<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">At the beginning of the day:</li></ul> “What am I optimizing for?”<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">During the day:</li></ul> “What's the best small thing I can do right now?”<ul><li class="ql-align-justify">​At the end of the day:</li></ul> “Did I do my best?"

3 simple questions to improve your day.

“The person who gets 1 shot needs everything to go right.The person who gets 1000 shots is going to score at some point.Find a way to play the game that ensures you get a lot of shots.”

“People often think it's weird to get hyped about reading one page or meditating for one minute or making one sales call. But the point is not to do one thing. The point is to master the habit of showing up. The truth is, a habit must be established before it can be improved. If you can't learn the basic skill of showing up, then you have little hope of mastering the finer details. Instead of trying to engineer a perfect habit from the start, do the easy thing on a more consistent basis. You have to standardize before you can optimize.”

Excerpt From Atomic Habits

“There is no formula for success—you just begin and then you continue. I’m often asked how to have a career in stand-up and the answer is confoundingly simple: Do the work. Over and over again, just do the work. After you build the courage to get onstage that first time, it’s all about repetition.”

“It is wonderful how much work can be got through in a day, if we go by the rule—map out our time, divide it off, and take up one thing regularly after another. To drift through our work, or to rush through it in a helter-skelter fashion, ends in comparatively little being done. “One thing at a time” will always perform a better day's work than doing two or three things at a time. By following this rule, one person will do more in a day than another does in a week.”

If you know what you want, why are you waiting?

1 Question For You

productivity

Productivity

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

habits

Habits

timemanagement

Time Management

3-2-1: Productivity, success, and 3 simple questions to improve your day

The Stoics were known for having good habits and self-discipline.The Stoics understood that first you make your habits, but then your habits make you. Once set in place, your habits shape your character and quality of life. This can work for you or against you — depending on the quality of your habits.

Stoics

“Truth is, how you spend your time is how you spend your life. So, if you want to be in control of your life, get in control of your time.The Stoics were very intentional with their time, as they understood the value of time. They understood that you could always make more money, but you can never make more time. Once a day is gone, it’s gone for good.

Manage Your Time

“It’s not at all that we have too short a time to live, but that we squander a great deal of it. Life is long enough, and it’s given in sufficient measure to do many great things if we spend it well.”

“People are frugal in guarding their personal property; but as soon as it comes to squandering time they are most wasteful of the one thing in which it is right to be stingy.”

For the majority of people, most of the stuff they’ve acquired is collecting dust somewhere in their homes as it’s hardly being used. All it did was cost money, occupy space, and took up Earth’s resources in the production- and transportation process.Nevertheless, consumer culture wants you to believe you need more stuff, better stuff, and more expensive stuff to feel happy and confident.Truth is, freedom is the highest degree of wealth — not luxury items.

Practice Minimalism

“Until we have begun to go without them, we fail to realise how unnecessary many things are. We’ve been using them not because we needed them but because we had them.”

“Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants."

Walking is underrated. Not only does it contribute to greater health, but it also clears the mind and sparks creativity. The Stoics would regularly go on long walks by themselves to sort out their thoughts.I recommend you go on walks by yourself, without any forms of input (no music, audiobooks, social media, etc.). Just be with yourself, your thoughts, and the fresh air. It will put life in perspective.

Walk Often

“Only thoughts won by walking are valuable.”

Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body. Through reading books, we can learn from others who have walked the path before us, so we don’t have to make the same mistakes and face the same obstacles.The Stoics read a lot because they understood it was the most efficient way of learning and developing themselves. You can gain the wisdom someone spent a lifetime to acquire (through trial and error) in just a few days merely by reading the books they wrote.Make reading a daily habit, and your life will change.

Read Often

“Progress is not achieved by luck or accident, but by working on yourself daily.”

There is great power in being by yourself for an entire day — no one there to influence or entertain you.When it’s just you and your thoughts, great things can happen. You can put your life in perspective, gain fresh new ideas, and sort out your thoughts. This is nearly impossible when you’re constantly surrounded by other people.Practicing solitude is something most people find challenging. Even when they’re alone, they seek other people’s presence by going on social media.

Practice Solitude

“People look for retreats for themselves, in the country, by the coast, or in the hills. There is nowhere that a person can find a more peaceful and trouble-free retreat than in his own mind. . . . So constantly give yourself this retreat, and renew yourself.”

“Solitude is a state in which the mind is free from input from other minds.”

<ul><li>Manage your time</li><li>Practice Minimalism</li><li>Walk often</li><li>Read often</li><li>Practice Solitude</li></ul>

In Brief

Increase your productivity, wealth and happiness . 

This is why Marcus Aurelius ruled over the largest empire on earth, Epictetus triumphed over slavery, Seneca became the greatest writer of his era, and Cato led his troops to victory. The Stoics…

5 Stoic Habits For Increased Productivity, Wealth & Happiness

“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.”

We need daily motivation to work towards our progress and so we have compiled a list of motivational quotes for work, which can fuel your energy

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

communication

Communication

60 Motivational quotes for work and success

Most people assume that owning a credit card means that you'll be swarmed in debt  but this is not always true. Let's explore the reasons why.

How to Avoid Piling Credit card Debts

Reading through the terms and conditions that come with opening a new credit card is important so you can ensure that you are getting favorable terms compared to what competitors are offering (this would require you do a little digging beforehand). For instance, you can find out what interest rates other issuers are offering and at the risk of stating the obvious, go for the credit card with the lowest interest rate.

1. Read the Fine Print

Credit card issuers prefer that you use your card for making purchase payments, if instead, you withdraw cash at an ATM, for instance, you get charged a transaction fee, finance charges and a higher interest rate. It’s the most expensive transaction you can make with a credit card.

2. Avoid Cash Advances

Medical bills may show up unexpected but putting them on your credit card is not the answer. Doing these will cost you a lot of money in interest instead, call your doctor or hospital’s billing department and ask about your options, hospitals usually have a structure for interest-free monthly payment plans.

3. Avoid Putting Medical Bills On Your Credit Cards

The better your credit card score the lower interest you should have to pay. If your credit score has improved and you have always cleared your bills on time, it might be time to give your credit card issuer a call. Most credit card issuers provide varying interest rates to cardholders based on their credit score. Look up your credit score by logging into your credit card issuers site then compare with the varying interest rates your issuer offers to find where you belong.

4. Negotiate A Lower Interest

Consumers are more likely to spend more money when they pay by credit card, this is said to be because people do not experience the abstract pain of payments. Staying on a budget is all based on your self-regulation but you can consider applying the following tips:Monitoring your payments, removing the autofill card option from your online shopping option, never using more than 30% of your available credit. Added to that If you can’t afford it without a credit card don’t buy it, limit the number of credit cards you have so your payments become easier to track.

5. Stay on a budget

Paying off your balance each month helps you avoid interest completely and improves your credit score. Using an autopay feature ensures that you never miss a payment and therefore never have to worry about paying extra in interest.

6. Link a bank account & Turn on Autopay

Emergencies are one of the reasons people go into credit card debt therefore building a safety net by saving or investing in appreciating assets will ensure that whatever the future throws at you, you’ll have the capacity to return a serve.

7. Have backup savings or investments

These Ideas show how to enjoy the rewards that come with using a credit card while also avoiding the threat of drowning in debt.

😎 On my blog: Informationprime.wordpres.com

moneyandinvestments

Money & Investments

Rewards, Debts and Interest: A Complete Guide to Credit Card Management

Motivation works well in the short-term. If you set a new goal, you can probably summon up the motivation to pursue it earnestly for a week or two. But motivation wanes. If your goal takes more than a month or two, you’re going to need more than just motivation. You’re going to need habits.Habit-building methods are great because they translate that short-term motivation into something more durable. If you invest in consistent routines, with triggers, rewards and punishments, you can stabilize that motivation into systematic output.

Habit Formation

This transition from motivated bursts to stable habits is often so powerful that people who’ve never tried it before become proselytizing converts.I know many <a href="http://zenhabits.net/">bloggers </a><a href="http://www.stevepavlina.com/">that </a><a href="http://jamesclear.com/">built </a>their initial audiences on habit forming. Part of that is because habits are a popular topic. But I suspect the real reason is that the methods are so powerful that people feel compelled to start a blog about them.

The Gospel of Changing Habits

Any action requires two kinds of effort in order to get done :<ul><li>An intrinsic effort that depends on the action. </li><li>An effort to decide whether or not to execute the action.</li></ul> Habits can modify the first, but the main reason they work is that they eliminate the second type of effort.Every time you read a book, you’re investing these two kinds of effort. First there’s the effort of reading. Depending on the difficulty of the book, this might require a lot of effort or zero effort. Imagine the difference between a quantum physics textbook and a Harry Potter book and you’ll see why.

Action Requires Two Kinds of Effort

Any action requires two kinds of effort in order to get done:<ul><li> An intrinsic effort that depends on the action </li><li>An effort to decide whether or not to execute the action. </li></ul>Habits can modify the first, but the main reason they work is that they eliminate the second type of effort.Every time you read the book, you’re investing these two kinds of effort. First there’s the effort of reading. Depending on the difficulty of the book, this might require a lot of effort or zero effort. Imagine the difference between a quantum physics textbook and a Harry Potter book and you’ll see why.

Habits appear to reduce these two costs in different ways:<ol><li>Habits can reduce the intrinsic cost by making you better at the task. As you read more difficult books, you get better at reading, so it doesn’t require as much energy.</li><li>Habits reduce the decision cost by eliminating the ambiguity of when and how to perform the behavior. If you read your fifty pages at lunch, every day, for three months, the next lunch break you’ll automatically start reading without having to decide whether to do it.</li></ol>For a lot of tasks, the second cost reduction is far greater than the first.

Cost Reduction

Habits, appear to reduce these two costs in different ways:<ol><li>Habits can reduce the intrinsic cost by making you better at the task. As you read more difficult books, you get better at reading, so it doesn’t require as much energy.</li><li>Habits reduce the decision cost by eliminating the ambiguity of when and how to perform the behavior. If you read your fifty pages at lunch, every day, for three months, the next lunch break you’ll automatically start reading without having to decide whether to do it.</li></ol>For a lot of tasks, the second cost reduction is far greater than the first.

<ul><li>Not all habits are equally easy to build . This makes sense because some have higher intrinsic effort required, which results in not only higher intrinsic cost but also higher decision costs.</li><li>You can’t establish an unlimited number of habits . This makes sense because even if you eliminate the decision effort, you still have to pay the intrinsic effort. </li><li>Most habits are only metastable . <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metastability">Metastability </a>is a concept in physics where a certain state of affairs is stable, but small perturbations can break that stability. </li></ul>

Habits are Metastable

This idea of metastability conforms to my experience as the reason why I’ve found few habits have had permanent lifespans. <ul><li>Inevitably, the habit breaks down because of a temporary lifestyle change: a vacation, an illness, needing to move or work overtime. </li><li>These create shocks which are often enough to break the behavior, increase the decision cost, making it no longer automatic when you return to the habit.</li></ul>

Why Habits Fade ? 

<ul><li>This metastability suggests that the most important positions to look at when setting a habit are during possible disruptions. If you temporarily have to break a habit, then re-establishing it as soon as the interruption is gone should be your top priority.</li></ul>Even better if you can avoid breaking the habit at all, creating a placeholder habit in its absence. That might mean reading five pages instead of fifty when you’re busy, or doing a home workout when you’re traveling instead of going to the gym.

How to Deal With Medium-Term Habits

We often struggle with keeping up our habits. This article explains why we struggle so :)

Harness that short-term motivation to generate long-term benefits.

problemsolving

Problem Solving

Why Is It so Hard to Create Permanent Habits?

What your mental strength is what your attitude will be towards the innumerable hindrances and obstacles that are likely to come in your way in life.You can either live life one day at a time or plan elaborately for a distinct near future, but for all of that you need to develop a mental strength that would keep you rock solid no matter what surprises life throws at you.

Mental strength: How to boost it?

Psychologists define it as the measure of resilience when a certain individual braves adversity.Every individual exhibits a certain type of attitude while facing a difficult situation and that attitude entails mental strength.Negative turns in life events, crisis, financial issues, environmental factors are few of the unavoidable hindrances faced by every human being.The degree by which these negative incidents affect varies from individual to individual and the way a person responds to these effects is what constitutes mental strength.

What is mental strength?

In order to boost mental strength, one needs to adopt a psychological exercise. This involves understanding core beliefs, figuring out the strengths and weaknesses, creating extra space for positive thoughts, knowing a proper way to channel emotions, and observing daily activities.Always use mental energy judiciously in order to boost mental strength. "Wasting brain power ruminating about things you can’t control drains mental energy quickly. The more you think about negativity that you can’t solve, the less energy you’ll have leftover for creative endeavour" an article in Forbes.

How to boost mental strength?

Mental energy should be used for productive tasks. For example, try to find a long forgotten hobby or leisure activity that you had interest in during school days. When your thoughts are not productive, try to distract it towards the hobby. A hobby engages your mind no matter how stressed you are, because it is something that you love doing.

How to use mental energy?

Though self-isolation is the need of the hour due to rising cases of Omicron, it is not isolation literally. Though one is confined within four walls to stop the spread of the virus, one can always reach out to people virtually. Make the most use of the internet. Participate in group interactions, share your ideas, discuss on varied topics, and gain positive insights.

Interact, don't isolate

Do not stop reading, no matter how difficult it is for you to concentrate. Reading books on self development will not only give your insights on coping with stress, it will also make you aware of various facts that can actually productively boost your mental health. The time engaged in reading can never go in vain.

Read, read, read

What your mental strength is what your attitude will be towards the innumerable hindrances and obstacles that are likely to come in your way in life. You can either live life one day at a time or plan elaborately for a distinct near future, but for all of that you need to develop a mental strength that would keep you rock solid no matter what surprises life throws at you.

health

Health

mentalhealth

Mental Health

Expert approved ways to improve your mental strength  | The Times of India
			

Families who dine at home together are happier and healthier, but work, school, sports practices and other obligations all seem to get in the way. 
Whether your family mealtime happens every night or only once a week, in the morning before school or late-night for just dessert, it's important to take advantage of whatever opportunity you have to nourish the mind, soul and stomach of everyone at the table.

Having Dinner With Your Family

In the United States <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267720308_Of_Ketchup_and_Kin_Dinnertime_Con%20versations_as_a_Major_Source_of_Family_Knowledge_Family_Adjustment_and_Family_Resilie%20nce">about 70 percent of meals</a> are consumed outside the home, and about 20 percent are eaten in the car. About half of American families rarely have family dinner.Decades of research have shown that children who regularly eat dinner with their families at home do better on a number of health measures.

Plan: The Key Is Togetherness, Not Timing

When kids eat with their parents, they are more likely to have:<ul><li>More fruits and vegetables and drink less soda.</li><li>Lower rates of obesity as both children and adults.</li><li>Higher self-esteem and a more positive outlook.     </li><li>Lower rates of substance abuse, teen pregnancy, school behavioural problems and depression.</li><li>Better body image and fewer eating disorders.</li><li>Better grades, higher reading scores and better vocabulary.</li></ul>

Benefits Of Eating With Family

You have more chances than you realize to connect with your family at the table. During the work week, most families have two opportunities a day to dine together (breakfast and dinner) and three chances (breakfast, lunch and dinner) on the weekends.
That gives us a total of 16 traditional meal opportunities a week to connect with our families.

Pick The Eating Occasion

Pros: Morning is often the only time everyone is together; kids love breakfast food. A study of 8,000 children in Europe showed that kids who ate breakfast with parents five or more days a week were 40 percent less likely to be overweight than their peers. Cons: Mornings can be rushed. Harvard’s Family Table project estimates that many families only have about 10 minutes for breakfast. Kids may be sleepy and not as engaged in conversation.

Family Breakfast: Pros And Cons

Pros: Usually simple and faster than other meals; great for picnics. Cons: Just two chances a week (Sat, Sun) for most working families; an only family meal with a potential negative. Studies show that children who eat daily lunch with their parents are more likely to be overweight.

Lunch: Pros And Cons

Pros:  Longest meal of day (about 22 mins); a good time to catch up on events of day, school, work etc. Cons: Tough on working parents to get home in time to cook; for teens, homework and sports conflicts interfere with dinner time.

Dinner: Pros And Cons

Pros: More time to prepare food, fewer scheduling conflicts. Cons: Television (sports) may be more tempting; kids may have less to say about school.

Weekend Meals: Pros And Cons

Pros: Great option when one parent can’t be home for full dinner; use time at the table for game, conversation. Cons: Adds extra calories to the day; time at table will be shorter than a regular meal.

Extended Snack: Pros And Cons

Pros: Kids love dessert so they will definitely show up; best to serve fruit at least some of the time. Cons: Risk of extra calories and sugaring up kids before bedtime

Desserts: Pros And Cons

Family researchers emphasize that there isn’t a magic number for family meals. But they do note that the benefits increase with every meal, so the more times you can gather as a family, the better. Every time parents sit down with their kids, it creates another opportunity to connect, and strong family connections appear to keep teens healthier and safer in a number of areas. 
Remember, the family table is not just about dinner — you have 16 opportunities a week to connect over a traditional meal and you can always gather at the table for just a snack or dessert.

The Sweet Spot

The more times a week a teen sat down for a family meal, the more likely he or she reported having high-quality relationships with parents. Family dinners are also strongly linked to lower rates of teen substance abuse. Here are some numbers to think about:0-2 Meals Per Week: Family researchers are most concerned about families that drop below eating three meals a week. 3 Meals a Week: Three days a week is the point where researchers begin to notice positive trends in a child’s nutritional and emotional health.5-7 Meals a Week: Where the greatest benefits in teen and family health were seen.

The More The Better

<ul>
<li>Family meals don’t have to look like a Norman Rockwell painting. “I believe the magic can happen without perfection,” says Lynn Barendsen, a co-founder of The Family Dinner Project. “Come together and enjoy each other’s company and manage to have a great meal."</li>
<li>If both parents can’t be home at the same time for dinner, or if teen sports practices get in the way, plan your table time for later in the evening around a family snack or late-evening dessert.</li>
<li>Don’t try to go from 1 or 2 meals a week to 7 meals overnight. Look at your family’s schedule for the week and try to find just one meal time that works for your family. Let everyone know and add your plans to the calendars of all the adults and teens in the house.</li>
</ul>

Keep It Simple

Don’t try to do everything at once. Look at your family and decide what your needs are. If it’s more family table time, try to find one extra meal that works. 
If you’ve got picky eaters, focus on strategies to help everyone eat more healthful. If your problem is tension at the dinner table, focus on conversation starters and games to keep everyone happy and engaged.

Set One Goal

<ul>
<li>The Family Table should be a fun, welcoming space. It’s not a place for stress, arguments and grilling kids about their grades.</li>
<li>Family time at a restaurant is better than no family meal time at all. But the reality is that meals eaten outside the home are almost always less healthful.</li>
</ul>

Keep it Fun

Sometimes the family table only has one adult. Divorced and single parents have different dinner planning challenges than married parents.
Sometimes one parent has to leave for work early, come home late or be away on business, leaving another parent to manage the family meal. Remember that a successful family table is one that results in family connection, healthful food and fun conversation. One adult at the table is better than none.

Solo Parents

One-child families, particularly when there is only one parent, can feel lonely at the family table. 
Eating meals with your child as often as possible still counts as a family meal, but consider joining another family from time to time to add a little extra noise and conversation to your family table.

Small Families

Sometimes an older sibling or caregiver is in charge of feeding the kids at night. 
You can still get the benefits of a family meal by making sure healthful food is served, and asking the caregiver to create a fun meal or suggest games or conversation starters that will allow children and teens to connect with each other and their caregiver.

Caregivers

The magic of the family table comes from the conversation and connection between parents and children, but it’s also important to serve nourishing food, model healthful eating habits and avoid food battles.
Childhood health experts say the best advice for improving a child’s diet is simply putting healthful food on the table and sitting down together to eat it.

Nourish: Good Food Brings Everyone Together

Everybody at the table, including the parents, has likes and dislikes. You can create different dishes for the meat lovers, vegetarians and picky eaters. Or you can just brace yourself for a nightly food battle. 
But why not make it easier on everyone and create buffet-style build-your-own meals? Start with a basic ingredient and then step aside and let everyone create their own favorite version of the dish.

Build Your Own

Once the food is served, limit any food talk about how good it tastes. Don’t make comments about how much or how little someone has put on their plate. Even something as simple as “Just eat a little more of that,” could prompt a child to become stubborn and resist the food. No cajoling. No bribing, as It makes for tension at the table and it’s counterproductive

Don't Comment On The Food

Children learn eating behaviors, both good and bad, from a parent. So dinner time is a good time to model healthful eating. If a child has avoided a dish, don’t pressure them. 
 Just give yourself a heaping serving, and ask them if they want to try. If they say no, just say “more for me!” and keep eating.

Setting An Example

With hot stoves, boiling water and sharp knives at hand, it is understandable that parents don’t want children in the kitchen when they’re making dinner. But studies suggest that involving children in meal preparation is an important first step in getting them to try new foods.

Take Them To The Kitchen

The secret sauce of family dinner is not the food — it’s the connection parents and kids make with each other.Family meals offer a natural opportunity for parental influence. There are few other contexts in family life that provide a regular window of focused time together.This is good news for parents who feel like they can’t quite pull off the perfect family meal every time, because what really seems to matter is just being there to talk, listen and see your kids, even if the meal is just a quick sandwich or a store-prepared chicken.

The Connect

Family meals should be fun, interesting and free of conflict. Don't Talk About: Bad grades or school problems: Kids never feel good when they struggle in school. Chores: Kids feel berated when parents keep reminding them of chores. Politics: Whether you broach the topic of politics depends on your family.What everyone is eating: It’s never helpful to comment about the food one of your kids is eating or not eating.

What Not To Talk About

How you can help:  Ask your kids if they need any help with homework or school projects. Weekend and vacation plans: Topics like holiday plans, weekend outings and dream vacations (past and future) are terrific topics for a fun family dinner. Current events: A family table is a great place for serious topics about the world around us. What everyone wants to eat: The dinner table is a great place to talk about foods you love, foods that make you squeamish or the best (or worst) meal you’ve ever had.

What To Talk About

Some families choose “zero tolerance” for mealtimes. There are certainly times when this is a good idea for everyone. Zero tolerance means you turn off all computers, televisions and cellphones. 
Here’s the bad news — it’s usually parents who are most likely to break the rules. So zero tolerance needs to apply to everyone at the table, not just the kids.

Tech-Free Zone

Do your kids have a favorite song or video that’s on their minds? Sometimes technology can spark a conversation and family connection. Watch a short clip or let your child read from a funny blog post. Now put the phones in the center of the table and enjoy the conversation that ensues after you’ve allowed yourself to peek inside your child’s digital world.

Conversation Starters

To get the most out of the family table, it’s time to learn how to play with your food.Every time you gather as a family around the table, remember to create one fun and playful moment that everyone at the table can share. You can make shapes and faces out of food, make a recipe a parent loved as a child, play table games or pose an unusual question of the day. “As our worlds have become increasingly virtual, cooking is one of the rare activities that involve our senses, allows us to make things with our hands, and is an activity that we can do together.

Play

The table is a great place to reconnect as a family. We'll show you how. 

food

Food

loveandrelationships

Love & Relationships

The Family Table - Well Guides

<ul>
<li>People are more connected, digitally, than ever. Yet loneliness is epidemic.</li>
<li>Combat loneliness by listening to others without distraction.</li>
<li>Elevate your small-talk skills by embracing authentic curiosity.</li>
<li>Having productive conversations about uncomfortable topics requires empathy. Show appreciation and gratitude.</li>
<li>Become a better digital communicator by focusing on your intent.</li>
<li>People will still seek out the human connection in the post-pandemic world.</li>
<li>Strengthen your connections by expressing vulnerability.</li>
</ul>

Key Takeaways

US surgeon general Vivek Murthy describes five forms of being alone – the first four of which can damage your mental and physical health:
<ul>
<li>Intimate loneliness – You long for someone in whom you can confide or an intimate partner.</li>
<li>Relational loneliness – You yearn for quality social companions and friendships.</li>
<li>Collective loneliness – You feel you lack a community of like-minded individuals.</li>
<li>Isolation – You’re physically alone.</li>
<li>Solitude – Unlike the first four states of being, solitude is a peaceful state of voluntary isolation, often for the purpose of self-reflection.</li>
</ul>

The Five Forms Of Being Alone

Healthy relationships generate a slew of positive benefits. Research shows, for example, that doubling your number of friends boosts your well-being as much as increasing your income by 50%. But despite humanity’s need for connection, people everywhere are experiencing increased loneliness. In 2018, 22% of American adults reported that they often or always felt isolated or lonely. The 2020 coronavirus pandemic has sent such feelings into overdrive..

The Importance Of Healthy Relationships

Digital forms of communication abound, but social connection platforms can actually exacerbate feelings of loneliness. For example, people who passively scroll and post status updates on Facebook – as opposed to engaging with others via comments – actually feel more isolated

Connected Yet Isolated

You can overcome your feelings of loneliness by cultivating stronger listening skills, which allow you to better connect with others. 
People can be bad listeners for many reasons: They’re busy formulating responses while the other person is still talking, or they have an intense emotional reaction to something someone is saying. They might be impatient with the speed with which the other person is conveying information. Or their smartphones distract them.

Combat Loneliness by Listening to Others Without Distraction

Slow down and be intentional with your focus. Put away your devices. Don’t force a conversation to follow your own agenda. Instead, try asking open-ended questions, letting others direct the flow of the conversation.

Cultivate Stronger Listening Skills: Beat Distraction

You aren’t really listening if you’re busy predicting what someone is going to say next.When people repeat phrases or words, they’re often revealing their primary focus, which is valuable information.

Listening With Awareness

When people express intense emotions, avoid the impulse to react emotionally too. Instead, ask neutral questions like what makes the issue so important to them.Spark your curiosity instead of falling in the emotional roller coaster.

Let Emotions Spark Your Curiosity

<ul>
<li>Use your eyes – To better understand others, pay attention to body language clues, such as your conversation partner protectively crossing his or her arms.</li>
<li>Embrace a “beginner’s mind” – Remain open-minded, letting go of any assumptions of your own expertise.</li>
<li>Ask the right questions – People view others as strong listeners when they ask thoughtful questions. Good questions typically use the words “what” and “how.”</li>
</ul>

Tips For Better Listening

Build stronger social ties by cultivating curiosity about others. Research shows that people feel closer to conversation partners who express curiosity. They also view such individuals as more attractive. Curious people care about what’s happening around them and genuinely want to hear people’s stories. They have an open-minded approach to listening, which makes them appear more trustworthy.

Elevate Your Small-Talk Skills

People often conceal their true feelings from others when performing social roles. For example, when making a sales pitch, you might pretend to be confident when you’re actually feeling insecure. Yet a willingness to show others your authentic self is the bedrock of healthy relationships. You might assume that displaying vulnerability will cause others to view you as weak, but the reverse is true: Research shows that people like individuals who display vulnerability better than those who don’t.

Expressing Vulnerability

Ask yourself why you want to tell a story. Are you hoping to entertain, enlighten, persuade or give information to your listeners? Think about your audience’s concerns and priorities, and how your story could service those needs.

Reflect On The Purpose Of Your Storytelling

<ul>
<li>Share a secret or unexpected truth – Revealing something unexpected about yourself (provided you’re not oversharing with the wrong people) can intrigue your listeners.</li>
<li>Include vivid details – Improve your storytelling skills by sharing the details of what you could hear, see, taste, touch and smell.</li>
</ul>

Tips To Show Vulnerbility

<ul>
<li>Share a transformational truth – If you want people to celebrate your success with you, then share the struggles and moments of conflict you faced before reaching your goal.</li>
<li>Establish your credibility – People are attracted to credible people who display vulnerability, but they’re repelled by those they perceive as lacking in competence.</li>
<li>Be genuine – People can tell when you’re trying to manipulate them with contrived stories about your vulnerable moments.</li>
</ul>

Being Vulnerable: Establish Your Crediblility By Sharing Truth

A new age look at communication and relationships

You are one conversation away from changing your life. We all crave connection. We were never meant to live alone or communicate only in "likes" and retweets. In Every Conversation Counts, TV host and human connection keynote speaker Riaz Meghji digs deep into the dangers of isolation and loneliness, our social pandemic, that have been brought into sharp relief by the coronavirus crisis. He tackles a uniquely modern question: why are we so connected, and yet so alone--and how can we reconnect? Sharing personal insights from powerful interviews and years of on-air experience, Meghji offers 5 simple habits for building extraordinary relationships. He explains how to spark authentic conversations, win trust, create new business, and collaborate effectively. Meghji points a way forward to a better future--one in which we express genuine curiosity about others, listen with our whole hearts, show up as our authentic selves, and make every conversation count.

Every Conversation Counts

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