Psychology

The three basic steps of expansion are: observe your feelings, breathe into them, and allow them to come and go.

fear • anger • shock • disgust • sadness • guilt • love • joy • curiosity. You have just read a list of the nine basic human emotions, from which all others are derived by combination. (At least, this is what many scientists believe—it’s still the subject of considerable debate.)

Our struggle switch is like an emotional amplifier—switch it ON and we can have anger about our anxiety, anxiety about our anger, depression about our depression, or guilt about our guilt.

Changing or getting rid of it is not the goal. The goal is to make peace with it; to let it to be there, even if you don’t like it or want it.

The values-focused life will always be more fulfilling than the goal-focused life because you get to appreciate the journey even as you’re working towards your goals.

these control strategies have three significant costs: 1. They take up a lot of time and energy and are usually ineffective in the long run. 2. We feel silly, defective, or weak-minded because the thoughts/feelings we’re trying to get rid of keep coming back. 3. Many strategies that decrease unpleasant feelings in the short-term actually lower our

The more pragmatic approach is to ask, ‘Is this thought helpful? Does it help me take action to create the life I want?’

I invite you now to consider a new definition: success in life means living by your values.

Does it help me to be the person I want to be?