A compilation of information and links regarding assorted subjects: politics, religion, science, computers, health, movies, music... essentially whatever I'm reading about, working on or experiencing in life.
[...] As readers, we not only learn more, but we are also more proficient at deciphering misinformation – our habit of reading gradually improves our judgment. And being able to correctly size up a situation is crucial for being effective at whatever we’re doing.
Speaking for myself, I know my reading habit has sharpened my edge. I’m always enamored when I’m working on a puzzling issue and some out-of-left-field piece of information comes to mind from something I’ve read that helps me put all the pieces together.
So with the importance of reading in mind, it’s time to read or re-read our 12 most popular posts (based on the number of reader views, social shares and comments) from this past year. If you give them a chance, each one of these quick reads has the power to change the way you think, live and love, so you can stay on track to living at your greatest potential… [...]
Some good topics covered here. The authors are Life Coaches. Excellent content, good food for thought. I will be referring to this list again and again.
For the first twenty-two years or so of our lives, our main “job” is learning. The bulk of our time is spent in classrooms acquiring new knowledge. And then, once we graduate, we feel like the education phase of our lives is done and now it’s time to go out into the world. Have you ever thought about how odd that idea is? That only a quarter of our lives should be devoted to learning, and then we should simply rest on our laurels for the remaining three-quarters of it?
It’s an erroneous idea – but one many have absorbed, at least subconsciously. But school need not be your exclusive provider of learning. Just because you’ve finished your formal education, doesn’t mean that your education is over!
Many, perhaps most, of history’s greatest men were autodidacts – those who devote themselves to self-education, either in addition to or as a substitute to formal schooling. [...]
It goes on to give examples, and more. Lots of good links, I thoroughly enjoyed it. One of the links was this:
This is the fifth part in a series designed to help you boost your resiliency. For the previous entries, see Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV.
When we first introduced the topic of resiliency, we discussed how it is both a reactive and an active quality, a skill that helps you bounce back and reach out.
Today’s discussion will center on the active aspect of resiliency and the path to gaining the confidence to take risks and embrace change.
Anchoring Your Resiliency in Your Authentic Self
When your self-esteem and sense of self-worth is tied to other people, your job, or any other external factors, your confidence is subject to every wind of change and lacks real stability. Any time these external factors change, your happiness and confidence go with it. Your emotional fortitude goes up and down like a roller coaster.
Tying your self-concept to external factors also keeps you from embracing adventure and approaching the world like a courageous explorer. If you base your self-concept on external things, any changes in those things will throw you for a loop, create anxiety, and compel you to cling as tightly as you can to the status quo. You become desperate to keep your life just the way it is and can’t handle change. You avoid traveling, moving, changing jobs, and getting into relationships because these steps alter the environment on which you’ve based your self-concept, leaving you feeling lost and out of control
The key to active resiliency is to build your self-concept not on a constructed self, but on an authentic self, not on external things, but on the inner, personal strengths that make you unique as a man. Your unique strengths are your special tools that will allow you to build a happy and fulfilling life. Understanding what tools you possess can give you the confidence that you’ll be able to face any challenge that comes your way. While we can’t predict the future, we can have confidence in our ability to deal with whatever happens. [...]
Again, it's full of interesting links. And this article is part of a series, so I can look forward to reading them all.
We had our neighbors over for lunch recently. The conversation eventually meandered onto the topic of children. One of our guests mentioned this song by Bucky Covington. Yesterday on the way home from work, I heard it on the radio for the first time. Here is the Music Video version on Youtube:
I love the lyrics; it reminds me a lot of a post I did a while back, called: Childhood, Past and Present. It was about the text of an email I got, a short essay that's been circulating around the internet, titled: "TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED the 1930's, 40's, 50's, 60's and 70's !!".
Bucky doesn't even look old enough to have been a kid in the 70's, but he does a nice rendition of the song. The lyrics follow the essay somewhat; or vice versa, I'm not sure which came first. The lyrics to Bucky's song are listed here: A Different World Lyrics. If you compare them to the essay at the link above, you'll see that they are very similar; the essay just goes into more detail.
Anyhow, our neighbor mentioned the song, because we were talking about kids and how it's such a different world than the one we grew up in. She told us about the 3 year old grand daughter of one of her friends. While visiting her friend who was babysitting the grand daughter (I'll call the kid "Britney"), our neighbor told the child at one point that she was a "good girl". She was surprised when her friend the grandmother corrected her, and asked her not to say that to the child; she was informed that she should say, instead, "good job".
When asked why, it was explained to her that by telling the child she was a "good girl", she was also implying that the child had the potential to be called a "BAD girl". And that was unacceptable, because it could be damaging to the child's self esteem.
Talk about New Age Crap! But it doesn't end there. At another time, our friend was visiting Britney and her grandmother again. Grandma had to go out and get something from the car, and wanted the girl to stay in the house. Britney became impatient and decided she was going to go outside anyway. So our neighbor speaks up and reminds the three year old that she's supposed to wait; grandma will be right back. Britney just looks at her a moment, and then continues walking on out. So our neighbor, being the only adult in the room, says in a slightly more assertive voice, "Britney, NO."
This time the child looks back in shock, and starts screaming and crying! The grandmother comes running back inside, asking what's happened. Britney points accusingly at our neighbor, and sobs: "SHE told me NO!!!".
It would seem this child had never had an adult say "no" to her before. What kind of world is this kid's family raising her to live in? Not the real one, apparently.
I wish I could say this sort of story was unusual, but I seem to be hearing too many similar to it. And it's not even just the spoiling of children that bugs me. Even spoiled children can turn out o.k. What really bugs me is the weird assumptions and expectations about life that the kids are being taught.
For instance, I'm told that when a child has a birthday now, instead of the birthday child getting all the presents, every child in attendance is supposed to get a present, so they don't feel left out and -God forbid- damage their self esteem!
There are teachers who now are proudly asserting that they don't believe in grading and testing students, because that creates a competitive environment that is damaging to the children's self esteem. Some teacher's actually believe in "averaging out" grades, so that everyone in a class gets the same grade, all in the name of "fairness". What nonsense! Are teachers who believe in rewarding merit a dying breed?
Also at school, if a kid tries to beat up another kid, and the victim tries to defend him/herself and hit back, the victim is considered just as guilty as the aggressor! Both are punished! Why? Because the victim is supposed to run and tell the teacher! Yeah, right, like that has anything to do with reality.
I used to get bullied at school. The teachers couldn't do anything to stop it. I eventually followed my parent's advice, and started to hit the kids back - hard. Like magic, the bullying stopped.
Nowadays there is an epidemic of bullying in the schools. The aggressors and the victims who fight back are punished equally, yet the school authorities can't seem to get a handle on it or stop it. Gee, could it be the namby-pamby New Age Wussification Crap they force the kids to follow? Ya think?
What are they even teaching in the schools now anyway? Our neighbor said she saw on late night TV, I think it was Jay Leno, a poll they conducted on the street, asking passerbys the meaning of July 4th. We are celebrating our freedom; could they tell us what we were celebrating our freedom FROM?
I thought this was something EVERYONE knew; but apparently, not anymore. This whole family was asked, mother, father, son... nobody knew! They eventually called grandpa over. HE knew.
But hey, at least the kids self esteem wasn't damaged, and that's the most important thing, right? In fact, we shouldn't even ask the kids questions, because if they don't know the answer, think of what damage that would do to their self esteem!
This obsession with self esteem and children is creating a generation of self-indulgent monsters, who believe everything they want should be justified without question; who believe they must be protected from any kind of criticism; who feel it's a RIGHT to which they are actually entitled.
How can any real learning take place where there is no criticism? Our public schools are turning our American kids into a nation of spineless, ignorant and infantilized wusses, who can't take criticism, can't take care of themselves, and who will depend on the government to do everything for them. Too many "graduates" turn out to be unemployable; they whine and act like permanent victims, who need their every whim catered to... in other words, they become New Age Democrats.
Is it surprising that so many people around the world think we are a soft, weak nation that won't fight back? Is that because it's actually becoming the truth?
I know that things always change, and that each generation grows up in a different world to some extent. I can accept that. I just think we can do better than this.
