Don’t Go to War With Stress
Fighting talk doesn't win battles, and most fights can be avoided. But in a world where understanding and diplomacy are seen as 'backing down' , what hope is there for managing stress in a mature and responsible way? If we see stress as "the new enemy", there's little hope for détente.
How Much Sleep Does A Person Need?
It's a circular relationship; the right amount of sleep is necessary to health and wellbeing, and when you are healthy you have good sleep patterns.
How to Still Your Mind and Calm Mental Chatter
The easiest way to think about not thinking is to start doing. Taking steps to become more aware of our physical experience is one way, which is why mindfulness training starts with focussing on breathing. If that doesn't appeal to you there are many other ways to interrupt that background noise.
Never Mind What Others Think
Even though we don't realise it when we say we know what someone thinks about something, we are guessing. Even mind-reading – in a fairground or on stage – is trickery. Yet we often allow our own thoughts and behaviour to be goverened by what we claim someone else will think. Maybe it's time to review what we 'know'.
It Doesn’t Have to Work to be Effective
Don't get to hung up on whether something 'works' or not, because it may still be effective. Mechanical things work or don't work, but not everything is mechanical, and scientific evaluation is not equally useful in all cases.
Quality time doesn’t just happen
Quality time is the product of leisure time. It's not the other way round. In order to experience something fully, to be present and engaged in the way we call quality time, we must first create space. Then we must be able to become immersed on what we are doing. It doesn't need to a long time, but it needs to be practiced and regular if one is to benefit. Quality time can't be scheduled, but leisure time can.
Wrapping Increases Enjoyment
In a world of instant gratification it can be a rare delight to wait for things we want; more is not necessarily better. Waiting and expectancy can increase the enjoyment, whereas surfeit diminishes it.
The Meta-Argument
There's a point in an argument at which the arguers lose sight of what the original dispute was about. From then on it is what I call a meta-argument; and argument about an argument, rather than a fight or dispute about whatever the difference was that caused it.
Acceptance – Not an Intellectual Exercise
One of the greatest challenges that a person can face is that of learning to accept the things that they don't like. A core component of the healthy and resilient mindset is acceptance. Though the challenge of learning acceptance can be more insurmountable than the original problem, the payoffs are huge. Writing a post on acceptance is another challenge, it means opening a can of worms... Some concepts don't lend themselves to being written down like recipes.
