Tag: emotional health

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children's ministry cartoons

Why Inviting a Friend is so Powerful

This cartoon was for a magazine series on encouraging kids to bring their friends to church. It demonstrates why inviting a friend is so powerful.

cartoon on why inviting a friend is so powerful. One boy says, "I brought a friend today. Just call me 'The Great Commissioner.'"
©2013 Kidzmatter Magazine and Kevin Spear

When I first wrote this blog post, I had been going to job and career seminars in a new city. One thing I’ve heard repeatedly is that job postings on Internet sites are not nearly as effective as finding work through a friend. Since this was my first big move, I had no idea how crucial that was. It took a few months to make friends and find good work.

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Categories
motivation

Toxic Phrases and Emotional Intelligence

I know how you feel. But can’t you just start feeling good? I’ve been thinking about times I haven’t displayed emotional intelligence when I’ve had some glib answer to a complicated issue. It’s easy to do, isn’t it? It’s very easy to be an armchair quarterback when we aren’t the one dealing with an issue.

This article from Inc.com hit home for me. I’ve probably said these phrases to someone else more than once. Have you ever said…

  • Can’t you just…
  • I know how you feel
  • How’s it going? Great, right?

Modern communication can be quite a challenge. It can be difficult because we want to be helpful. We also want to bring another person up when they’re feeling down. Yet, we tend to forget how annoyed we can feel when someone has a pat answer for a challenge we face.

I also realize the positive articles I post may turn off someone who is going through a tough time. I don’t know how you feel. Most problems are more complicated than a simple answer and I can’t possibly know your situation.

However, I also know we each need some positive content throughout our daily lives. I will resolve to continue posting positive articles while realizing I will need to handle it differently if we faced each other one-on-one.

We’re good, right? See? There I go again!

Categories
motivation

Add a Smile to Your Day

Cartoon of a pastor with a disgruntled couple. The wife says, "He can't express his feelings. he even uses emojis incorrectly!"

Have you been down in the dumps lately? We all go through those times, don’t we? We face challenges in our personal and professional lives. There is no shortage of bad news. Yet, there are some simple acts we can do to improve our outlook, even when things are looking a little glum. We can add a smile.

This article from CNBC claims that research proves if you’re feeling down, forcing a smile will eventually help you feel better.

“A ‘fake it ‘til you make it’ approach could have more credit than we expect.”

Fernando Marmolejo-Ramos: Study Author in the CNBC article

There will be times when this isn’t appropriate like I mentioned in a previous post. After all, when you have to deal with some heavy stuff, a smile may just feel out of place.

Still, we have more control over our emotions than we allow ourselves to believe. There is a reason good customer service includes a smile. It helps a person look approachable and shows that he or she is ready to help you.

So even if you don’t feel like it today, put on a smile and see what happens. You might even want to tap into your inner smiley-face-emoji.

Cartoon of a pastor with a disgruntled couple. The wife says, "He can't express his feelings. he even uses emojis incorrectly!"
Categories
Exercise

Exercise and the Mind — Quartz

This article caught my eye, partly because I read it just after I exercised. We hear so many articles about the physical benefits of exercise, but this article revealed some different findings.

Neuroscientist says there’s a powerful benefit to exercise that is rarely discussed

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