Dennis had just graduated with a degree in marketing and was looking for a job. One day he received an alert on his LinkedIn page that an up and coming toy company was looking to hire a Director of Social Media. Dennis became excited and immediately started researching the company online.  He thought the position would be perfect for him. Dennis loved and was fascinated by the toy industry. As a child, he made his own toys. Even now, Dennis can't resist walking through every toy store he passes. Dennis pulled up his resume. As he began his updates, his excitement dwindled and fizzled out. Dennis recognized the critical voice in his head telling him that he didn't have the right experience and wasn't qualified for the position. He imagined the hiring team looking at his resume and thinking it was a joke. Dennis convinced himself that he would never be hired and that applying would be a waste of time and another disappointment to recover from. . Dennis did not get the...

Self Compassion

You had a hard day. You did not meet your productivity goals. You said something that hurt your friends feelings. In any of these situations, most of us would automatically be hard on ourselves. To be kind to ourselves might feel self-indulgent or guarantee we continuing making the same mistakes.

 Self Compassion isn't self-indulgent.

When we acknowledge our emotions in a non-judgemental way we process our experience in a way that allows us to learn from it.  You are not wrong for feeling pain, sadness, regret or any emotion.

Imperfection is the human condition.

When we accept that we are still growing and learning and subject to making mistakes, we acknowledge our humanness and can realize that we are not alone.

Self-compassion means treating yourself as kindly as you would treat a friend who needs that support.

Self compassion includes adopting healthier behaviors that support your physical and emotional strength.

Being hard on ourselves isn't...

An Uncomplicated Life; a seemingly unattainable goal.

A life with out anxiety: unimaginable if the two are synonymous with each other.

One practice to minimize anxiety and achieve an uncomplicated life: Mindfulness

Think of all that you have done in your life.

All that you have overcome.

All you have accomplished.

I promise you: YOU HAVE IT IN YOU TO MAKE A MINDFULNESS PRACTICE A PART OF EVERYDAY OF YOUR LIFE.

In 5 minutes a day you will learn to live mindfully by practicing the following.

But first:
There is no wrong way to do this!

1.Sit in a comfortable spot. Begin your mindfulness practice by focusing on your breath, it will help ground you for the session. Focus on drawing your breath in and exhaling it out. Just do it. Everyone has wandering thoughts while doing this. It's OK. It's a part of the journey.

(Are you a mantra aficionado? Some people find it useful to use a mantra to focus on: That is a word or phrase that you say aloud and/or chant. It can be ‘Om’,...

Family members are intensely emotionally connected. This connectedness can  be a source of intense joy but it can also foster reactivity.
 

As family members, we react not just to each other's behavior but to what we believe are each other's needs and  expectations.  Seeing a family member craving attention, approval, or support from other family members can trigger powerful feelings.

In families, we watch each other carefully for changes in each other’s behavior. Our observations are meant to help us predict what will happen next. Our predictions are based upon the clues we pick up in the moment together with memories of past experiences.

When a family member watches another member’s behavior, the observer reacts in line with what they believe will be reciprocal to the action they are predicting is about to occur by the member they are observing.  Around it goes, a change in one person's behavior or functioning leads to reciprocal changes in the...

Stave of this senseless trinity to achieve greater peace of mind:

1. Don't Take What Other People Say Personally.

2. Don't Treat Everything As Having Extreme Importance.

3. Don't Get Stuck With The Literal Meaning of What is Said.

Sound Good?

Jodi