A blog of lessons for life

Everybody faces grief at some points in their lives, so it helps to understand how to powerfully and efficiently deal with grief. Let us start off by defining what Grief is. Grief is a universal, natural response to any kind of loss that human beings face. Loss is part of a person’s everyday life. For every good action or deed that a person performs; there is an equal amount of negative emotion such as grief and loss. The word grief has its origin in the Old French word ‘grever’ meaning ‘to burden’. Being a burden on someone is not something we all like to be. It is not ideal for a lot of people, and in a lot of instances. The pain they attach to their grief is overwhelming! Another layer to this thought- process would be with regards to how individuals process situations emotionally. It is important to understand that people are on their designated path, and it becomes essential for us to be patient with people we care about. People adopt different techniques to deal with their emotions-specifically grief. Here is a list of 6 ways that will empower you to handle grief! Six Ways of Dealing with Grief: I. Acknowledge Your Pain This is the first and most important step in the grief management process. People face facts, deal with emotions, and process pain in a specific way. All the other person can do is lend ears, that is, be empathetic listeners. Once you listen to both

Have you ever wondered why a person misunderstood what you were saying, or why someone did not quite react the way you expected? Sometimes we can misread certain cues while communicating with people. This has a lot to do with the way we communicate and more specifically, how we follow the communication process. We all know that communication is about giving and taking, so it is important to take a look at what messages you send when you interact with others. We all know that relationships are built on trust and honesty, to create a healthy environment. However, non-verbal cues seem to be an oft-ignored part of maintaining these relationships. You need to build strong non-verbal communication skills, to boost your personal and professional life. The first step towards understanding communication is to grasp the concept of two types of communication, namely, verbal and non-verbal. These simply mean that we communicate through spoken sounds, as well as in a visual and non-audible way too. Taking a look at these types of non-verbal communication will help you to improve your style and make changes. So here’s what we mean by “non-verbal communication”. Non-verbal communication most often includes the use of body language, eye contact, facial expressions, gestures and voice tone. On the other hand, verbal communication refers to text, signs or speech when expressing yourself. However, non-verbal communication tells a lot about your style of interacting with others. Once you have learned how to use these non-verbal cues, you will be

In a world with a thousand different influences like media, culture, religion etc., opinions spewing from left and right, it becomes easy to disconnect with our inner voice. People get caught up in the collective consciousness and misunderstand these beliefs as their own. Set-aside all these belief-systems the question of ‘who am I arises?’ Knowing oneself is a fairly ambiguous statement. So what does it mean? It means understanding your values and dedicating time to things that matter to you. It means saying no when an opportunity doesn’t align with what you want. It means being transparent with yourself about the good and the bad. If you’re feeling confused, consider the tips below to get back on track and in tune with your authentic self. 1. Understand your values Society often tells us what we should value or want. You should have a full-time job by ‘x’ age, or you can only be happy if have ‘x’. This often steers us away from what genuinely matters to us as individuals. Take a moment and ask yourself what truly brings you joy. When was the last time you felt fulfillment? After some reflection, you’ll begin to understand your values and your passions. With clarity on what these are, you’ll have an easier time making decisions that are authentic to you. 2. Look at the people who surround you While we can’t control the family we were born into, we control the people we allow in our lives. A large part of

What is confidence? Confidence is the ability to feel beautiful, awesome, enough and great without needing someone to tell you. Mastering confidence will lead to healthier relationships, openness in trying new things, better performance, and overall resilience. The word itself is derived from ‘fidere’ in Latin which means ‘to trust’ and encourages others to trust what we are putting out there in the world but really comes down to trusting one’s own self. Having self-confidence not only impacts how you feel about yourself, but it helps create personal boundaries, make better life decisions, and forms a guide on how to love others. From the start, we begin building our self-esteem from cues our parents and our home environment. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way we can stumble and lose the ability to trust in ourselves the way we would like. The good news is that there are things you can do to boost your self-confidence. Whether you lack confidence in one specific area or you struggle to feel confident about anything, these 5 strategies can help! I. Words are Powerful: Speak words of empowerment and kindness to yourself. Your pep talk with yourself is the most important one you can ever give. Set aside a time to do this every day and speak it until you believe! It is incredibly powerful to speak something into existence much like how when you smile, you start to feel more positive right away. II. Make a List of Strengths. Achievements, & Goals: This may

As much as we all strive for a life filled with happiness and excitement, life isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. Hearts get broken, unpleasant events occur, and disappointments happen. We’ve all felt pain, shame, and sadness – it’s a fundamental part of being alive. But as adults and professionals, we’ve engrained the notion that we must suppress these negative emotions. On the other hand, trapping emotions may have been taught at an early age. The Problem with Trapping Your Emotions Initially, you might seem fine on the surface when you bury your feelings. Then over time those negative emotions, such as betrayal, anger, and fear bottle up and affect us in various ways. Trapping our emotions can lead to: Sabotaging Relationships If you’ve suppressed the trauma from a previous relationship, you may carry the same doubt and fear to your next partner. Anxiety and stress Trapped emotions lead to constant fear and anxiousness even when there might not be anything alarming. A common trait of emotional repression is sometimes being unable to understand why you’re stressed. Unable to move on Burying our emotions means we can never truly come to terms with them. As a result, our minds cling to our past. The Benefits of Emotional Release The ability to validate and express our negative emotions in a healthy way, allows us to handle challenges better. Everyone experiences highs and lows. But how we process and navigate through those negative experiences and emotions, is what ultimately matters. When we can

Toxic relationships make us feel unworthy and empty inside. But when we garner the strength to leave them, most of the time these feelings stay with us. On the bright side, the closing of that chapter welcomes new and better beginnings – the time to heal, to rediscover and to fall back in love with yourself. If you’ve recently exited a toxic relationship, here are some tips on getting through the healing process. 1. Acknowledge It Acknowledging what happened, the mistakes made, the problems that spurred, allows you to come to terms with reality. To truly heal and move on, you must be transparent with yourself. Accepting and recognizing the truth, that you were a part of an unhealthy relationship opens up the doors to learn and grow from it. 2. Gather Your Network Being single is a stronger risk factor for depression among men than it is for women. And having a social support system can drastically change that. Reach out to friends and family, the people in your life who matter and genuinely care for your well-being. It’s very hard to get through this vulnerable time alone and your support system can help you on this healing journey. 3. Seek Out New Activities During this healing period, take the time to discover new interests and hobbies. These new experiences can spark greater joy and add excitement to your life. So go on that solo hike you’ve always wanted to try, take up that new hobby that you’ve never

It’s normal to occasionally feel lost and question the many components of your life. However, it’s not something to simply put aside. If you neglect those feelings, you’re more prone to spiral into depression, something 30.6% of men experience in their lifetime. Feeling lost or empty inside opens the door to begin finding your true self. The journey of self-discovery will anchor your identity into things that matter to you, leading to a more fulfilling life. Why Do You Feel Lost? Life throws many unexpected and unwanted events your way – it’s something we can’t control all the time. Some triggers could be: – Recently ending a relationship. – Lack of understanding towards your purpose and goals in life. – Dissatisfaction with a job. Once you’ve accepted that you are experiencing this void, the next part requires you to take action and start your path on self-discovery. Steps to Finding Yourself 1. Ask Yourself What Matters Take a moment to ask yourself what you find important in your life. Do you want to be a more present father figure to your children? Does your position at your company matter more? These questions give you perspective on what you should be doing and spending your time on. When you highlight the things that matter to you in your life, you can then make the necessary changes to align your actions with them. 2. Setting Small Goals Goals add structure and meaning to our lives. And these don’t have to be huge

5 Ways To Win An Argument Fairly Arguments are a part of life, whether you’re a new couple or you’ve been married for years. Having conflicting ideas or opinions is natural and can add spice to your relationship. While your aim shouldn’t be to ‘win’, being able to effectively communicate during a heated dispute is important, and will help you move on and become stronger as a couple. In my personal experience, arguments can quickly get out of control, even when you love someone dearly. While I never intended to hurt my partner, I did at times and I am sorry for that. Based on this, I want to share 5 top tips to win an argument fairly and without resorting to yelling, emotional outbursts, or additional drama. Develop Emotional Intelligence No, you can’t wave a magic wand and develop emotional intelligence overnight. This will take years to really master, but working on your emotional intelligence will help you during arguments. Rather than react without thinking, start yelling, and bringing up the past, you need to master the art of assessing a situation and using effective communication. So the next time you feel tensions starting to rise between you and your partner, pause for a moment. Consider how you feel. Why are you feeling frustrated? How do you think your partner is feeling? Is there something else, perhaps a deeper issue at hand that is adding fuel to the fire? A couple of common fuels are hunger, feeling tired, being

How To Seize Opportunities By Changing Your Mindset Change has more power than you realize. When the energy around us shifts, things are about to get interesting! Yes, change can be difficult but it can also present wonderful opportunities. Even when something doesn’t work out the way you had anticipated, this doesn’t mean there are no opportunities to be had. In fact, by shifting your mindset and perceiving change as a positive opportunity, rather than a difficult adjustment, you can become stronger and more resilient as a person. So let’s take a look at some top life coaching tips to help you become an optimist, and start seeing opportunities all around you! Choose Your Reaction Wisely If it wasn’t for change, life would be pretty dull! Changing your haircut can make you feel completely different and more confident. Changing jobs can help you move forward and progress. Changes in your relationships can lift you and help you build a supportive and loving safety net. An effective way to change your mindset and see opportunities when things don’t go to plan is to re-evaluate the situation. You might not see this surprising change of course as a good thing at the moment, but further down the line, a new and exciting opportunity might present itself. We are all on a path and if we are starting to veer off in a different direction, change can help guide you back to where you’re meant to be in life. The direction and path