LATEST BLOG POSTS

I’ve been saying this phrase lately. As far as I remember, I made it up. It comes in several versions. For home cooking: Even when it doesn’t taste as good, it tastes better when you cook it yourself. For gardening Even when it doesn’t taste as good, it tastes better when you grew it yourself. I don’t own a pet today, but grew up with dogs, cats, fish, birds, lizards,[…] Keep reading →

Last time Joe committed to organizing and participating in a beach clean-up as part of his campaign. In today’s episode he shares the state of the region, including the extent of homelessness, drugs, and violence, which made acting so far impossible. We revisit the commitment as well as personal thoughts on what’s happening to America, at least in its major cities of New York City and Los Angeles. Then Joe[…] Keep reading →

When I pick up litter from a pile or collection, I don’t always pick up all of it. I imagine conversations in my head if someone asked why I left some. Sometimes the drug users in Washington Square Park will point me to pieces I didn’t pick up. I think they feel like they’re doing me a favor, maybe based on thinking I like picking up trash just because and[…] Keep reading →

I took another early morning walk last weekend to take pictures of our world. New York City seems intent on pushing more outdoor restaurants. They aren’t the only cause of this situation, but they augment it. I’m sad anyone has to see things like this. If you want commentary, watch my videos in my post Pride Destroyed the Park. If you want to help, say by lowering litter in your[…] Keep reading →

You know Godwin’s Law, right? It says: As an online discussion grows longer (regardless of topic or scope), the probability of a comparison involving Nazis or Adolf Hitler approaches 1. It has a corollary that Whoever makes the comparison loses the debate. Well, I’m stating a similar law about discussions on the environment, Spodek’s Law: In a discussion on the environment, anyone who bases their point on an economist is[…] Keep reading →

Those who listen to my podcast or attended my workshops know The Spodek Method, my two-stage interaction to lead someone to share their intrinsic emotions about the environment, think of a way to act on them, and share their results. I find people enjoy the process and results. They share them openly. I contrast it with nearly all other techniques I see people trying to influence others’ environmental behavior. I[…] Keep reading →

Jonathan and I continue practicing the Spodek Method. Since last recording, he practiced it with his wife. This time he shares how it went. I picked up on a nuance, that she picked a commitment disconnected from her intrinsic motivation and ended up not finding the task meaningful. What we covered relates to leadership and relationships in general. The major theme we covered is uncovering people’s intrinsic motivations. People often[…] Keep reading →