Sometimes I get annoyed when my friends are just too busy to pick up the phone or answer an email or need to take calls during the time that we are together. And, I have been accused, so many times, of being too busy myself. Yet, as it turns out, being busy may have benefits. Why? Because new research suggests that staying busy could be the key to staying sharp as we age.
Last year I attended my 50th High School reunion in Larned, Kansas where I grew up. I was fortunate enough to be able to share that experience with several of my girlfriends who I have known since I was in elementary school. We’ve remained friends over the last 60 plus years and when we’re together, it’s as if we were still young girls. Time seems to stand still. And, the only difference is that our bodies have changed.
I’ve been thinking a lot about emotional resiliency lately because I’ve had so many things happen in which I’ve had to call upon this skill/ability. Although I think that my innate nature is to be more resilient, (I’ll explain more about this later); I do believe that it still took years to practice and refine.
Pending tasks – or, as I like to call them, ‘projects’: while we may dread them for various reasons, the truth is that our task list will never be empty. We should be glad, for as long as we have tasks to perform, work pending completion, or issues we need to improve, we can be sure that our lives are evolving and benefiting from all the experiences we accumulate while checking off items of our to-do lists.
I’m not talking about romantic love – that kind is only one of the various manifestations of Universal Love, which is what I would like to focus on in today’s message.
There will always be things that need attention, some of them urgently. The more you can’t stop thinking about ‘the list’, the more time seems to shrink. You wake up thinking about it, you shower and eat breakfast thinking about it, losing those precious couple of hours before the true ‘action’ of the day begins. Once you start working on doing what needs to be done you already feel burned out and exhausted – because you have actually been working for several hours in your head, making no real progress.
Have you ever wondered why we remember the tough times more vividly than the carefree, blissfully happy ones? Or, why do we become more attached to the things and projects that took the most effort and time to achieve?
When you start getting interested in Psychology and begin your path on what becomes a lifelong journey of learning – after many decades I still consider myself a student of Psychology – you learn about Jung, Freud, Lacan, etc. The topic of dreams has always fascinated mankind and, as a Psychology student or professional, you’re always bound to delve deeply into many teachings and interpretations. There is so much theory, even before the official beginnings of Psychology as a a discipline!
It would be great if everybody grew less afraid of failure as we grow older. Unfortunately, it’s not always the case. Society and western culture instill in all of us an overwhelming fear of failing at anything. Some people are so afraid that they hardly ever try anything new, much less when they are older. It’s truly heartbreaking because life is about discovering new things and having new experiences everyday. It allows us to learn and thrive.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being proud of our achievements. Success requires hard work and wisdom but it also requires support from others. Without our relatives, friends, colleagues, and loved ones; none of us would be able to make anything happen.
Very few of us realize that every word we pronounce or write conveys a supremely powerful message: “this is who I am, this is where I come from, this is how I do things”. Talk about a statement!
A calm mind, the ability to have clear thoughts and a deeply energized & relaxed body are the possible result
I have addressed the topic of assumptions before but it was a long time ago. The reason I want to write about assumptions once more is because they are recurrent in pretty much everyone’s lives. It’s astonishing how easily and subreptitiously assumptions can take hold of our perspective. When we act driven by what we assume, things can get rocky.
When someone praises us most of us adopt an attitude of polite disbelief. We think it vain to rejoice in our strengths. Instead of saying ‘thank you for that’ and believing it, we tend to make self-deprecating remarks of the following sort:
We all have our ‘pet peeves’: those little – or sometimes not so little – things that drive us up the wall and make us lose our grasp of reality. Many times these reactions are a response to continuous stress; or to a series of unpleasant experiences that we endure one after another without properly manifesting our emotions in the right way at the right place and time. Then, something silly happens and we just explode. We’ve all been there: it’s only human.
You have probably been wished a happy new year a lot these past few days and you have more than likely replied in the same manner. While it’s beautiful and noble to wish a happy new year to one another; the truth is that setting intentions for the new year is never as simple as that. It’s not enough to feel it – you have to do the work, too.
Most of us usually end the year with a list of losses, disappointments and unfortunate events. Some of them (such as the death of loved ones) we will never fully overcome but we can learn how to carry on with our lives in a loving spirit, honoring the memory of our relatives and friends who have passed on.
We are funny creatures. One of the most unfortunate aspects of this human trait is that most of us have to face incredibly challenging situations in order to realize that we need to shift one, or several, aspects of our attitude.
Sometimes I get annoyed when my friends are just too busy to pick up the phone or answer an email or need to take calls during the time that we are together. And, I have been accused, so many times, of being too busy myself. Yet, as it turns out, being busy may have benefits. Why? Because new research suggests that staying busy could be the key to staying sharp as we age.
Last year I attended my 50th High School reunion in Larned, Kansas where I grew up. I was fortunate enough to be able to share that experience with several of my girlfriends who I have known since I was in elementary school. We’ve remained friends over the last 60 plus years and when we’re together, it’s as if we were still young girls. Time seems to stand still. And, the only difference is that our bodies have changed.
I’ve been thinking a lot about emotional resiliency lately because I’ve had so many things happen in which I’ve had to call upon this skill/ability. Although I think that my innate nature is to be more resilient, (I’ll explain more about this later); I do believe that it still took years to practice and refine.
Pending tasks – or, as I like to call them, ‘projects’: while we may dread them for various reasons, the truth is that our task list will never be empty. We should be glad, for as long as we have tasks to perform, work pending completion, or issues we need to improve, we can be sure that our lives are evolving and benefiting from all the experiences we accumulate while checking off items of our to-do lists.
I’m not talking about romantic love – that kind is only one of the various manifestations of Universal Love, which is what I would like to focus on in today’s message.
There will always be things that need attention, some of them urgently. The more you can’t stop thinking about ‘the list’, the more time seems to shrink. You wake up thinking about it, you shower and eat breakfast thinking about it, losing those precious couple of hours before the true ‘action’ of the day begins. Once you start working on doing what needs to be done you already feel burned out and exhausted – because you have actually been working for several hours in your head, making no real progress.
Have you ever wondered why we remember the tough times more vividly than the carefree, blissfully happy ones? Or, why do we become more attached to the things and projects that took the most effort and time to achieve?
When you start getting interested in Psychology and begin your path on what becomes a lifelong journey of learning – after many decades I still consider myself a student of Psychology – you learn about Jung, Freud, Lacan, etc. The topic of dreams has always fascinated mankind and, as a Psychology student or professional, you’re always bound to delve deeply into many teachings and interpretations. There is so much theory, even before the official beginnings of Psychology as a a discipline!
It would be great if everybody grew less afraid of failure as we grow older. Unfortunately, it’s not always the case. Society and western culture instill in all of us an overwhelming fear of failing at anything. Some people are so afraid that they hardly ever try anything new, much less when they are older. It’s truly heartbreaking because life is about discovering new things and having new experiences everyday. It allows us to learn and thrive.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being proud of our achievements. Success requires hard work and wisdom but it also requires support from others. Without our relatives, friends, colleagues, and loved ones; none of us would be able to make anything happen.
Very few of us realize that every word we pronounce or write conveys a supremely powerful message: “this is who I am, this is where I come from, this is how I do things”. Talk about a statement!
A calm mind, the ability to have clear thoughts and a deeply energized & relaxed body are the possible result
I have addressed the topic of assumptions before but it was a long time ago. The reason I want to write about assumptions once more is because they are recurrent in pretty much everyone’s lives. It’s astonishing how easily and subreptitiously assumptions can take hold of our perspective. When we act driven by what we assume, things can get rocky.
When someone praises us most of us adopt an attitude of polite disbelief. We think it vain to rejoice in our strengths. Instead of saying ‘thank you for that’ and believing it, we tend to make self-deprecating remarks of the following sort:
We all have our ‘pet peeves’: those little – or sometimes not so little – things that drive us up the wall and make us lose our grasp of reality. Many times these reactions are a response to continuous stress; or to a series of unpleasant experiences that we endure one after another without properly manifesting our emotions in the right way at the right place and time. Then, something silly happens and we just explode. We’ve all been there: it’s only human.
You have probably been wished a happy new year a lot these past few days and you have more than likely replied in the same manner. While it’s beautiful and noble to wish a happy new year to one another; the truth is that setting intentions for the new year is never as simple as that. It’s not enough to feel it – you have to do the work, too.
Most of us usually end the year with a list of losses, disappointments and unfortunate events. Some of them (such as the death of loved ones) we will never fully overcome but we can learn how to carry on with our lives in a loving spirit, honoring the memory of our relatives and friends who have passed on.
We are funny creatures. One of the most unfortunate aspects of this human trait is that most of us have to face incredibly challenging situations in order to realize that we need to shift one, or several, aspects of our attitude.
A Hero’s Journey is an eight-week experiential interactive online program designed to navigate your life transitions with greater clarity, confidence and much less stress.
Moving Abroad: A Hero’s Journey is an eight-week experiential interactive online program for personal growth and transformation.
The Enneagram: Who Am I is actually a comprehensive roadmap that will guide you through life and gift you with more awareness and insight into yourself and others.
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One of my next steps on my own journey is to continue my work as a Psychologist in offering psychotherapy sessions online. If you are interested, you can contact me at docbeverlynelson@gmail.com
I will also continue offering online courses based on the Hero’s Journey and the Enneagram. I would love to help you make your life journey one of continued increase of happiness, fulfillment and satisfaction…More information can be found at: https:/lifepathmasters.pageable.com and on our website at https://lifepathmasters.com.