Susan Mary Malone

Women, especially, often have a tough time with this.  The psychology of why is complicated, but goes back to a girl’s need to be “chosen” while growing up.  And to understand and let go of that can be a bear. I’m tweaked by Martin Seligman’s studies that showed girls are actually more optimist than boys—until puberty.  […]

Because boy, do I ever love to smile.  It makes me happy.  Which makes me smile more! So I often just think of things that do so. Here’s this morning’s list:       Labradors swimming in the tank. Which we did this morning early!  Because when we train water, they smile.  Big, fat, joyous […]

Life is not all roses. Dang it!  Don’t you want it to be? I know I do.  I want everything to work out (the first time).  I want my books to do well (and those of my editorial clients.).  I want my girls to win in the show ring, and excel in the field.  I […]

So what is success? Of course it means different things to different people, and although we have yardsticks by which we measure say, the 50 yard dash, many times the definition is nebulous. If you’re running the 50 yard dash, and you’re a world-class elite athlete, perhaps winning the Olympic Gold is the bar you’ve […]

So much research has been done on Happiness these days.  What makes someone happy in the exact same circumstances as someone who isn’t?  Why do some folks bounce back quicker from setbacks than others?  Can you actually become happier?  What makes people happy? We’re starting to get a pretty danged good idea of why some […]

That I am insane. Okay, so not a big reveal!  I’m known to be a bit, ahem, eccentric?  And other people have different terms for it.  Especially when it comes to Labradors. So folks who aren’t show breeders don’t understand why we have a litter every year.  And it doesn’t make much sense—I admit!—to people […]

We hate change. Well, almost all of us do.  We like our lives the way they are, no?  Even when we’re bored (or slowly dying) with our jobs or houses or god forbid, mates, life itself becomes a habit.  And we are fairly loathe to change habits, even if we know they’ll kill us. Sometimes […]

We all have dreams, right?  Goals, ambitions, objectives—you know, all those things you spend time visioning about, planning for, breaking down into achievable steps.  Wanting.  If you don’t have passion for a goal, it’s not a dream but someone else’s idea for you.  So you do need that surging desire to fuel the wind under […]

Of course we’re all going to have them.  While I do know people who seem to skate through planet Earth with little negative occurring (they exist, I promise. Amazes me too!), most of our lives are a mix of the good and the bad, the happy and the sad, times of soaring on mountain peaks […]

I have a button—big and round, the kind that has a pin in back where you can wear it—of a little girl letting go of a bright balloon.  The caption says simply: “Follow Your Dreams.” Cheesy, I know!  But I’ve had this now for thirty-five years—when the writing bug bit me and never let go.  […]

Do you ever get stuck in the rut of the mundane?  Even when you’re keeping your eye on the prize, and know exactly why you’re doing what you’re doing, some parts of the path seem all about the slog. Happens, on the most noble of quests! And when it does, for a prolonged period, it’s time […]

10 REASONS TO HAVE HOPE  (note—I changed this from ‘you should have’ because I hate ‘should,’ ‘must,’ etc.  I find those words preachy) I’ve talked about hope a lot.  About how I used to think it was too expensive to hold, and doing so set me up for disappointment.  But also how as life progressed, […]