New Year’s Eve celebrations seem to have gotten smaller in scope. Let’s align ourselves more with the traditional intent of the celebration, and make a radical shift back to the values of repairing relationships and promising good behavior.

The first reason I wrote a book was that I wanted what everyone wants, to connect to others in some meaningful way when I could not bear to do so directly.

What can we learn about ourselves, and possibly our future, from contemplating the Mayan civilization? The beliefs and values that our society holds influence the way we live, our evolutionary strengths and weaknesses, and the shape of our fate. If we ask ourselves the right questions, we can learn from history how to confront life’s challenges wisely.

Life certainly isn’t as predictable as we’d sometimes like it to be. Sudden or unexpected changes of plan — even small ones — can have unforeseen knock-on effects.

Making choices and commitments is part of life: even when we think we’ve avoided making a decision, that in itself is a choice. But is ‘choosing not to make a choice’ really the best way to approach life?

Highly unusual, “impossible,” perhaps even miraculous things happen many times each day. If you’ve been plugging away with little to show for your efforts, read on to learn how to raise your odds of a miracle.

Boredom is not something that’s exclusively experienced by youngsters on long car journeys or on rainy days during school holidays. It can also afflict us as adults, when we begin to feel a sense that life has lost some of its variety and flavour. Tackling a feeling of ‘life-boredom’ gives us the chance to draw on some of the life skills we began to develop as children.