Emotional growth means growing in our emotional abilities. This means not only getting better at managing our emotions, but also in the ability to evoke emotions of our choice. We do not have complete control over our emotions. If we did, we’d all decide to be happy, and live happily ever after. But we do…
Raw emotions are those emotions that hit us right in the gut, in the immediate aftermath of some consequential event. These raw emotions usually leave us feeling that we need to do something, while not being sure what exactly what we could be doing. In other words, raw emotions are intense feelings inside us that…
No man is an island entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. John Donne (1624) The importance of a support system is beautifully expressed in the quote above. This famous saying — no man is an island — describes the inter-connectedness of the human experience. Nobody…
Realistic goals are a powerful thing. For many years, I overlooked the value of a good goal. They seemed hokey and destined for failure. More than anything, they seemed like a lot of unnecessary pressure. Then, for some reason, I gave it a try about a week into the new year. Around that time, my…
Feeling bad sometimes is a normal part of life, and is something we all experience. Who hasn’t, at some point, pleaded to their cosmic force of choice, “Why can’t I just be happy?!” But it is important to embrace feeling bad. This doesn’t mean that clinical depression is okay. Rather, run-of-the-mill bad feelings have their…
The Golden Rule — treat others how you’d like to be treated — is a universal maxim. It is a law of reciprocity — if we treat others with kindness, they will be compelled to treat us with kindness in turn. The concept dates back to ancient Egypt, at least, and can be found in religious…