Emotions are contagious.
Our emotions are contagious. That isn’t a metaphor. Emotions are LITERALLY contagious. Let me give you the science behind it. Researchers at the University of Parma—which is in Italy and was founded in the 10th century—discovered that we have these things in our brains called “mirror neurons.” These mirror neurons fire when you experience an […]
The Migrant Crisis
When I was in my 30’s I took a couple years off from homelessness to work on other issues. For about a year I was the Executive Director of a nonprofit law firm for immigrants in Washington D.C. That experience taught me that my calling is homelessness. Perhaps just as importantly, I learned a lot […]
How to save the world (in 5 steps) – PART 3
This email is the final installment of my response to the question below. To read part 1, click HERE. To read part 2, click HERE. Dear Ryan, I am a college student. I see so many problems in the world (homelessness, hunger, racism, etc.). I want to use my career and my life to help. […]
How to save the world (in 5 steps) – PART 2
This email is part 2 (of 3) of my response to the question below. To read part 1, click HERE. Dear Ryan, I am a college student. I see so many problems in the world (homelessness, hunger, racism, etc.). I want to use my career and my life to help. Honestly, though, I don’t know […]
How to save the world (in 5 steps).
I got the following email recently: Dear Ryan, I am a college student. I see so many problems in the world (homelessness, hunger, racism, etc.). I want to use my career and my life to help. Honestly, though, I don’t know what to do, or even where to start. What advice do you have? Cynthia […]
I never understood the term “neurodivergent.”
Next week I am doing a live interview with an expert on autism. Carly Danesh-Jones is a British autism advocate (who is on the spectrum herself). She even received an “MBE” for her work on autism advocacy. It is one of those cool things that the British Royal Family does like making people Knights and Dames […]
Christmas Eve in a Homeless Shelter
The following story is from my book “A Homeless Christmas Story” To see the illustrated version and hear it read by Actor Emilio Estevez, go to https://www.homelesstraining.com/books/a-homeless-christmas-story/ (if the URL doesn’t work, type it into your browser) Winter’s crisp darkness settled over the large, brick homeless shelter. Chicago winds whooshed snow across a frozen parking […]
Tiny Acts of Humanity
I try really hard to write original stuff for these weekly newsletters. Every once in awhile, though, someone captures my thoughts far more articulately than I ever could. This poem from Danusha Laméris expresses my feelings on “tiny acts of humanity” perfectly. What I call “pennies in the cup” she calls the “true dwelling of […]
Damage is fast. Healing is slow.
I had two hip surgeries during peak Covid. (I don’t recommend it). I followed all of the surgeon’s instructions: I did physical therapy. I stretched daily (and still do). I stopped running and playing Pickleball (giving up running wasn’t as hard as I expected, but I’m still bitter about Pickleball because I was pretty dang […]
A dog taught me about homelessness.
I had dinner with my aunt last week. She explained that she had called a dog rescue program and asked them to contact her when they had a dog that absolutely no one would ever adopt. Three weeks later they called her to say that they had a Maltipoo (Maltese Poodle mix… Google them, they’re […]
