experiences

Thinking Out Loud: Old Habits Die Hard

by

“Give yourself freedom to try out new things. Don’t be so set in your ways that you can’t grow.” ~ Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

NOTE: It’s easy to get into a rut. When we do something the same way over time a habit forms. Each time we repeat it, the habit becomes stronger. The stronger the habit, the more difficult it is to break it and substitute a new habit. When I was a kid every Sunday dinner was macaroni and meatballs. You knew Sunday was coming when the sauce began cooking on Saturday. No one ever questioned or dared question that a Sunday meal could be something different than macaroni and meatballs. My first experience of a different Sunday meal was when I was in the army. We grow when we dare to have new experiences. We expand our knowledge, friendships, and world viewpoints. It can be as simple as trying a new coffee shop or reading a book from a different genre. Do something different this week.

Thinking Out Loud: There’s Something Good in Your Relationship

by

Learning to Appreciate. A look at appreciative inquiry. Excerpts are taken from, Appreciative Inquiry Handbook (2003) by David Cooperrider, Diana Whitney, and Jacqueline Stravros.

Appreciative inquiry is driven by two basic questions:

1.  What in this particular setting and context gives life to this system (think of a system such as your family, work group, team, anyplace where a group of people gather in a common purpose)  when it is most alive, healthy, and symbolically related to its various communities?

2. What are the possibilities expressed and latent that provide opportunities for more effective forms of organizing. 4

Note: think about your current family setting or relationship setting and let’s put appreciative inquiry to work. Imagine you and your partner or significant other go out to Starbucks to have a coffee and conversation about your relationship. You sit down and talk about your relationship. Instead of talking about what’s wrong with your relationship you change the direction of the conversation. Together you brainstorm what gives life to your relationship when it is most alive, healthy, and expresses the kind of values the both of you share. To discover the moments in your relationship that are most alive and healthy think of specific experiences you shared where your relationship was most alive and healthy. What was it about these experiences that made it special? You’ll quickly discover that you have a history of experiences where you experienced joy, overcoming challenges, and supporting each other.

Think About It ~ Story Sharing Has Many Benefits

by

Each of us is a composite of stories. I called my brother yesterday and wished him a merry Christmas. During during our conversation we began to share childhood stories. We each had fond memories of where we grew up, the people who lived in the tenements, and our experiences with them. We laughed at windows broken by hit baseballs, playing on railroad tracks, and the nearby river. When we listen to each other’s stories, we discover how similar we are. We discover the differences that separate us are not as great as we imagined. Encourage others to share their stories with you and be willing to share stories as well. Who knows, you may make a new friend or heal a wounded relationship.

Think About It? ~ A Time for Reflection

by

Take some time to reflect on 2022, what will you find?

Here’s some questions to guide you:

    1. What are all the good experiences I had?
    2. What are the successes I had?
    3. What are the good surprises I had I hadn’t expected? 
    4. What are biggest lessons I learned from this year?
    5. What am I looking forward to in 2023?

A Better Life ~ What to do with Leftovers

by

After a large holiday get together there are lots of left overs.We figure out what we’ll do with the leftovers. Some we will use to go into meals. Other leftovers we will have to eventually toss out as they turn bad. Our life experiences are lot like leftovers. We have to figure out what to do with them. Some we can make use of and others we have to toss away. Keep the good leftovers from your experience and put them to use. Discard the rest. 

Verified by MonsterInsights