1. Spend a few minutes each day making breath a conscious act and breathe through your nose rather than your mouth. Every breath is an energy exchange with the world around us and it is literally the most important thing that we do. In his book simply titled Breath, James Nestor explores the history and impact of how we breathe and its relationship to modern disease, offering simple breathing exercises to improve health and wellbeing. Breath is a direct link between our conscious and unconscious operating systems, and it can be a powerful tool for change, physically and mentally.
2. If something is bothering you, look at it from a variety of different perspectives. Be curious, don’t judge or jump to conclusions. "For every event in life there are many different angles. When you look at the same event from a wider perspective your sense of worry and anxiety reduces and you have greater joy” from the Book of Joy, conversations with the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu. Challenge what you think you know about a situation and ask questions, do research. “The very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common: they don’t alter their views to fit the facts; they alter the facts to fit their views.” (Doctor Who)
3. Listen with open ears and mind. Most communication problems and conflicts are actually due to a listening problem. Sometimes we can be triggered by a word or phrase, jump to judgement in our own thoughts, and lose the both the content and context of what someone is saying. Or we listen impatiently and inaccurately waiting for our chance to speak. Instead, try listening with the single agenda of understanding another person’s point of view. Psychologist Carl Rogers once said, “A person’s real need, a most terrible need, is for someone to listen…not as a ‘patient’ but as a human soul.” To listen well is to respond to a great human yearning and helps to heal the world.
4. Do something nice for someone every day. Smile, wave, thank, listen, donate, make a phone call, volunteer, pick up trash, be of service in some way, shape or form, no matter how small. One very powerful kindness is to let go of judging yourself and others. Tikkun Olam is Hebrew for “repair the world” and each act of kindness you do adds one more speck of compassion and love to the world.
2. If something is bothering you, look at it from a variety of different perspectives. Be curious, don’t judge or jump to conclusions. "For every event in life there are many different angles. When you look at the same event from a wider perspective your sense of worry and anxiety reduces and you have greater joy” from the Book of Joy, conversations with the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu. Challenge what you think you know about a situation and ask questions, do research. “The very powerful and the very stupid have one thing in common: they don’t alter their views to fit the facts; they alter the facts to fit their views.” (Doctor Who)
3. Listen with open ears and mind. Most communication problems and conflicts are actually due to a listening problem. Sometimes we can be triggered by a word or phrase, jump to judgement in our own thoughts, and lose the both the content and context of what someone is saying. Or we listen impatiently and inaccurately waiting for our chance to speak. Instead, try listening with the single agenda of understanding another person’s point of view. Psychologist Carl Rogers once said, “A person’s real need, a most terrible need, is for someone to listen…not as a ‘patient’ but as a human soul.” To listen well is to respond to a great human yearning and helps to heal the world.
4. Do something nice for someone every day. Smile, wave, thank, listen, donate, make a phone call, volunteer, pick up trash, be of service in some way, shape or form, no matter how small. One very powerful kindness is to let go of judging yourself and others. Tikkun Olam is Hebrew for “repair the world” and each act of kindness you do adds one more speck of compassion and love to the world.
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