All Entries Tagged With: "Managing emotions"

“There’s no such thing as a mistake.” Ha!

This is one of my favourite New Age doozers. Puhleez. Like, getting hosed because you didn’t get it in writing wasn’t a major drag. And spilling your friend’s secret to the wrong person burnt that bridge to a crisp. Or not saying “yes!” to the one that got away – well, THAT sucked. There are such things as mistakes. Major screw-ups and human stupidity happen to the best of us. The rest of us are in denial.

monday sunriseI emptied my bedroom dustbin into the black garbage bag, ready to throw it down the chute. I had one last cigarette left in the packet and fifteen minutes to spare before I could start for the office. Giving in to the temptation, I lit the cigarette and threw the packet into the bag as well, my last piece of garbage from the weekend.

When do you feel like giving up? What discourages you, or tempts you to doubt that sweetness is on the way? Now, write down three remedies for discouragement….lunch with your best friend; a visit to church; dusting off your diplomas, re-reading a love letter, swimming twenty laps; warm soup eaten in silence.

I was in Dumaguete, a city in the South of Manila, when I celebrated my 44th birthday last November 2008. I was not alone. I was with a group from the office, managing a multi-million peso event that was to crown all our achievements for the year. I was the team leader and I owned the project.

Comparison is crazy-making. It stamps on potential and truth and all the good things you might already have going for you if you weren’t so busy shadow-boxing with the people whom you think have it better. Would you compare a snowflake to a snowflake to decide which was more beautiful and unique? No two snowflakes are the same.

The greater the artist, the greater the doubt. Perfect confidence is granted to the less talented as a consolation prize. – Robert Hughes A well known painter friend of mine once said that having an art show is like “pulling down your pants in public.” My favourite mystery quote about acting is, “acting is like [...]

My husband’s company went under two years ago and I lost my job 10 months ago. We are both unemployed for the first time, ever (remember, 45 here)

Today is your day of all days… Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You. – Dr. Seuss Birthdays are a big deal. Monumental. Sacred. What could be bigger in your life than the day you were born?! I always feel pouty for someone [...]

Unhappiness is the difference between what you have and what you want. Frustration is the prime symptom of unhappiness. With our hectic and money-focused modern lifestyle, frustration has become as common as breathing. It leads us to feeling helpless, angry and insecure

Tummy trembles. Brain fuzz. That discombobulating feeling that you’re not quite sure what you should be doing but you should be something to keep your act together. Anxiety. Sometimes it slips away with a few deep breaths, other times you need to beat it off with a stick or some little white pills. Naturally, we [...]

For several decades, scholars and researchers have been telling us that the structure of languages shapes human thought. Language habits contribute to conflict, misunderstanding and even psychological maladjustment. Alfred Korzybski is one such scholar. He asserted that there is no ‘universal truth’ or ‘universal knowledge’ and believed that the structure and psychology of language made [...]

(Note: This post is in 3 parts. Click here for parts 1 and 2. The author has chosen not to reveal her identity.) There is something beautiful about all scars of whatever nature. A scar means the hurt is over, the wound is closed, healed and done with. When you’ve finally hit the lowest point, [...]

(Note: This post is in 3 parts. Click here for parts 1 and 3. The author has chosen not to reveal her identity.) No one enjoys suffering though great men tell us suffering has a purpose: “If you have not suffered as you have, there would be no depth to you as a human being, [...]

(Note: This post is in 3 parts. Click here for parts 2 and 3. The author has chosen not to reveal her identity.) No one can tell what goes on between the person you were and the person you become. No one charts that anguish of descending into a private hell. There are no maps [...]

I don’t think I’ve ever been “clinically” depressed. Well, maybe I have, but it certainly didn’t feel clinical. It felt morbid, cosmic, and unavoidably essential.

When change happens we can feel a whole range of emotions. The bigger the change, the stronger the emotions. What is particularly disorientating is that these emotions can fluctuate, sometimes wildly, and it is hard to know what they mean and how to handle them. As I write, many countries are experiencing the worst economic [...]

What happened in your childhood or another life informs patterns in your current reality. But sooner or later, you’ve simply got to get over using yesterday to explain today’s behavior.