risk Taking….
So if your day was anything like my wife and I's yesterday, it involved walking our kids into their first day of school this year. My daughter starts 4th grade, and my son starts Kindergarten. And like many of you, we are in a new transition as we begin a new school...
Rhett Smith 73: You Can’t Have Both a Great Marriage and an Activity Centered Life that Puts Your Kids First
I have the great privilege of working with couples in my office on a daily basis. Some come to me before they are married, some within a few years of marriage, but the great majority of them come to see me after a crisis that was indicative of the marital drift in...
Rhett Smith 72: Navigating Relationships in the Daily Transitions
One of the things that I've noticed a lot about relationships and conflict, is that a lot of it tends to happen in periods of daily transition. For example, conflict tends to arise when people are leaving the house in the morning, or coming home later in the day....
Rhett Smith Podcast 71: Connect in Your Relationships with this Communication Technique
I'm not quite exactly sure of the origin of learning about this communication technique, but I know it must have morphed together from all of my training and experience as a therapist...so I'm sure it has it's roots in varying theorists, I just can't place it right...
Rhett Smith Podcast 70: The Priority of Relationship and Embracing the ‘Other’
This has been an incredibly difficult political season, in that it highlights the deep divisions among one another along racial, sexual, economical, and political lines....just to name a few. And one thing I have been struggling with the most is to try and remind...
Reframing Your Anxiety and Depression
A couple of months ago I had the opportunity to give a talk about my own journey with anxiety and depression at a local church, Chase Oaks Church. The video was shot for their ReNew Ministry which helps people deal with the "messiness of life." I love the work that...
Rhett Smith Podcas 69: Parenting in the Easy Access, Technological World of Pornography and Sex — with Author Anne Marie Miller
I first heard of Anne Marie Miller when she was actually Anne Jackson, and she was blogging under the name Flowerdust. This was probably around 2006/2007 or so (maybe earlier), and she had a very popular blog that talked a lot about ministry, leadership, and other...
Rhett Smith Podcast 68: Seeking to Understand, Rather Than Pulling the “I Am the Parent” Card
*Note: In this podcast I mention a social psychologist whom I couldn't remember. I realized that I was actually thinking of the work of Carol Dweck, but it wasn't actually her research I was referring to. Recently I've been thinking a lot about a certain topic in...
Rhett Smith Podcast 67: 3 Life Affirming Messages to Help You Breath Life Into Those Around You
Sunday was Father's Day. And like Mother's Day...it can bring up all kinds of emotions for people. Positive emotions. Negative Emotions. Feelings of joy and happiness, or anger and fear, as well as loss. And that's just to name a few. I am very thankful that I have a...
Rhett Smith Podcast 66: The Importance of Curiosity in Growing Your Relationships
In my time on staff at the Hideaway Experience doing marriage intensives, my co-therapists and I had a few rules that we would often write out for the 4 couples on the their first day of intensive work. We found that having some guiding principles (rules) made the...
Rhett Smith Podcast 65: The Link Between Depression and Anger (or one’s inability to properly express emotion)
In episode 64 (the previous episode) I shared about my more recent, and personal struggle with anger. In that episode I also talk a bit about it's roots being in depression. I have talked before about the link between depression and anger in some of my writings like...
Rhett Smith Podcast 64: Working Through My Recent Struggle with Anger and Frustration
I've noticed over the last few months a growing anger and frustration within me. This has been very disheartening. Because I think if you were to ask my close friends and family, the word anger and frustration wouldn't typically be associated with me. But maybe that's...
Rhett Smith Podcast 63: The Practice of Sabbath
I've been talking about Sabbath in the last couple of podcast episodes (Episode 61: Sabbath Rest and Your Identity, Episode 62: Sabbath Rest and Anxiety), and so I close the series in this episode talking about various practices. As I've come to learn more about...
Rhett Smith Podcast 62: Sabbath Rest and Anxiety
As I mentioned in my podcast last week (Sabbath Rest and Identity), I have been thinking a lot about the topic of Sabbath over the course of the last year. It seems that it comes up in more and more of my conversations, and it's absence in the lives of many people...
Thoughts on Completing and Training for Your First 50 Miler
A little over six months ago, my wife, our two kids, and our brand new puppy, loaded up a 25 foot motorhome and trekked 7 hours northwest of us to the Palo Duro Canyon. Just looking back at this sentence makes me think we were a bit crazy. Not only was it the first...
Rhett Smith Podcast 61: Sabbath Rest and Your Identity
I have been thinking a lot about the topic of Sabbath over the course of the last year. It seems that it comes up in more and more of my conversations, and it's absence in the lives of many people (especially evident in many of the clients I work with), lead to a lot...
Rhett Smith Podcast 60: Experimenting with Your Diet to Improve Overall Health, Fitness, and Relationships
Over the course of the last 3 years I have really been experimenting with my diet. That is to day, I have been adding and subtracting certain foods that I consume, and then I pay attention to see what the results yield. And it's because of this experimentation that I...
Rhett Smith Podcast 59: Therapy, Running, and the 4 Self-Care Components that Running Engages
Running is not new to this blog or podcast. In fact, I've done episodes on various aspects of running before (listen to Episode 20, Episode 25, and Episode 32.) But a couple of things have changed since I last talked about running on the podcast. First, I am just...
Rhett Smith Podcast 58: Learning to Live in the Tension of Our Anxious Impatience
I've been thinking a lot recently about the struggle we have of living in the tension of things not coming to fruition as quickly as we would like. We live in a fast-paced culture that expects everything on demand...and quickly. But where the tension comes in is that...
Rhett Smith Podcast 57: Discerning Depression in Your Kids
One of the more tricky aspects of working with adolescents is trying to discern at times what is "typical" teenage behavior, and what is depression. I mean most of us can remember back to our own teenage days where we experienced bouts of moodiness, irritability, and...
Rhett Smith Podcast 56: The 3 Day Listening Exercise That Transforms Your Relationships
Over the course of the last 3 months I have really been wrestling with the question of "how good of a listener am I?" I've always thought I was a good listener...I mean, my vocation is essentially to listen to people all day. But I'm sure my clients....and my wife,...
Rhett Smith Podcast 55: Pioneering the Work of Restoration Therapy to Transform Relationships — with founder of Restoration Therapy, Author, and Fuller Theological Seminary Professor, Terry Hargrave
I have told this story countless times in person, on the podcast, and in my blog...so I will try and keep it brief. But about 6 years ago I had an experience that forever changed my life. I had just returned from sitting in on and observing a marriage intensive at The...
Rhett Smith Podcast 54: The Importance of Practice in Creating and Sustaining Change in Your Relationships
This last weekend I had one of the greatest experiences I have ever had...and that was being able to co-lead a marriage workshop with my wife Heather. Over the last 10 years I have had the opportunity to lead a lot of marriage retreats, conferences, workshops, give...
Rhett Smith Podcast 53: Families at the Intersection of Faith, Technology and Busy Schedules — with Associate Director of Fuller Youth Institute, Brad Griffin
Fuller Theological Seminary changed my life, so it's probably not a surprise that you see me talking about the seminary so much. Fuller was and is an amazing community of people who provide a safe place for someone to wrestle with the big questions of faith. Fuller...
Rhett Smith Podcast 52: Identifying, Reducing and Eliminating Distractions to Increase Productivity and Presence
"How do you get so much stuff done?" That's one of the questions that I get quite a bit. Sometimes the comment comes from colleagues who wonder how I have a busy practice and still find time to write, blog, podcast, speak, teach, train for a 50 mile run, etc. And...
Rhett Smith Podcast 51: The Power of Listening to Transform You and Your Relationships — with Author and Spiritual Director, Adam McHugh
I have been looking forward to having this conversation for a long time with my good friend Adam McHugh. Interestingly enough, Adam and I have known each other online for approximately 10 years, but have only met each other one time in person. But talking with Adam is...
Rhett Smith Podcast 50: Creating “Keystone Habits” and Keystone Goals to Find Success in New Endeavors
Every year as we turn the calendar from one year to the next, people are strategizing what goals they want to achieve for the year ahead. For years I used to make a list of "New Year's Resolutions" for myself, sometimes 30-60 items deep. But what would inevitably...
Rhett Smith Podcast 49: When to Seek Help for Your Anxiety and What to Expect
Anxiety is a topic that I love to talk about. I have written extensively about it on this blog and in my book The Anxious Christian. And the reason I write about it so much is two-fold: 1) I know that everyone struggles with anxiety at some point in their life, or...
Rhett Smith Podcast 48: Some Essential Tools and Exercises to Help Reduce Your Anxiety
Anxiety is a topic that I love to talk about. I have written extensively about it on this blog and in my book The Anxious Christian. And the reason I write about it so much is two-fold: 1) I know that everyone struggles with anxiety at some point in their life, or...
Rhett Smith Podcast 47: How Reframing Your Anxiety Can Change it Into an Opportunity for Growth
Anxiety is a topic that I love to talk about. I have written extensively about it on this blog and in my book The Anxious Christian. And the reason I write about it so much is two-fold: 1) I know that everyone struggles with anxiety at some point in their life, or...
Rhett Smith Podcast 46: What Are the Roots of Your Anxiety?
Anxiety is a topic that I love to talk about. I have written extensively about it on this blog and in my book The Anxious Christian. And the reason I write about it so much is two-fold: 1) I know that everyone struggles with anxiety at some point in their life, or...
Rhett Smith Podcast 45: It’s Okay to Be Anxious…You Are Not Alone
Anxiety is a topic that I love to talk about. I have written extensively about it on this blog and in my book The Anxious Christian. And the reason I write about it so much is two-fold: 1) I know that everyone struggles with anxiety at some point in their life, or...
Rhett Smith Podcast 44: Four Destructive Parenting Styles — Which Do You Struggle With?
As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Plano, Texas, I get the opportunity to work with a lot of families. And in working with a lot of families I get the chance to see the varying parenting styles that different parents use. So in this episode I want to focus...
Rhett Smith Podcast 43: Using the Pain and Peace Cycle to Lead to Differentiation in Relationships
This last week I have spent some time talking to you about the Pain Cycle and Peace Cycle in Terry Hargrave's Restoration Therapy model. I love the Pain and Peace Cycle because it has transformed my life. It's transformed me as an individual, as well as my marriage,...
Rhett Smith Podcast 42: How the Pain and Peace Cycle Will Lead You to ‘USness’ and Help You Solve Problems in Your Relationship
As I have mentioned in the previous podcast blog posts, I am spending time talking about the Pain and Peace Cycle, and the 4 steps to practice it in your life. These tools are found in the work of Marriage and Family therapist pioneer Terry Hargrave and his...
Rhett Smith Podcast 41: Transform Your Relationship Through the Practice of Your Pain and Peace Cycle
This week I am spending time talking about the Pain and Peace Cycle found in the work of Terry Hargrave and his Restoration Therapy model. As I talk about previous episodes, the Pain Cycle and the Peace Cycle have transformed my life, marriage, relationships,...
Rhett Smith Podcast 40: Learning to Regulate Your Emotions by Identifying Your Peace Cycle
In the previous podcast episode I talked about just how life transforming the Pain and Peace Cycle work have been to my life both personally and relationally. Ever since I learned these tools when I went on staff at The Hideaway Experience in 2010 I have continued to...
Rhett Smith Podcast 39: How Violations of Love and Trust Construct Your Pain Cycle
One of the tools that has changed my life in such an amazing way...that at times it's really hard to explain...is learning the Pain and Peace Cycle in the work of Terry Hargrave in his Restoration Therapy model. In fact, in Episode 21 of this podcast I talked about...
Rhett Smith Podcast 38: The Daily Practice of Giving Thanks, Living in Gratitude, and Experiencing Grace
I have tried over the years to do a better job of giving thanks daily and living in gratitude. But like many of you I struggle. It would seem that I would have starts and stops, and then I would get excited about it again when a holiday like Thanksgiving rolled around...
Rhett Smith Podcast 37: 5 Relational Skills That Will Radically Improve Your Marriage
This last week my wife and I spent two days training with Sharon Hargrave in her Marriage Strong curriculum. There were several reasons why we wanted to attend the training: 1) We know how much working through our Pain and Peace Cycle has transformed our own marriage;...
Rhett Smith Podcast 36: 3 Messages Life-Giving Men Communicate to Others (especially their sons)
Imagine you are in a room and two different type of men walk in. One is encouraging, inspiring and vulnerable. He's not just there physically, but he has shown up emotionally as well. He's connected to those around him. And because he shows up this way, others will...
Rhett Smith Podcast 35: How to Navigate the Morning Routine in Different Stages of Life (Follow Up to Episode #34)
In the last episode (Rhett Smith Podcast 34: Nine Practices and Disciplines That Will Help You Transform Your Morning Routine) I talked at length about my morning routine and the nine disciplines and practices that accompany (on most good days). But in that episode I...
Rhett Smith Podcast 34: Nine Practices and Disciplines That Will Help You Transform Your Morning Routine
It seems to me that how I start my day off...especially the first 1-2 hours, often dictates how the rest of my day goes, or to what degree I will navigate the ups and downs of it successfully. And I’m not alone in thinking this. It’s not surprising that many of the...
Rhett Smith Podcast 33: Jesus Baptism, Wrestling with God, and Exploring What it Means to Live in Your Truth
There are two stories in the Bible that have gripped my imagination for the last 5-6 years. One is the story of Jesus at his baptism, specifically in the gospel of Mark 1:9-11, which records the voice of God the Father in Heaven declaring to his son Jesus (while the...
Rhett Smith Podcast 32: Support Teams, Living Unbalanced, Investing in Others (and other lessons from a 50 mile trail run)
This last week was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I'm still processing it and will for much time to come. But as I talked about in Episode 30 of this podcast, I set out last February to redefine my success as showing up, rather than just achieving a...
Rhett Smith Podcast 31: How Desires Such as Sex and Food Can Become ‘Disordered’ and Negatively Impact our Relationships — with Divinity Professor, Ethicist & Theologian, Dr. Cameron Jorgenson
I have been looking forward to having Dr. Cameron Jorgenson on my podcast for a long time. Dr. Jorgenson is one of the smartest and most thoughtful people that I know, and so it was with great anticipation that I had him on this week's episode. But first a little...
Rhett Smith Podcast 30: If You Want to Grow in Life, You Must ‘Show Up’, Risk Failure, and Reframe Success
About 8 months ago I was looking for a new challenge in life. I felt like I had begun to play life a little too safe, and was starting to get too comfortable...you know the type of comfortable where you start making excuses for taking risks? The type of comfortable...
Rhett Smith Podcast 29: Women and Anger, Our Breath in Grounding Us, and Brene Brown’s The Daring Way Training — with Psychotherapist and Yogi, Jessica Pass
I'm always super excited to bring guests on to my podcast and introduce you to new people and the amazing work they are doing. And Jessica Pass is one of those amazing people that I have been wanting to bring on for a while. I first met Jessica in August of 2005 when...
Rhett Smith Podcast 28: How Your Family of Origin Impacts You Today in Both Positive and Negative Ways
One of the most powerful and life shaping influences in our lives is our family of origin. It is the primary context in which we develop, and that development continues on through the rest of our lives...this is the reason I decided to talk about this topic on this...
Rhett Smith Podcast 27: Mastering the Art of Trust — with Artist, Author, and Craftsmen, Aubrey McGowan
"The people who are having the greatest impact are the people who have heaps of this one thing... Trust." (Learning to Master the Art of Trust, pp. 1) You may recognize Aubrey's name from episode 14 which was a very popular episode. In that episode we explored his...
Rhett Smith Podcast 26: Why Men Have a Hard Time Connecting to their Emotions and the Positive or Negative Role You Play in That Process
It is not unusual for me to be sitting across from a man in my therapy office as he relays to me the story about when he first learned that it was not okay for boys to cry. It is usually a very powerful moment. I have heard men of all ages and backgrounds tell this...
Rhett Smith Podcast 25: Running, Faith, and Looking for Opportunities Beyond Personal Bests and Finish Lines — with Runner and Blogger Melissa Martinez
I love to run. It's one of my favorite things to do, and more recently I recorded a podcast episode on how running has changed my life. One of my bigger accomplishments was running my first 50k about a year and a half ago with my friend and neighbor Eric Fortner at...
Rhett Smith Podcast 24: How Technology Shapes Us, Informs our Identity, and Some Boundaries We Can Implement as We Use It
I love technology. It has absolutely shaped my life in some amazing ways in the last 12 years especially. Technology can encompass all kinds of things, but the technology I'm primarily speaking about here have to do with computers, cell phones and social media. In...
Rhett Smith Podcast 23: The Over-Scheduling of Kid’s Lives, the One Activity, Per Kid, Per Grading Period, and the Importance of Cultivating a Listening Relationship with Your Kids Early On — with Psychologist Dr. Neil Stafford
I know it's a cliche and commonplace to say that you are "busy" when someone asks how you are doing. I find myself saying that a lot, and more recently I've tried to correct that by questioning why am I so busy? And do I like being busy and do I get something from it?...
Rhett Smith Podcast 22: Facing Transitions Stage by Stage
About 15 years ago as I was reading through the Bible a specific passage jumped out at me and forever changed my life. I remember the moment 15 years ago...that's how powerful this simple little verse was. The verse read: "From the wilderness of Sin the whole...
The Launching of Thriiive Practices
This summer my family and I spent 8 days with a couple of other families in Colorado. It was an amazing time of adventure and community as we spent our days white water river rafting, ropes courses, hiking, trail running, and spending quality time with one another....
Rhett Smith Podcast 21: Using the Restoration Therapy Model to Transform You, Your Relationships, Churches, Organizations and Corporations
About 5 years ago I was introduced to a therapy model that changed my life. And that's not an exaggeration. It literally changed my life, beginning with me, then my marriage, then my parenting, then my therapy work, then friendships, and eventually in the work I do...
Rhett Smith Podcast 20: How Running Has Transformed My Life and How It Can Transform Yours
As a kid I loved to run. Whether it was chasing or racing friends, running was something that I grew up loving to do. And I continued to run in high school, competing in the 110 meter high hurdles, 300 meter intermediate hurdles and the 4 x 400. But somewhere over the...
Rhett Smith Podcast 19: Q + A on “Marital Drift” That Many Couples Experience and Correcting the “Kid Centered Marriage.”
I love interviewing guests on this podcast, but summer has been a bit difficult on the podcast schedule with so many people on vacation and needing to reschedule. But I have some great guests lined up for the future and we will cover some interesting topics. So for...
Rhett Smith Podcast 18: Creating a Personal Vision/Mission Statement for Yourself, Your Marriage, or Your Family
About 4-5 years ago my wife and I's life was in a pretty hectic place. Like many of you, we were a double-income family, trying to both balance out time for our work, our family life, and our marriage. And like many of you, we sort of felt like life was just sort of...
Rhett Smith Podcast 17: Exploring Women’s Health Issues, That ‘Always Tired’ Feeling, and the Importance of Sleep, Food, Exercise and Faith — with Dr. Melissa Esguerra
I enjoy interviewing all the guests on my podcast. It's a huge privilege to be able to talk with such amazing people. And this one was really special as I got to interview one of the former students in my college ministry. Between 2001-2008 I was on staff at Bel Air...
Rhett Smith Podcast 16: Tools to Help You Identify, Manage, and Reframe the Anxiety in Your Life
Anxiety is a struggle that everyone has experienced at some point in their lives. Anxiety is part of the human condition whether we like it or not. But while some people seem to experience little anxiety, others feel their life is consumed with it. I've shared in...
Rhett Smith Podcast 15: Exploring the Interplay of Depression, Hope and Trail Running — with Missions Pastor, Mental Health Advocate, and Trail Runner, Benji Zimmerman
About 5 weeks ago I was perusing through Instagram and I came across the feed of lvtrailrunner. I have been following lvtrailrunner (aka Benji Zimmerman) online for quite a while, and I have really been inspired by what he posts, especially his amazing trail running...
Rhett Smith Podcast 14: Simplifying Life, Family Togetherness, and Creating Margin for Exploration — with Artist, Musician and Craftsman, Aubrey McGowan
I first met Aubrey McGowan approximately in the summer of 2010. And like some other stories you have previously heard on this podcast, we met at the ECHO Conference in Dallas. At that time Aubrey was leading worship (as well as doing all kinds of other...
Rhett Smith Podcast 13: Identifying Anxiety in Your Life Story and Reframing it as a Catalyst for Growth
I have struggled with anxiety most of my life. The story of anxiety in my life begins probably somewhere between 1981 and 1986. Those were the years my mother battled breast cancer, eventually dying in 1986 when I was 11 years old. As best as I can remember, the onset...
Rhett Smith Podcast 12: How Engaging in Adventure and Play Creates Space, and Leads to Hospitality — with Pastor and Writer Dr. Drew Sams
This episode was definitely a Rhett Smith Podcast first. My brother-in-law Drew Sams and I went for a long 10 mile trail run earlier in the day, and spent our recovery time hanging outside in his backyard jacuzzi. And so we decided to just record the conversation...
Rhett Smith Podcast 11: Exploring 7 Spiritual Practices for Busy People — with Pastor, Spiritual Director, and Professor, Timothy Smith
We all live in a very busy, very fast paced culture. And in our constant hurry it is often our self-care that goes by the wayside. We stop taking care of ourselves physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually, often finding ourselves in a worse predicament than...
Rhett Smith Podcast 10: Are You Living a Good Story? How Comfort, Anxiety and the American Dream Can Keep Us From Living a Compelling Life — with Author, Storyteller, and Communications Pastor, Scott McClellan
In the Summer of 2008 I was sitting in my inlaw's home office working on their computer. My wife, 1 year old daughter and I had just moved from Los Angeles to Dallas to live a more compelling story, but we knew very few people except for some family we had in the DFW...
Rhett Smith Podcast 9: Exploring the Way that Technology Shapes Us, Our Relationships, and Our Faith — with Author, Technologist and Theologian, John Dyer
I first met John Dyer online somewhere in the summer of 2008. I was engaged online quite a bit at the intersection of faith and technology. I am definitely not an expert in technology, but there was a period of about 4-5 years where I spent a lot of time at social...
Rhett Smith Podcast 8: Parenting in an Online World, Creating Sacred Spaces, and Navigating Cyberbullying and Pornography Among Youth — with Youth Cartel Co-Founder, Speaker, and Technologist, Adam McLane
I first got to connect with Adam McLane when we were driving through the Dominican Republic, and across the border into Haiti. It was only about a month after the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti, and we were part of a youth ministry team that went down there...
Rhett Smith Podcast 7: The Journey of Forgiveness
One of the issues that almost always comes up in my work with clients is the issue of forgiveness. It is the issue that often is not addressed, but the one that is most needed. So a few months ago when a pastor friend of mine asked me to come speak at his church's...
Rhett Smith Podcast 6: Exploring a Rhythm of Life, Creativity, and Leadership from the Quaker Tradition — with Theologian, Professor and Writer, Wess Daniels
As I say in the introduction of this podcast, Wess Daniels is one of the smartest guys that I know. I first met Wess about ten years ago or more when I was a student at Fuller Theological Seminary and pastoring at Bel Air Presbyterian Church. I started hanging out...
Rhett Smith Podcast 5: Turning Insight into Change, Striving for Balance, and Living Relationally — with Innovation 360’s Kevin Gilliland and Lauren Barnett
This was a really fun podcast episode to record. I drove down to Dallas a couple of weeks ago to spend a couple of hours with Innovation 360's Executive Director Kevin Gilliland, and Director of Marketing Lauren Barnett. I first came across the work of Innovation 360...
Rhett Smith Podcast 4: The Connection Between Our Fitness, Food, and Faith — with Ultra-Athlete and Food Advocate Sarah Stanley
About two years ago I came across Sarah Stanley online which led to a few email exchanges about running and health. And over the course of the last two years I have been both continually impressed and encouraged as I have watched her explore the outer limits of her...
Rhett Smith Podcast 3: Navigating Transitions, Finding Your Passion, and Letting, Go — with Pastor, Chaplain and Spiritual Director, Dr. Timothy Smith (aka my dad)
My dad is an amazing guy. Besides being my father he has taken on many roles over the course of his life such as church planter, pastor, professor, prison chaplain, hospice chaplain, writer, teacher, speaker, spiritual director, radio show host...and co-founder of...
Rhett Smith Podcast 2: Transform Your Health, Fitness and Leadership — with Payan X Founder, Marc Payan
What can I say about Marc Payan? He is someone who is hard to sum up in just a few words. I first came across Marc in the online marriage and relationship space. Though we first met online I began to occasionally see Marc in person and I have really been inspired by...
Rhett Smith Podcast 1: Exploring the Intersection of Self-Care and Relationships
I have been dreaming and thinking about starting a podcast for about two years, but just never got around to it. As much as I wanted to start it, life just got in the way. Work has been busy in my private practice, as well as speaking and writing. And then there is...
