The Art of Listening

A Year of Courageous Conversations

How might generous listening make space for courageous conversations?

Watch Dr. Nancy Burgoyne and Dr. Jacob Goldsmith discuss “The Art of Listening.” Active listening with less judgment and more curiosity, humility and empathy is a skill that takes training & practice.

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50 Realistic Ways to Improve Your Mental Health

Featuring Tips from The Family Institute's Therapists

As a way to celebrate our 50th anniversary, therapists at The Family Institute have provided 50 actionable tips for taking care of your mental health. Some of the strategies include practicing mindfulness, overcoming perfectionism, nurturing your relationships and shifting your mindset.
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Sick and Tired: Marriage in the Face of Illness | Webinar

Northwestern Alumni Career Webinars

Featuring Tamara Sher, Ph.D., Licensed Clinical Psychologist and former Clinical Professor at The Family Institute, this webinar addresses the chronic strains and stressors of both living with a romantic partner who has a serious illness and being a person with a serious illness who is married.

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A Simple Way to De-escalate Couple Conflicts

Voice Effects

You probably never thought about lowering your voice during an argument. You probably never heard about the power of reducing your volume when tempers flare and emotions spill over. Here's what you need to know:

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The Parenting Sweet Spot with College-bound Kids

The transition to college is a balancing act for students and their families. Too little engagement can leave a student feeling lost or disconnected, and can leave parents feeling like they’re in the dark. Too much engagement (e.g., so called helicopter parenting) can actually interfere with students’ growth and development.

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Asking for What You Need and Want

Prompt Each Other

It's a widespread complaint of women: men don't know how to listen without rushing in to give advice and offer a solution. "I'm not looking for advice," many women say, "I just want to be heard, to get something off my chest." Through some mysterious blend of nature and nurture, guys just want to find a fix.

Women: try a prompt.

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Make Asking "How Was Your Day?" a Daily Ritual

How Was Your Day?

Is there a more banal question than How was your day? When asked, we often treat it as a throw-away and reply with a quick and mindless "fine" or "okay," our eyes never leaving the computer or the television screen. We rarely expect it to be the start of a conversation.

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Acknowledge Both Partners Through Circular Stories

Resisting the urge to tell linear, blaming stories frees us to tell more helpful circular stories that acknowledge it takes two to tango. Circular stories call up our best and most generous self, conveying: We're a team and we're in this together.
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Tell Me Again What You Think of Me: Depression and Reassurance-Seeking in Couples

Approximately 18.1 million Americans adults suffer from depression each year. They experience symptoms such as irritability, fatigue, persistent feelings of sadness, disinterest in once-pleasurable activities, difficulty concentrating, sleep disturbances, and even thoughts of death.
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How to Talk to Your Kids About College Drinking

Tell your college-age sons and daughters that more than 1,800 college students die from alcohol-related accidents each year, and nearly 600,000 are injured while drunk.1 Tell them that over half a million are assaulted by another student under the influence, and 97,000 are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape.2

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